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Monday Morning Reality Check
Inform! Remind! Persuade! 1.1 billion people have yet to hear the Good News.

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Europe 1900-2025:
the rise & fall of world religions
by Justin D. Long

This week we continue our series by examining the rise and fall of world religions in Europe. This region of the world is defined by the United Nations to include all the countries from Britain east to Russia, including Ukraine but excluding Central Asia.

Christianity in Europe is only just beginning to recover from a significant downward trend. Although it started at nearly 95% at the turn of the 1900s, by 1975 it had fallen 20 percentage points to less than three-quarters of the total population, partially as a result of the sweep of Communism and the restrictions of the Iron Curtain. By 2000 Christianity was on the rise again, thanks in part to demographics, and in part to massive evangelism in newly reopened nations.

Further, the figures for Christianity demonstrate the widespread apathy and nominalism that has characterized the European church for much of this century. Although affiliated Christians (e.g. baptized members of churches) in 2000 will total 73% of the population, Great Commission Christians (e.g. those active in mission and evangelism) will comprise just 20%--not even double the 1900 total of 11%. Members of traditionally evangelical churches totalled just 5%, a figure that has held fairly steady throughout the century. Although Europe in this century has put a tremendous amount of effort into mission and evangelism, it has not invested what it could have.

This is the central reason for the stellar rise of non-Christian religions. The nonreligious, during the season of Communism, jumped from just 0.4% in 1990 to 13.5% in 1975-a gain of more than 3,000%. However, with the upsurge in evangelism with AD 2000 deadlines this gain will likely peak in 2000 and begin to decline, dropping back to 13.5% by 2025 and seeing further declines throughout the next century. Atheists, likewise, rose from 0.1% to 9.2% by 1975, but this trend has also peaked and will likely drop to 3.1% by 2000 and continue its decline on toward 2050.

Another notable trend is the increase in Muslims from 2.3% in 1900 to 4.4% in 2000. This increase will likely continue throughout the next century, reaching 6% by 2050. Remember, in Europe in 2000 every percentage point equals 7 million people, or for Muslims nearly 30 million in total-making this a significant ministry segment.

Likewise there are some interesting tidbits in the minority religions. Jews, which comprised 2.5% of Europe's population in 1900, have dropped steadily and will decline to just 0.4% by 2000. Hindus and Buddhists, on the other hand, have been slowly increasing, each reaching about 0.2% at the same date and continuing to increase throughout the new millenium.

For Christians in Europe this is no time to rest on our laurels. Europe enjoys significant freedoms and a widespread familiarity with the church. Mission activists need to capitalize on their freedoms and labor hard to increase the European Church's activism in mission and evangelism. Additionally, European Christians need to make sure they have strategic outreach programs that target growing numbers of Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists. Although Europe as a whole is a World C region, it is just 13 percentage points from slipping into World B (evangelized non-Christian). European Christians need to increase their energy and pick up the pace even more.

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