Christianity in Djibouti
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Christianity is the religion of 6% (~ 31,000) of the population of Djibouti (516,055 - July 2009 est.).[1] The Christians are mostly of Ethiopian and European ancestry. Most Christians are Ethiopian Orthodox or Roman Catholic.
The constitution of Djibouti includes freedom of religion, even though Islam is the state religion. There are likely no current prisoners for Christian religious reasons. There is a tolerant attitude between religions in general. There is growing animosity against Christians in Djibouti however; there has also been a rise of Islamic fundamentalism. Proselytizing of Muslims is not allowed. Converts from Islam to Christianity have to fear persecution. Less than 2% of the Somalis in Djibouti are Christians, but many of the Ethiopians in Djibouti are Christians.
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[edit] Christian denominations in Djibouti
3.2% of the population are Orthodox. 0.07% to 1% of the population (about 4,767 persons) are Protestants. According to the World Christian Encyclopedia (2nd edition), Volume 1, p. 241 among other denominations are the Eglise Protestante de Djibouti, the Greek Orthodox Church and the Red Sea Mission Team. The Mennonite Mission is active in Djibouti. The Eglise Protestante de Djibouti (Protestant Church of Djibouti) was founded in 1960. It is active in the care for refugees, among other things. There is a Djibouti Parish of the New Apostolic Church.
[edit] Roman Catholicism in Djibouti
There are around 7,000 Catholics in Djibouti.[2] The only Roman Catholic diocese is the Diocese of Djibouti, divided in 5 parishes. Just over 1% to 2% of the population are members of the diocese. Djibouti maintains diplomatic relations with the Vatican.
