Unites States >> Religion >> Louisiana
Religion in Louisiana
The United States had rich and diverse religious cultures, and the freedom to practice beliefs has helped give rise to a highly unique religious pluralism and freedom. Louisiana is the 25th most populous state, Christianity being the majority religion and Protestantism as its largest branch.
As part of the Bible Belt, Louisiana has high percentage of religious population, Protestants having the majority still it has the good percentage of Romana Catholics. Church attendance across the denominations is generally higher than the nation’s average.
also read about Race and Ethnicity in Louisiana
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Louisiana Religion Percentage
Christianity is the largest religion followed by 84% of the population. The largest Christian denomination in Louisiana is Protestants (57%) followed by Roman Catholics (26%), Jehovah’s Witnesses (1%), and Other Christians.
About 13% of the population don’t follow or adhere to any faith or religion and the rest 2% follow other non-Christian-based religions. Other Religions include Hinduism, Buddhism, Jews, Islam, and other smaller faiths.
| Religion/Affiliations | Percentage |
| Christianity | 84% |
| – Protestantism | – 57% |
| – Roman Catholicism | – 26% |
| – Mormonism | -<1% |
| – Eastern Orthodoxy | – <1% |
| – Jehovah’s Witnesses | – 1% |
| – Other Christian | – 1% |
| Other Religion | 2% |
| Judaism | <1% |
| Islam | <1% |
| Buddhism | 1% |
| Hinduism | <1% |
| Other religion | <1% |
| No religion | 13% |
| Don’t know | <1% |
Source: Pew Research Center
read about Religion in United States
Christianity in Louisiana
Christianity with 84% followers is the largest in Louisiana. All Protestant denominations accounted for 57% of the population, Catholics are 26% of the population and are the largest individual denomination if Protestantism is divided into various denominations instead of being counted as a single category.
Rest include Mormons, Eastern Orthodoxy, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and other smaller denominations.
| Christianity Affiliations | Percentage |
| Protestantism | 57% |
| – Evangelical Protestant | – 27% |
| – Mainline Protestant | – 8% |
| – Black church | – 22% |
| Roman Catholicism | 26% |
| Mormonism | <1% |
| Eastern Orthodoxy | <1% |
| Jehovah’s Witnesses | 1% |
| Other Christians | <1% |
read about Christianity in United States
Protestantism in Louisiana
Among Christians in Louisiana, Protestantism is the largest group comprising about 57% of the state’s population. Protestantism in the United States has branched out into several branches, denominations, and various interdenominational and related movements.
Protestants by tradition can be further classified into three main denominations. Evangelical is the largest and followed by 27% of the population, Next are Historically Black Protestants (22%) and Mainline Protestants (8%)
| Protestants Affiliation | % of population |
| Evangelical Protestant | 27% |
| Historically Black Protestant | 22% |
| Mainline Protestants | 8% |
Protestantism is also comprised of numerous denominational families (e.g., Baptist, Methodist, and Pentecostal) that fit into one or more of the traditions. According to the Association of Religion Data Archives (ARDA), the largest Protestants denominations by adherents in 2020 were the Southern Baptist Convention, the United Methodist Church, and the National Missionary Baptist Convention of America.
| # | Religious Bodies | Tradition | Family | Adherents |
| 1 | Southern Baptist Convention | Evangelical | Baptist | 648,734 |
| 2 | Non-denominational Christian Churches | Evangelical | Other Groups | 357,456 |
| 3 | United Methodist Church | Mainline | Methodist | 128,108 |
| 4 | National Missionary Baptist Convention of America | Black Protestants | Baptist | 67,518 |
| 5 | National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc. | Black Protestants | Baptist | 61,997 |
| 6 | Assemblies of God | Evangelical | Pentecostal | 45,773 |
| 7 | Full Gospel Christian Assemblies International | Evangelical | Pentecostal | 36,710 |
| 8 | Church of God in Christ | Black Protestants | Pentecostal | 32,116 |
| 9 | Episcopal Church | Mainline | Anglican/Episcopal | 23,922 |
| 10 | Churches of Christ | Evangelical | Restorationists | 22,833 |
read about Protestants in United States
Catholics in Louisiana
Louisiana also has a good percentage of Roman Catholics, Catholic Church at 26 % of the state population is the second largest religious grouping, after Protestantism. According to the Association of Religion Data Archives (ARDA), In 2020 the Catholic Church has 1,248,106 adherents.
Because of French and Spanish heritage, and their descendants the Creoles, and later Irish, Italian, Portuguese, and German immigrants, southern Louisiana and the Greater New Orleans area are predominantly Catholic.
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans, Diocese of Baton Rouge, and Diocese of Lafayette in Louisiana are the largest Catholic jurisdictions in the state, located within the Greater New Orleans, Greater Baton Rouge, and Lafayette metropolitan statistical areas.
Other Religions are 2 % of the Louisiana Population and include Hinduism, Buddhism, Jews, Islam, and other smaller faiths.
Jewish communities are established in the state’s larger cities, notably New Orleans and Baton Rouge. The earliest Jewish colonists were Sephardic Jews, German Jews, and Jews from eastern Europe and Russia. Dominant Jewish movements in the state include Orthodox and Reform Judaism.
In the Shreveport–Bossier City metropolitan area, Muslims made up an estimated 14% of Louisiana’s total Muslim population as of 2014. The largest Islamic denominations in the major metropolises of Louisiana were Sunni Islam, non-denominational Islam and Quranism, Shia Islam, and the Nation of Islam.
also read about Population in Louisiana
Sources
Note: The US census does not contain questions about one’s religious affiliation. Our Article is based on surveys conducted by various institutions and agencies.
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