Religion in Papua New Guinea
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Religion in Papua New Guinea is predominantly Christian with traditional animist and ancestor worship still found in some places.
The courts and government in both theory and practice uphold a constitutional right to freedom of speech, thought, and belief.
A large majority of Papua New Guineans are Christian (96% in the 2000 census), however many combine their Christian faith with traditional indigenous beliefs and practices.[1]
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[edit] Christianity
The 2000 census percentages were as follows:
- Roman Catholic Church (27.0%)
- Evangelical Lutheran Church of Papua New Guinea (19.5%)
- United Church (11.5%)
- Seventh-day Adventist Church (10.0%)
- Pentecostal (8.6%)
- Evangelical Alliance (5.2%)
- Anglican Church of Papua New Guinea (3.2%)
- Baptist (2.5%)
- Salvation Army (0.2%)
- Other Christian (8.0%)
- Jehovah's Witnesses (0.4%)
- Church of Christ (0.4%)[2]
The Papua New Guinea Council of Churches members are:
- Anglican Church of Papua New Guinea
- Gutnius Lutheran Church (Missouri Synod)
- Union Baptist
- Roman Catholic Church
- Evangelical Lutheran Church of Papua New Guinea
- United Church in Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands
- Salvation Army
There are also a number of parachurch organizations:
- The Summer Institute of Linguistics is a missionary institution drawing its support from conservative evangelical Protestant churches in the United States and to a lesser extent Australia; it translates the Bible into local languages and conducts extensive linguistic research.
- Young Women's Christian Association
[edit] Other religions
Minority religions include Bahá'í (perhaps 40,000), while Islam in Papua New Guinea counts approximately 1,000 to 2,000 followers[3], mostly of immigrant origin.
[edit] Traditional religions
Traditional religions are often animist and many have elements of ancestor worship.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ US Department of State International Religious Freedom Report 2003. Retrieved on 2006-03-23.
- ^ History Catholic Church in PNG. Retrieved on 2006-03-23.
- ^ US Department of State International Religious Freedom Report 2006. Retrieved on 2006-03-23.
