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Vatican Statistics

Pope Francis arrived in the Democratic Republic of Congo on Jan. 31, 2023. The streets of the pope’s five-mile drive from the N’Dolo Airport to the presidential residence were lined with thousands of locals who cheered and waved flags. | Credit: Vatican Media

Vatican Statistics: Africa Had Biggest Increase in Catholics, While Numbers Fell in Europe

Oct 24, 2023

Catholics in the world numbered 1,375,852,000 people at the end of 2021, with an overall increase of 16.2 million compared with the previous year. 

Catholics attend Mass in Ho, Ghana. James Dalrymple via Shutterstock.

Number of Catholics in Africa, Asia Continues to Rise, Newly Released Statistics Indicate

Oct 21, 2021

The Catholic Church grew by 15 million people worldwide in 2019.

St. Peter’s Basilica seen through a bubble on Dec. 3, 2019. Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA.

World Mission Sunday: Number of Catholics Continues to Rise Worldwide

Oct 16, 2020

The number of Catholics worldwide increased by almost 16 million in a year to 1.33 billion, according to statistics highlighted by the Vatican ahead of the 2020 World Mission Sunday. 

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Pope Francis delivers his Angelus address via a video livestream from his Casa Santa Marta residence within the Vatican due to a cold on Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024. / Credit: Vatican Media

Pope Francis Calls for "ceasefire on all war fronts" at Christmas

Pope Francis leads the Angelus prayer and gives an address from the chapel of Casa Santa Marta on Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, at the Vatican. The pope delivered his marks indoors due to the intense cold, combined with cold symptoms that have manifested in recent days, the Holy See Press Office said. / Credit: Vatican Media

"No child is ever a mistake": Pope Francis at Sunday Angelus before Christmas

Blessed Jacques-Désiré Laval (right) and Bishop Jean Michaël Durhône (right). Credit: Catholic Diocese of Port Louis

Church 2025 Jubilee Year in Mauritius: “Journey in hope” Guided by Island’s “Apostle”, Spiritan Missionary Blessed Laval

Members of the Inter-Religious Council of Sierra Leone (IRCSL). Credit: The Calabash Newspaper/Facebook

Pro-Abortion Activists Fabricating Maternal Death Statistics to Push for Abortion in Sierra Leone: Religious Leaders

Members of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Ethiopia (CBCE). Credit: CBCE

“Let’s lay aside the tools of war, destruction, division”: Ethiopia’s Catholic Bishops in Advent Message

Nigerian Christian mother of five Rhoda Jatau was acquitted of blasphemy charges after a two-and-a-half-year legal battle. / Credit: Photo courtesy of ADF International

Major Religious Freedom Win for Nigeria: Christian Mother Acquitted of Blasphemy Charges 

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A burned-out home in Munga Dosso, Taraba State, is among the many that were damaged in clashes between members of the United Methodist and Global Methodist churches. Two children, ages 4 and 2, were killed in the December attacks. Credit: Bishop John Schol.

Deadly Violence among Section of The United Methodist Church of Nigeria “very” Disappointing: Catholic Bishop

Members of the envisaged Association of Catholic Bishops' Conferences of Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe (ACBC-MAZAZI) and Apostolic Nuncio in Zambia and Malawi, Archbishop Gian Luca Perici (in white). Credit: Episcopal Conference of Malawi (ECM)

Catholic Bishops in Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe Urge “active participation” to Foster Solidarity in three-nation Sub-Region

Christmas lights line a street in Rome, Italy, Dec. 17, 2024. / Credit: Courtney Mares/CNA

Christmas in Rome As First Jubilee Pilgrims Arrive in Eternal City: PHOTOS

Nigerian Christian mother of five Rhoda Jatau was acquitted of blasphemy charges after a two-and-a-half-year legal battle. / Credit: Photo courtesy of ADF International

Major Religious Freedom Win for Nigeria: Christian Mother Acquitted of Blasphemy Charges 

Blessed Jacques-Désiré Laval (right) and Bishop Jean Michaël Durhône (right). Credit: Catholic Diocese of Port Louis

Church 2025 Jubilee Year in Mauritius: “Journey in hope” Guided by Island’s “Apostle”, Spiritan Missionary Blessed Laval

Pope Francis addresses cardinals and senior Vatican officials during his annual Christmas speech to the Roman Curia, Dec. 21, 2024. / Credit: Vatican Media

Pope Francis Warns against Gossip, Celebrates Family Life in Vatican Christmas Messages

Members of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Ethiopia (CBCE). Credit: CBCE

“Let’s lay aside the tools of war, destruction, division”: Ethiopia’s Catholic Bishops in Advent Message

Members of the Inter-Religious Council of Sierra Leone (IRCSL). Credit: The Calabash Newspaper/Facebook

Pro-Abortion Activists Fabricating Maternal Death Statistics to Push for Abortion in Sierra Leone: Religious Leaders

Bishop Gerhard Feige of Magdeburg in Germany. / Credit: Magdeburg Diocese

German Bishops Respond to Deadly Magdeburg Market Attack, Call for Prayer and Peace

Pope Francis prays during Mass at King Baudouin Stadium in Brussels, Belgium, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024 / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

Pope Francis Prays for Victims As Death Toll in German Christmas Market Attack Reaches Five

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