And then I'm also fascinated that, over the last 40 years, Christianity has grown faster in China than any other place in the world. It's gone from approximately 1 million Christians to around 100 million.
Today, estimates vary widely: The government tallies twenty-nine million Christian adherents, while outside organizations have placed their estimates substantially higher. In 2010, the Pew Research Center calculated sixty-eight million Christians in China, or approximately 5 percent of the country's population.
National surveys conducted in the early 21st century estimated that some 80% of the population of China, which is more than a billion people, practice some kind of Chinese folk religion; 13–16% are Buddhists; 10% are Taoist; 2.53% are Christians; and 0.83% are Muslims.
Officially, there are about 44 million Christians in the country. But according to Freedom House, a U.S. human rights group, this number is closer to 100 million if those belonging to "underground" or "house churches" are included. Of these, about 60 to 80 million are Protestant and 12 million Catholic.
Religions in China. China is a country with many religions. Buddhism, Taoism and Islam are quite popular, while there are also Christian believers (both Catholic and Protestant).
The Bible is printed in China but legally available only at church bookstores approved by Beijing. Roughly two years ago, the Chinese government banned online Bible sales. Audio Bible players, nevertheless, have become popular with people of faith in China because of their ease of use.
The most godless country in the world, however, is China. According to the survey, fully 67% of respondents in China considered themselves 'convinced atheists' – more than double the percentage in the world's second-most atheistic country, Japan (29%).
Henan is thought to have one of the most significant proportions of Christians of any Chinese province. Henan has one of the largest Protestant populations of the country.
The Eastern Orthodox Church recognizes 222 Orthodox Christians who died during the Boxer Rebellion as "Holy Martyrs of China".
Christianity (43.9%) No religion (38.9%) Islam (3.2%)
Over the past four decades, Christianity has grown faster in China than anywhere else in the world. Daryl Ireland, a Boston University School of Theology research assistant professor of mission, estimates that the Christian community there has grown from 1 million to 100 million.
Beginning in the early nineteenth century, Protestant missionaries attracted small but influential followings, and independent Chinese churches were also established. It is estimated that Christianity is the fastest growing religion in China.
Christianity is the largest religion in Australia, with a total of 43.9% of the nation-wide population identifying with a Christian denomination in the 2021 census. The first presence of Christianity in Australia coincided with the foundation of the first British colony at New South Wales in 1788.
The United States has the largest Christian population in the world, followed by Brazil, Mexico, Russia, and the Philippines.
Christianity has been estimated to be growing rapidly in South America, Africa, and Asia. In Africa, for instance, in 1900, there were only 8.7 million adherents of Christianity; now there are 390 million, and it is expected that by 2025 there will be 600 million Christians in Africa.
There are 12 million Catholics in China, less than 1 percent of the population. St. Peter's Catholic Church in downtown Shanghai is one of the country's few officially approved churches. There are around 12 million Catholics in China, less than 1 percent of China's population.
Buddhism flourished in the Tang and Song dynasties along with religious Daoism and a revival of Confucian thinking (referred to as “Neo-Confucianism”).
Muslims are a minority group in China, representing 1.6 to 2 percent of the total population (21-28 million people) according to various estimates. Though Hui Muslims are the most numerous group, the greatest concentration of Muslims are in Xinjiang, which contains a significant Uyghur population.
Studies in the 21st century suggest that, in terms of percentage and worldwide spread, Islam is the fastest-growing major religion in the world.
Saudi Arabia allows Christians to enter the country as foreign workers for work or tourism, but does not allow them to practice their faith openly.
Relative to its own populations, Zuckerman ranks the top 5 countries with the highest possible ranges of agnostics and atheists: Sweden (46-85%), Vietnam (81%), Denmark (43-80%), Norway (31-72%), and Japan (64-65%).
The government recognizes five official religions – Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, Protestantism, and Catholicism.