Catholic Church in Bolivia


Catholic Church in Bolivia
La Paz Metropolitan Cathedral
TypeNational polity
ClassificationCatholic
OrientationLatin
ScriptureBible
TheologyCatholic theology
GovernanceCEB
PopeFrancis
PresidentAurelio Pesoa Ribera
Apostolic NuncioFermín Emilio Sosa Rodríguez
RegionBolivia
Language
HeadquartersLa Paz
Origin16th century

Religion in Bolivia (2018)[1]

  Roman Catholic (70.0%)
  Protestant (17.2%)
  Mormon/Jehovah's Witness (1.7%)
  None (9.3%)
  Other religion (1.2%)
  No answer (0.6%)

The Catholic Church in Bolivia is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome. Catholicism was introduced in the 1530s and the first diocese was established in 1552. Evangelization among the Indians bore much fruit from the mid-18th to early 19th century, resuming again in 1840. The country declared independence from Spain in 1825.[citation needed]

Today, Bolivia is a predominantly Catholic country. However, the Church was disestablished as the state religion in early 2009[2] and lost remaining privileges in 2019 with the promulgation of the law on religious freedom. According to a 2018 survey, 70% of Bolivians were Catholics.[1]

  1. ^ a b Religion affiliation in Bolivia as of 2018. Based on Latinobarómetro. Survey period: June 15 to August 2, 2018, 1,200 respondents.
  2. ^ Temperman, Jeroen (2010). State-Religion Relationships and Human Rights Law: Towards a Right to Religiously Neutral Governance. BRILL. p. 35. ISBN 978-9004181489. Retrieved 12 July 2014.