The population of

Angola Angola, officially the Republic of Angola, is a country on the west-Central Africa, central coast of Southern Africa. It is the second-largest Portuguese-speaking world, Portuguese-speaking (Lusophone) country in both total area and List of c ...

is more than 92%

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

as of 2023.

History

The

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

faith was introduced to

in 1878 by

Baptist Baptists are a Christian denomination, denomination within Protestant Christianity distinguished by baptizing only professing Christian believers (believer's baptism) and doing so by complete Immersion baptism, immersion. Baptist churches ge ...

missionaries. This was almost 400 years after a Catholic mission had been established there. Missionary groups in the 1880s included the English

Baptist Missionary Society BMS World Mission, officially Baptist Missionary Society, is a Christian missionary society founded by Baptists from England in 1792. The headquarters is in Didcot, England. History The BMS was formed in 1792 as the ''Particular Baptist Societ ...

, the

American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions The American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM) was among the first American Christian mission, Christian missionary organizations. It was created in 1810 by recent graduates of Williams College. In the 19th century it was the l ...

, the

United Church of Canada The United Church of Canada (UCC; ) is a mainline Protestant denomination that is the largest Protestant Christian denomination in Canada and the second largest Canadian Christian denomination after the Catholic Church in Canada. The United Chu ...

, the

Methodist Episcopal Church The Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC) was the oldest and largest Methodist denomination in the United States from its founding in 1784 until 1939. It was also the first religious denomination in the US to organize itself nationally. In 1939, th ...

and the Brethren’s Mission. Many of the nationalist independence leaders were raised as Protestants, including

Agostinho Neto António Agostinho Neto (17 September 1922 – 10 September 1979) was an Angolan Communism, communist politician and poet. He served as the first president of Angola from 1975 to 1979, having led the MPLA, Popular Movement for the Liberation of ...

(Methodist),

Holden Roberto Álvaro Holden Necaca Roberto Diasiwa (Angolan ; January 12, 1923 – August 2, 2007) was an Angolan politician who founded and led the National Liberation Front of Angola (FNLA) from 1962 to 1999. Early life Son of Roberto Garcia Diasiwa an ...

(Baptist) and

Jonas Savimbi Jonas Malheiro Sidónio Sakaita Savimbi (; 3 August 1934 – 22 February 2002) was an Angolan revolutionary, politician, and rebel military leader who founded and led the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola ( UNITA). UNITA was on ...

(Congregational).

21st century

The last census in 2014 noted that 24.4% of the population were Protestant or Pentecostal. Estimates in 2022 suggested that 38% of the population are now Protestant. In 2021, the largest Protestant groups included

Baptists Baptists are a Christian denomination, denomination within Protestant Christianity distinguished by baptizing only professing Christian believers (believer's baptism) and doing so by complete Immersion baptism, immersion. Baptist churches ge ...

in Luanda and the northwest of the country,

Lutherans Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched the Reformation in 15 ...

in the south,

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

Adventists Adventism is a branch of Protestant Christianity that believes in the imminent Second Coming (or the "Second Advent") of Jesus Christ. It originated in the 1830s in the United States during the Second Great Awakening when Baptist preacher Willi ...

, New Apostolic Christians and

Jehovah’s Witnesses Jehovah's Witnesses is a Christian denomination that is an outgrowth of the Bible Student movement founded by Charles Taze Russell in the nineteenth century. The denomination is nontrinitarian, millenarian, and restorationist. Russell co- ...

, as well as new communities such as the Igréja Unida do Reino de Deus (United Church of the Kingdom of God).Rainer Grajek website
/ref> The government of

recognizes 11 Protestant denominations: *

Assembly of God The World Assemblies of God Fellowship (WAGF), commonly known as the Assemblies of God (AG), is a global cooperative body or communion of over 170 Pentecostal denominations that was established on August 15, 1989. The WAGF was created to provi ...

, * Baptist Convention of Angola, * Baptist Evangelical Church in Angola, * Evangelical Congregational Church in Angola, * Evangelical Church of Angola, * Evangelical Church of South-West Angola, *

Evangelical Reformed Church in Angola The Evangelical Reformed Church in Angola is a Reformed denomination in the country of Angola established by the missionaries of the Swiss Reformed Church. History The Evangelical Reformed Church in Angola was established in 1925 in Kikaya, U ...

, * Our Lord Jesus Christ Church in the World ( Kimbanguist), * Presbyterian Church of Angola *

Seventh-day Adventist Church The Seventh-day Adventist Church (SDA) is an Adventist Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the seventh day of the week in the Christian (Gregorian) and the Hebrew calendar, as the Sa ...

* Union of Evangelical Churches in Angola *

United Methodist Church The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant Christian denomination, denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was ...

External links

Religion in Angola Christianity is the predominant religion in Angola, with Catholicism being its largest denomination. Angola is a secular state and its constitution guarantees freedom of religion. Religion and government The attitude of the Angolan regime tow ...

* Christianity in Angola *

Catholic Church in Angola The Catholic Church in Angola is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome. Catholicism was introduced to Angola by the Portuguese explorers since 1491 when the first missionaries arrived. Many o ...

References

{{Africa in topic, Protestantism in