{"id":5820,"date":"2022-07-07T16:14:46","date_gmt":"2022-07-07T22:14:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davidrupert\/?p=5820"},"modified":"2022-07-07T17:19:42","modified_gmt":"2022-07-07T23:19:42","slug":"how-many-evangelicals-are-there-in-the-world-where-are-they","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davidrupert\/how-many-evangelicals-are-there-in-the-world-where-are-they\/","title":{"rendered":"How Many Evangelicals are there in the World? Where are They?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Watching the current denigration of Evangelicals (and Catholics too) in the modern news cycle is irritating, and yet mildly entertaining.<\/p>\n

For years \u2013 even decades \u2013 they\u2019ve cited numbers about church attendance, lack of belief, and wayward leadership.<\/p>\n

But on the ground, that\u2019s not true. Evangelicals aren\u2019t dying.<\/strong> Every church I have been to in the last 20 years has been healthy, thriving and growing. The sheer number of young families in churches is a sign that the life-changing message of Jesus still resonates.<\/p>\n

The question is, \u201cHow many evangelicals are there in the world?\u201d<\/p>\n

What is an Evangelical?<\/h3>\n

In order to get to a defined number, you will need to define exactly how to count an Evangelical. But Evangelicals don\u2019t have a home office or a Pope or a central figure that easily define the group. It spans cultures, denominations, and continents.<\/p>\n

Jonathan Merrit writing for the Atlantic puts it best<\/a>. \u201cBecause they span a range of denominations, churches, and organizations, there is no single membership statement to delineate identity. As a result, individual observers are left to decide how to define what makes someone or something\u00a0evangelical<\/em>. To the pollster, it is a sociological term. To the pastor, it is a denominational or doctrinal term.\u201d<\/p>\n

And unfortunately, some politicians and media sources have used it as a broad racial classification, slurring white Republicans.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvangelicals are people of faith and should be defined by their beliefs, not by their politics or race,\u201d said National Association of Evangelicals (NAE) President Leith Anderson<\/p>\n

It\u2019s surprise to some but Evangelicals are not marked by what party they vote for.\u00a0 Most African Americans count as Evangelicals, but they tend to vote differently than their white brothers and sisters. Voting trends are less about allegiance and more a sign of what the other party offers in terms of culture, life, and morality<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

According to the National Association of Evangelicals, the definition goes something like this:<\/p>\n

\u201cEvangelicals take the Bible seriously and believe in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. The term \u201cevangelical\u201d comes from the Greek word euangelion, meaning\u00a0\u201cthe good news\u201d or the \u201cgospel.\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0Thus, the evangelical faith focuses on the \u201cgood news\u201d of salvation brought to sinners by Jesus Christ.<\/p>\n

U.S. Evangelicals<\/h3>\n

Elected leaders, media, universities, and culture are doing all they can to discredit U.S. Evangelicals. You hear it in the news every day. Hilariously they try to point to examples such as Donald Trump<\/a> (an old-school Presbyterian), Clarence Thomas<\/a>, (a Catholic) as \u201cevidence\u201d that Evangelicals are on a diabolical mission to take over the nation.<\/p>\n

The US government, a\u00a0 \u201cFederal constitutional representative democracy<\/a>\u201d is kind to Evangelicals \u2013 and frankly, everyone else, thumbing its nose at the expert class, the bureaucratic state, and the mob rule. So, when the courts affirm the Constitution, it\u2019s a win for believers and nonbelievers alike.<\/p>\n

Because the US at its best allows for freedom of thought, expression and worship is the reason Evangelicals have thrived in the US, <\/strong>with about 1\/3 of all Americans identifying as such. This equates to about 100 million people according to a study by Wheaton College.<\/p>\n

Gallup asked the same question, and their survey says 37% of respondents called themselves \u201cborn again\u201d or \u201cevangelical.\u201d<\/p>\n

But the sheer number means this group has a larger influence in cultural issues, which horrifies mainline churchgoers in Europe who don\u2019t necessarily translate their faith into the public sphere.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

So, how many evangelicals are there in the world?<\/h3>\n

With all the local sparring, it\u2019s easy to forget that Christianity is a global faith \u2013 and its growing. <\/em><\/p>\n

Approximately\u00a02.38 billion people practice some form of Christianity<\/a>\u00a0globally. This means that about one-third of the world\u2019s total population is Christian. Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, Evangelicals, and Pentecostals all have huge chunks of that number.<\/p>\n

When it comes to counting Evangelicals, Operation World estimates the number at 545.9 million<\/strong>, which makes for 7.9 percent of the world\u2019s population.<\/p>\n

Gordon Conwell University cites the World Christian Encyclopedia<\/a> and says 386 million<\/strong> Evangelicals exist around the world \u2013 an increase from 112 million estimated in 1970.<\/p>\n

French researcher Sebastien Fath<\/a> says there are 660 million evangelicals<\/strong> in the world. This represents about 26% of the 2.5 billion Christians on the planet. This number is based on research gained from 25 academic titles<\/strong>\u00a0, all published in\u00a02019<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s how Fath gives the continental breakdown:<\/a><\/p>\n

Asia <\/strong>claims the highest number, 215 million, including:<\/p>\n