Under Pope Francis, the College of Cardinals has become less European
Pope Francis’ picks for the College of Cardinals have tilted the leadership structure away from its historic European base and toward countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America.
Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
Pope Francis’ picks for the College of Cardinals have tilted the leadership structure away from its historic European base and toward countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America.
In 2021, government restrictions on religion – laws, policies and actions by state officials that limit religious beliefs and practices – reached a new peak globally. Harassment of religious groups and interference in worship were two of the most common forms of government restrictions worldwide that year.
A rising share of Asian Americans say they have no religion (32%), but many consider themselves close to one or more religious traditions for reasons such as family or culture. Christianity is still the largest faith group among Asian Americans (34%).
In 2020, properties in 102 of the 198 countries and territories in the study were targeted in incidents tied to religion.
The most common kinds of government restrictions on religion in 2021 included harassment of religious groups and interference in worship.
Religiously unaffiliated people were harassed by governments, private groups or both in 27 countries in 2020.
Among the 32 places surveyed, support for legal same-sex marriage is highest in Sweden, where 92% of adults favor it, and lowest in Nigeria, where only 2% back it.
Nearly a quarter of countries used force to prevent religious gatherings during the pandemic; other government restrictions and social hostilities related to religion remained fairly stable.
Most Americans say it’s not necessary to believe in God in order to be moral and have good values, according to a spring 2022 survey.
Around a fifth (21%) of the 198 countries evaluated banned at least one religion-related group in 2019, our analysis found.
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