Protestantismo en México

Although Mexico is a Catholic country, the 2000 census revealed that approximately 8 percent of the population practices a faith other than Catholicism—principally Protestant Evangelical Christianity. Religious diversity has been evident in Mexico since the sixteenth century. Mexican Protestantism, represented by seventeen different denominations, was established between 1872 and 1912 in some regions of the north, center, and south-southeast of the country, through churches, schools, periodical publications, and social centers. This trend led to the development of a socioreligious movement identified with radical liberalism. Protestantism contributed to the modernization of values and attitudes within society as some of its members participated in popular workers' and peasant movements at the beginning of the Mexican Revolution. The antichurch provisions in the 1917 Constitution robbed the movement of much of its social impact. Between 1940 and 1950 Protestantism suffered persecution fostered by the Roman Catholic hierarchy. Nevertheless, soon after that it gained new strength in the form of Pentecostalism, which accelerated its growth, especially between 1970 and 1990. In 1992 constitutional reforms in the area of religion opened new opportunities for the social legitimization of Protestantism.

See alsoJuárez, Benito; Mexico, Constitutions: Constitution of 1917; Protestantism; Religion in Mexico, Catholic Church and Beyond; Salinas de Gortari, Carlos.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Baldwin, Deborah J. Protestants and the Mexican Revolution: Missionaries, Ministers, and Social Change. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1990.

Bastian, Jean Pierre. Los Disidentes. México: Fondo de Cultura Econömica, 1989.

Bowen, Kurt Derek. Evangelism and Apostasy: The Evolution and Impact of Evangelicals in Modern Mexico. Montreal, Québec; Buffalo: McGill-Queen's University Press, 1996.

Ruiz Guerra, Rubén. Hombres Nuevos. México: Casa Unida de Publicaciones, 1995.

                                    RubÉn Ruiz Guerra