Vatican admits Muslims outnumber Catholics
Vatican has officially recognized for the first time that Muslims
outnumber Catholics worldwide.
Muslims represent 19.2% of the world's 6.5 billion population, or 1.322 billion people, while Catholics represent 17.4%, according to the Vatican's latest yearbook published in its daily newspaper on Saturday.
Although US institution World Christian Database engaged in studying religious trends around the world acknowledged the greater number of Muslims as early as in 2007, the Vatican then refrained from officially recognizing the fact and decided to conduct its own research.
Analysts say the change is due to Muslim families having more children while Christian families are having fewer.
The Vatican stressed that if the followers of all branches of Christianity - Catholics, Orthodox Christians, Anglicans and other Protestants - are summed up, Christians maintain a leading position, accounting for 33% of the world's population.
Catholics were most numerous in Latin America and represent half the total population of North and South America, according to research.
The Catholic population is still growing as the world's population increases. The Vatican said that from 2005 to 2006 the Catholic population grew 1.4% to 1.13 billion.
Muslims represent 19.2% of the world's 6.5 billion population, or 1.322 billion people, while Catholics represent 17.4%, according to the Vatican's latest yearbook published in its daily newspaper on Saturday.
Although US institution World Christian Database engaged in studying religious trends around the world acknowledged the greater number of Muslims as early as in 2007, the Vatican then refrained from officially recognizing the fact and decided to conduct its own research.
Analysts say the change is due to Muslim families having more children while Christian families are having fewer.
The Vatican stressed that if the followers of all branches of Christianity - Catholics, Orthodox Christians, Anglicans and other Protestants - are summed up, Christians maintain a leading position, accounting for 33% of the world's population.
Catholics were most numerous in Latin America and represent half the total population of North and South America, according to research.
The Catholic population is still growing as the world's population increases. The Vatican said that from 2005 to 2006 the Catholic population grew 1.4% to 1.13 billion.
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