Number of Muslims ahead of Catholics, says Vatican

[BAK]

Number of Muslims ahead of Catholics, says Vatican

Tom Kington in Rome
The Guardian,
Monday March 31 2008

The number of Muslims has overtaken that of Roman Catholics for the first time, the Vatican said yesterday.

Muslims account for 19.2% of the world's population, while Catholics make up 17.4%, according to the Vatican's new statistics yearbook, which is based on figures for 2006.

"For the first time in history we are no longer at the top: the Muslims have overtaken us," said Monsignor Vittorio Formenti, who edited the yearbook.

"While it is known that Muslim families continue to have many children, Christian families are having fewer," he said in an interview with the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano.

The Vatican data showed that Christians as a whole, including Orthodox and Protestant groups as well as Catholics, made up 33% of the world's population.

Applying the percentages to the 2006 world population of about 6.5 billion, Muslims would have made up 1.25 billion of the total, Catholics 1.13 billion and all Christians 2.15 billion.

The numbers were published as a dialogue begins between Muslims and the Vatican to try to patch up a series of differences, starting in 2006 when Pope Benedict gave a speech in which he quoted a Byzantine emperor claiming that Islam was inherently violent.

The Pope again ruffled feathers at Easter by publicly baptising into the Catholic church a formerly Muslim journalist who had described Islam as characterised by intolerance.

The Vatican later distanced itself from the journalist's views.

Formenti said the information on Muslim numbers had been released by the United Nations, while the Vatican's data on Catholics was based on questionnaires sent out to dioceses worldwide.

"Latin America remains the stronghold for Catholicism, while the American continent as a whole has 49.8% of the world's total," he said.

Formenti said that the number of Catholic priests was on the rebound, particularly in Asia, "where there are few Catholics, but they are driven by great spirit". He described Africa as a "grand resource" for the church, while Europe and North America were struggling. The number of nuns was undergoing a "drastic reduction".

As for the enrolment of seminarians, Guadalajara in Mexico had the largest number, with two seminaries "packed full".

France, the Netherlands and Belgium were bottom of the league, while Italy was seeing a "small, very small reprise".

 

[Fundi Mchundo]

Kiburi cha wakatoliki! Huyu analinganisha dhehebu na dini. Alinganishe idadi ya wakatoliki na wasunni na sio na waislamu wote. Idadi ya wakristu bado ni kubwa kuliko waislamu. Lakini sidhani yote haya yana maana yeyote. Imani ya mtu ni ya kwake bila kujali idadi. Kuna rastafarians, wabaha'i, mabuddhist,wahindu, majain, n.k. Dini si ukristu au uislamu peke yake.

 

[Allah's Slave]

Wakristo kweli mtaacha kutuzidi idadi wakati waislamu mnatuua kila kona ya dunia? Wailsam tunauawa Iraq, India Kashmir, Afghanistan, Palestine, Lebanon, Chechnya, Russia, China na nchi nyingine nyingi. Wakristo muwashauri wakristo wenzenu akina bush, elizabeth, wenye orthodox church waache kutuonea waislam.

 

[Chakaza]

Wakristo kweli mtaacha kutuzidi idadi wakati waislamu mnatuua kila kona ya dunia? Wailsam tunauawa Iraq, India Kashmir, Afghanistan, Palestine, Lebanon, Chechnya, Russia, China na nchi nyingine nyingi. Wakristo muwashauri wakristo wenzenu akina bush, elizabeth, wenye orthodox church waache kutuonea waislam.

Utasema hata yale mabomu wayojifunga kiunoni na kuwalipua waislamu wenzao kule Iraq na kwingineko wanavalishwa na wakristo?

 

[mtalii]

Kiburi cha wakatoliki! Huyu analinganisha dhehebu na dini. Alinganishe idadi ya wakatoliki na wasunni na sio na waislamu wote. Idadi ya wakristu bado ni kubwa kuliko waislamu. Lakini sidhani yote haya yana maana yeyote. Imani ya mtu ni ya kwake bila kujali idadi. Kuna rastafarians, wabaha'i, mabuddhist,wahindu, majain, n.k. Dini si ukristu au uislamu peke yake.

sio kweli.
kwani Tanzania nani wengi?baina ya wakristu na waislam?

 

[Fundi Mchundo]

Wakristo kweli mtaacha kutuzidi idadi wakati waislamu mnatuua kila kona ya dunia? Wailsam tunauawa Iraq, India Kashmir, Afghanistan, Palestine, Lebanon, Chechnya, Russia, China na nchi nyingine nyingi. Wakristo muwashauri wakristo wenzenu akina bush, elizabeth, wenye orthodox church waache kutuonea waislam.

Sasa hapa unaonea wakristu. Huko Iraq, leo manpigana wasunni na washia nako unawalaumu wakristu? Huko Palestine wengi wa wakristu ni wapalestina, sasa nao wanawaua waislamu? Au ulidhani palestine wanaishi waislamu peke yao? Ulizia mke wa Arafat alikuwa dini gani! Huko Chechnya, Russia na China nako unataka kusema ni wakristu wanaooua waislamu? Huko India Kashmir nako unaona wakristu tu? Au unadhani duniani kuna dini mbili tu, ukristu na uislamu? Elizabeth yupi unayemzungumzia? Yule mama wa Uingereza ambaye hata madaraka ya kuanzisha vita hana! Hiyo Orthodox church unayoizungumzia ni ipi? Ya urusi, ugiriki au ethiopia?

Your ignorance shows, Mtumwa wa Allah.

sio kweli.
kwani Tanzania nani wengi?baina ya wakristu na waislam?

Si kweli kipi? Hawa wanazungumzia dunia wewe unazungumzia Tanzania. Kwani kwa vile wasukuma wengi Tanzania kwa hiyo duniani wao wanaongoza?

 

[Augustoons]

sio kweli.
kwani Tanzania nani wengi?baina ya wakristu na waislam?

hata tanzania bado takwimu zinaonesha waislamu ni wengi kuliko wakristo toka siku nyingi

 

[Fundi Mchundo]

hata tanzania bado takwimu zinaonesha waislamu ni wengi kuliko wakristo toka siku nyingi

Takwimu zipi? Itakuwa vyema kama mtaziweka wazi halafu mtueleze zina faida gani kwetu!

 

[Pundit]

Muislamu ni nani na Mkristo ni nani?

Kuitwa Hassan na kwenda Msikitini ni uislamu?

Kuitwa John na kusoma Biblia kanisani ni ukristo?

Mbona tunashabikia labels na wingi wa namba wakati hata hatujiulizi kuhusu quality ya ukristo na uislamu?

Hivi hiki ndicho cha muhimu sana, nani ana watu wengi kwenye gari lake regardless ya maisha yao?

 

[Kithuku]

Katika hiyo article nimemshangaa sana kiongozi wa kidini akieleza kuwa sababu mojawapo ya waislamu kuwa wengi zaidi kuliko wakatoliki ati ni kuwa waislamu wanazaana zaidi! Hii ni ajabu sana, anamaanisha nini? Tuanze mashindano ya kuzaana?

Wajibu wa kiongozi wa kidini, na wa mfuasi yeyote wa dini ambayo anaiamini ni sahihi, ni kuzaa matunda "kiroho", si kimwili. Waumini wapya wanatakiwa waongezeke, kanisa likue kwa kuzaana kiroho, si kimwili. Na kuzaa kiroho ni pale ambapo mtu aliyekuwa haamini hiyo dini anapopata mafundisho, yakamkolea akaamua kuifuata, huko ndiko kukua kwa kanisa kiroho, na waumini wa namna hiyo kweli ni watu makini sana. Lakini kiongozi huyu wa kanisa anashangaa waumini wa dini nyingine kuongezeka kuliko wa kwake, halafu anadai wanazaana zaidi! Kama binadamu wanaongezeka duniani, mbona hiyo ndiyo baraka yenyewe, ndiyo yale mavuno mengi aliyosema Bwana Yesu kwamba yamekosa wavunaji! Walipaswa kushangilia na kusema sasa kuna watu wengi wasiofuata dini yetu, kwa hiyo tuna kazi ya kutosha ya kwenda kuwahubiria. Lakini kinachoshangaza miongoni mwa wakristo hasa wakatoliki, suala la kuzaa kiroho hawalipi uzito wowote, wao wanategemea kuzaa kimwili (ndio maana wanamwahi mtoto na kumbatiza kabla hajapata akili!). Baada ya wamishenari kuhubiri hapo zamani na kubatiza wale waumini wa zamani, basi kazi imeisha, kilichobaki watu wazae, walete watoto kanisani kubatizwa! Lile jukumu la kwenda duniani kote kuwafanya mataifa yote kuwa wanafunzi wa Yesu wamelitupilia wapi? Na wahubiri wengine wanazunguka mlemle kwa wanaojua injili tayari, kuwavuruga tu(kuchukua viazi stoo na kupeleka chumbani, kumbe ni nyumba hiyohiyo, badala ya kwenda shambani kuvuna vingine huko!).

Kama waislamu wanaongezeka kutokana na kuzaana kimwili, mimi sina uhakika nalo. Lakini naona changamoto nzuri sana kwa hawa viongozi wa kikristo ingepatikana kwa kuwathibitishia kuwa waislamu wanaongezeka pia kutokana na kuzaa kiroho, yaani watu ambao awali hawakuwa waislamu wanasilimu na kuongezeka miongoni mwa waislamu. Kule Marekani wamarekani weusi wengi sana ambao awali walikuwa wakristo walisilimu, hasa kwa kuona kuwa katika uislamu kulikuwa na aina fulani ya undugu walioukosa kwenye ukristo, na walipata huko hamasa na kujiamini zaidi hasa katika zile harakati za kudai haki za kiraia. Nadhani mtawakumbuka kina Malcom X na falsafa zao, ambazo ziliwashawishi watu wengi maarufu akiwemo bondia Cassius Clay (alisilimu na kuitwa Muhammad Alli). Huku Ulaya mtu akiwa mwislamu ana uhakika wa kupata social network kupitia dini yake (iwapo ni mshika dini) kuliko mkristo (hata kama ni mshika dini), kutokana na style yao ya maisha katika dini yao. Kuna siku niliona mzungu mmoja akitoa ushuhuda kwenye Televisheni kuwa aliamua kusilimu ili aweze kuishi maisha yenye nidhamu (mfano ratiba zile za sala na utaratibu wa kufanya kila kitu), kama sehemu ya rehabilitation kutoka kwenye maisha mabaya aliyoishi (labda aliikosa rehabilitation hiyo kanisani, mimi sijui lakini ndio changamoto hizi). Hapa kwa mfano mtu anaweza kumaliza wiki nzima hajazungumza na mwingine, hata jirani wa mlango unaofuata, na jumapili akienda kanisani (hasa katoliki)bado hapati fursa ya kuongea na mtu! Anaingia kanisani wanasali na kuimba, wakimaliza wanatoka bila kuongea na yeyote, anaenda nyumbani! Waluteri na wapentekoste wao afadhali wakitoka wanapeana mikono na wakati mwingine kwenda kunywa kahawa pamoja ukumbini!

Tathmini yangu ni kuwa wakatoliki wanapungua idadi kwa kuacha dini kabisa (anakuwa hafuati imani yoyote), kujiunga na madhehebu mengine kutokana na kutokuridhika kiroho katika ukatoliki, na kutokuzaa kiroho. Huku Ulaya watu wengi sana hawaendi tena kanisani, wameacha dini. Haya ndiyo yanayopunguza idadi ya wakatoliki, na siyo eti waislamu wanazaa zaidi!

 

[mbarikiwa]

Usifurahie Namba ya Waislamu kuwa kubwa duniani; Furahia 'Waislam' watakao uona ufalme wa Mungu muumba wa mbingu na nchi.