Catholicism in Asia is part of the Catholic Church, under the leadership of the Pope and the Holy See. It is a branch of Christianity that has been growing rapidly, especially in Southeast Asia.
The estimated Catholic population in Asia is 120.8 million people (3.3% of the Asian population), representing 11.24% of the global Catholic population.
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Asia is the birthplace of Judaism and Christianity, notably the Catholic and Orthodox churches. In the Middle East, many ancient churches still exist, some of which are affiliated with the Catholic Church. The Latin Rite, in turn, is particularly common in the Far East and has been used since missionary activity was established in the 16th century. [1]
Among the Asian countries with the highest proportion of Catholics are Timor-Leste, followed by the Philippines, Lebanon, South Korea, Singapore, Vietnam, and Sri Lanka. The country with the smallest proportion of Catholics in Asia is Mongolia. [1]
The Asian states with a Catholic majority are the Philippines (78.8%) and Timor-Leste (97.5%). The Philippines, with approximately 85 million Catholics, also make up the largest national Catholic community after Brazil and Mexico (and before the USA). [1]
Other Asian countries with significant Catholic minorities include Lebanon (28.8%), South Korea (11%), Singapore (6.7%), Sri Lanka (6.1%), Vietnam (6.1%), Brunei (5%), Malaysia (4.5%), Indonesia (3%), Cyprus (2.9%), Syria (2.1%), India (1.5%; 11% in Kerala), Taiwan (1.3%), and Israel (1.2%). A particular situation is found in some Persian Gulf states, especially Qatar (10.5%), Bahrain (8.9%), and Kuwait (8.5%), where the Catholic minority consists almost exclusively of immigrants; a similar phenomenon, though with lower percentages, is also found in Saudi Arabia (5.5%), the United Arab Emirates (5%), and Oman (4.1%). The spread of Catholicism in China is poorly documented, with some estimates placing the percentage around 0.7%, with higher local peaks (5.3% in Hong Kong and 4.6% in Macau). [1]
The Eastern Catholic Churche s are sui iuris particular churches in full communion with the Pope, and thus part of the Catholic Church. There are 23 of them, and they preserve the centuries-old liturgical and devotional traditions of the various Eastern churches with which they are historically associated. Some of these churches have their ecclesiastical territories located in Asia. [2]
The majority of Catholics in Asia belong to the Latin Church.
In 2010, the Catholic Church in Asia included: [3]
In 2010, the Catholic population reached 124,046,000 faithful, or 3.05% of the continent's population. Additionally, there were: [3]
As of 2025, Asia had 37 cardinals (14.7% of the total), of whom 24 were cardinal electors (17.6%). [4]
