numbers of Christians. Christianity, as defined for the purpose of census and surveys, includes all those who claim to be Christian. This includes varying degrees of religious activity, from essentially non-participating but still- nominal Christians to active full-communicants and life-long clergy. These numbers also include adherents of different divisions within Christianity, including Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, Protestant, Pentecostals, Jehovah's Witnesses, Latter-day Saints, African Indigenous Churches and others. Top 10 Largest National Christian Populations Rank Nation Number Percent 1 USA 224,457,000 85% 2 Brazil 139,000,000 93% 3 Mexico 86,120,000 99% 4 Russia 80,000,000 60% 5 China 70,000,000 5.7% 6 Germany 67,000,000 83% 7 Philippines 63,470,000 93% 8 United Kingdom 51,060,000 88% 9 Italy 47,690,000 90% 10 France 44,150,000 98% 11 Nigeria 38,180,000 45% Source for these Christian statistics: Ash, Russell. The Top 10 of Everything, DK Publishing, Inc.: New York (1997), pg. 160-161; December Advance Newsletter, 1996, Kainos Press; Adherents.com. NOTE: There are many countries where very high percentages (95 to nearly 100%) of the population are Christians. There are so many, and they represent such a wide range of difficult-to-compare compositions in terms of activity, membership in European state churches, affiliation, etc., that it would be difficult to create a meaningful top 10 list of countries with the highest percentages of Christians. Please refer to the full Adherents.com for such information. Top 10 Most Christian States in the U.S.A. (Organizationally reported/affiliated adherents of Christian churches, 1990) Rank State Percent Number 1 Utah 79.60% 1,371,000 2 North Dakota 75.90 485,000 3 Rhode Island 75.10 754,000 4 Alabama 70.70 2,858,000 5 Louisiana 70.10 2,959,000 6 Mississippi 70.10 1,804,000 7 South Dakota 68.10 474,000 8 Oklahoma 66.50 2,097,000 9 Minnesota 64.20 2,807,000 10 Wisconsin 63.90 3,125,000 Christian church adherents were defined as "all members, including full members, their children and the estimated number of other regular participants who are not considered as communicant, confirmed or full members." Source: Table: Christian Church Adherents, U.S. States, 1990 in Statistical Abstract of the United States, 1997 (117th Edition); Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Commerce (October 1997). Data reprinted from M. Bradley; N. Green, Jr.; D. Jones; M. Lynn; and L. McNeil; Churches and Church Membership in the United States 1990, Glenmary Research Center, Atlanta, GA. Top 10 Most Christian States in the U.S.A. (Organizationally reported/affiliated members of Christian churches, 1990) Rank State Percent Number 1 Utah 75.00% 1,097,000 2 Rhode Island 75.00 710,000 3 North Dakota 73.80 482,000 4 South Dakota 66.90 462,000 5 Minnesota 64.90 2,644,000 6 Wisconsin 64.40 3,029,000 7 Massachusetts 64.00 3,669,000 8 Nebraska 63.10 990,000 9 Iowa 60.80 1,890,000 10 Connecticut 60.80 1,890,000 |
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