Brazil, South Africa and Colombia are the three countries in which the largest number of people believe in God or in a superior force. This was found by the most recent survey of the Ipsos Institute, carried out in 26 countries, in order to identify religious trends and beliefs in various nations.
Globally, according to Ipsos results, 40 percent of the population says they believe in God “as described in the Holy Scriptures,” while 20 percent claim to believe in “a higher spirit, but not as described in the Scriptures.”
On the contrary, 21 percent of the population indicates that they do not believe in God nor in any higher spirit, and the other 19 percent aren’t sure or wouldn’t say.
“While the majority in 11 countries believe in God as described in the Holy Scriptures, those who say they do not believe in God or any higher power or spirit constitute a plurality in Japan and South Korea, and in seven of the 10 European countries surveyed,” says Ipsos.
Ipsos thus found two clear trends regarding religion on the planet: the first, that the global south is highly religious and differs from the global north, that it is “mostly secular” and draws less on religious beliefs.
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The second trend that was identified is that religious beliefs largely depend on the generation you speak to. Thus, it is the elderly who are more likely to identify themselves as Christians (baby boomers), and young people the most inclined to be Muslims or to be part of any other faith different from Christianity.
“In each of the 16 most Catholic countries surveyed, the percentage of Gen Zers (born 1997 or later) who identify as Catholic is less than the percentage of baby boomers (born 1964 or earlier) who do, by average of 16 points”, says Ipsos in this regard.
So which countries are the most believers? This revealed the survey.
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The countries with the most and least believers
So things, Brazil is positioned as the nation with the highest number of believers in some superior force (89 percent in total), followed by South Africa (also with 89 percent). In the South American nation, for example, 70 percent say they believe in God as he exists in the Scriptures and 19 percent say they believe in another superior force.
At the time, only 5 percent of those surveyed in Brazil say they do not believe in anything.
In the case of Colombia, the third with the most believers in superior forcesAt a global level (86 percent), 63 percent say they believe in God, 23 percent in another force, and only 6 percent say they don’t believe in anything.
Mexico, with 85 percent of people believing in God or in other forces; Peru, with 84 percent believers; Türkiye, with 82 percent; and India, with 81 percent; They complete the first places in the survey with the largest number of people who believe in God or in other superior forces or spirits.
On the contrary, European and Asian countries are the ones that report the least number of believers. In Japan, for example, 38 percent of those surveyed do not believe in anything. Only 3 percent say they believe in God and 16 percent in some kind of superior force.
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South Korea, the Netherlands, Sweden, Belgium, Great Britain and France also rank last in the number of believers.
In South Korea, according to Ipsos, 44 percent do not believe in any kind of God, while in the Netherlands the percentage of ‘non-believers’ stands at 42 percent.
In the others -Sweden, Belgium or Great Britain-, the percentage of people who do not believe in anything is 39 percent.
The Ipsos survey also shows that women are the most likely to believe in God or superior forces. 62 percent of those who participated in the survey said they believed in God or some other higher being, compared to 59 percent of the men who identified themselves as believers.
Three out of four people said that believing in God or other spirits helps them overcome crises
Ipsos also asked respondents about the role belief in a God or a higher being plays in their lives.
In that aspect, three out of four people said that their belief “helps them overcome crises, It gives meaning to their lives and makes them happier.”
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In Colombia, for example, 89 percent affirmed that believing in God or in superior forces allows them to overcome crises such as diseases, conflicts, catastrophes, among others.
The survey also found that 54 percent of people believe that religious practices are important factors in people’s moral lives, 48 percent believe that people who practice a religion are happier and 37 percent believe that those who practice religious faith make better citizens.
On the contrary, 47 percent of those who responded to the Ipsos survey said that “religion does more harm than good in the world.”
India, Sweden, Great Britain, Belgium and the Netherlands are the places where a higher percentage of the population believes that religion does more harm than good to humanity.
The heaven and the hell
The Ipsos survey also asked about other beliefs such as heaven, hell or ghosts.
Worldwide, 52 percent of people believe in heaven. Once again, Brazil and Peru are the countries in which the largest number of respondents believe (79 percent).
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On the contrary, in Belgium (22 percent), Japan (28 percent) and France (31), citizens believe less in heaven.
Regarding supernatural spirits such as angels, demons or ghosts, 49 percent said they believed in them. 41 percent said they believed in hell and 41 percent in the devil.
In Colombia, 78 percent said they believed in heaven, 68 percent in supernatural spirits, 58 percent in hell, and 61 percent in the devil.
According to the Ipsos survey, the younger respondents were, the more likely they were to believe in heaven, hell, the devil, or ghosts and other spirits.
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“In many of these countries, especially those in northern and western Europe, the prevalence of these beliefs is higher among Gen Z than among Gen Z. boomers by more than 20 percentage points,” the report concludes.
Ipsos also asked about attendance at places of worship or tolerance towards other religious beliefs.
And you, what do you believe? Do you agree with the survey results?
ANGIE NATALY RUIZ HURTADO
INTERNATIONAL WRITING
TIME
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