Catholic Church in the Philippines

Common card · No. 267393

The Catholic Church in the Philippines (Filipino: Simbahang Katolika sa Pilipinas) is part of the worldwide Catholic Church under the spiritual leadership of the pope in Rome. The Philippines is one of the two predominantly Catholic countries in Asia, along with Timor-Leste, and has the third-largest Catholic population in the world, after Brazil and Mexico. The Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) serves as the country's episcopal conference. Christianity, through Catholicism, was introduced to the Philippine islands by Spanish soldiers, missionaries, and settlers beginning in the early 16th century, with the arrival of Ferdinand Magellan's expedition in Cebu. During the Spanish colonial period, Catholicism served as the state religion of the Philippines. Since the American colonial period, it has been practiced within the framework of a secular state. In 2023, an estimated 89 million Filipinos, or roughly 80% of the population, were Catholics.

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