Religion in Vanuatu
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Approximately 83% of the population of Vanuatu is Christian. An estimated 32% is Presbyterian, 13% Roman Catholic, 13% Anglican, and 11% Seventh-day Adventist.[1] Groups that together constitute 14% include the Church of Christ, the Apostolic Church, the Assemblies of God, and other Christian denominations.[1] The John Frum Movement, a political party that also is an indigenous religious group, is centered on the island of Tanna and includes about 5% of the population.[1] The Baha'i Faith, Muslims, Buddhists, Jehovah's Witnesses, and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) also are active.[1] There are believed to be members of other religions within the foreign community; they are free to practice their religions, but they are not known to proselytize or hold public religious ceremonies.[1]
Missionaries representing several Western churches brought Christianity to the country in the 19th and early 20th centuries.[1] Some foreign missionaries continue this work; however, approximately 90% of the clergy of the established churches are now indigenous.[1] The Summer Institute of Linguistics is active in translating the Bible into the country's many indigenous languages.[1]
The Constitution of Vanuatu provides for freedom of religion, and the government generally respects this right in practice.[1] The US government received no reports of societal abuses or discrimination based on religious belief or practice in 2007; however, some churches and individuals objected to the missionary activities of nontraditional religious groups and continued to suggest they be curtailed.[1] There was some controversy regarding a planned visit by the Unification Church founder Sun Myung Moon.[1] No visit took place, but pressure remained on the Government from some religious groups to deny an entry visa.[1]
| Vanuatu religiosity | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| religion | percent | |||
| Christianity | 83% | |||
| Animism | 7% | |||
| Buddhism | 4% | |||
| Bahá'í | 3% | |||
| others | 3% | |||
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l International Religious Freedom Report 2007: Benin. United States Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor (September 14, 2007). This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
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