The Catholic Church in Yemen is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome.
Christians as a group make up 0.06% of Yemen’s population. Most of these are Orthodox Christians.
In 2020, there were four hundred Catholics in the country, which included one priest and eight nuns. [1] There are also approximately 2,500 Catholics who are temporary foreign workers or refugees. [2] [3]
The Catholic Church in Yemen forms part of the Vicariate Apostolic of Southern Arabia. [4]
Three nuns who were members of the Missionaries of Charity were killed in Hodeida 1998. [5] In the same year, Yemen and the Vatican established diplomatic relations. [4] On 4 March 2016, terrorists of uncertain affiliation attacked a Catholic home for the elderly in Aden, killing sixteen people including four missionary sisters of the Missionaries of Charity and some local Muslim workers.
It is reported that at Christians and other religious minorities are often discriminated against when attempting to access humanitarian aid. [6]
There are four Catholic parishes in Yemen:
The Missionaries of Charity is a Catholic centralised religious institute of consecrated life of Pontifical Right for women established in 1950 by Mother Teresa, now known in the Catholic Church as Saint Teresa of Calcutta. As of 2023, it consisted of 5,750 members religious sisters. Members of the order designate their affiliation using the order's initials, "M.C.". A member of the congregation must adhere to the vows of chastity, poverty, obedience, and the fourth vow, to give "wholehearted free service to the poorest of the poor." Today, the order consists of both contemplative and active branches in several countries.
The Catholic Church in Nigeria is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope, the curia in Rome, and the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Nigeria (CBCN).
The Catholic Church in Afghanistan is part of the worldwide Catholic Church. Prior to August 2021, there were very few Catholics in this overwhelmingly Muslim country—just over 200 attend Mass in its only chapel—and freedom of religion has been difficult to obtain in recent times, especially under the new Taliban-led Afghan government.
The Catholic Church in Azerbaijan is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome. There are about 570 local Catholics in the country as of 2016. Azerbaijan is covered entirely by a single Apostolic Prefecture – Apostolic Prefecture of Baku – since 2011. The community is served by seven Salesian priests and two friars. In addition, there is a mission of the Missionaries of Charity.
The Catholic Church in Uruguay is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the pope.
The Catholic Church in Uzbekistan is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome.
The Catholic Church in Trinidad and Tobago is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome. The Apostolic Nuncio to Trinidad and Tobago is, since November 2017, Archbishop Fortunatus Nwachukwu, who is also Apostolic Nuncio to other independent states and Apostolic Delegate to the Antilles.
The Catholic Church in Tajikistan is part of the worldwide Catholic Church in Tajikistan, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome.
The Catholic Church in Mongolia is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome.
The Catholic Church in Oman is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome.
The Apostolic Vicariate of Southern Arabia is an apostolic vicariate of the Catholic Church with territorial jurisdiction for Oman, United Arab Emirates and Yemen.
Christianity is a minority religion in Yemen. The Yemeni constitution mentions religious liberty. There are three churches in Aden.
Protestants make up 0.05% of the population of Yemen in 2023, while Christians as a group make up 0.08% of the country's population.
Christianity was first introduced to Thailand by European missionaries. By 2021, it represented 1.2% of the predominantly Buddhist national population. Christians are numerically and organizationally concentrated in northern Thailand, where they make up an estimated 16% of the population in some lowland districts and up to very high percentages in tribal districts.
Yemen is an Islamic country. Nearly all Yemenis are Muslims, The U.S. government estimates that more than 99 percent of the population is Muslim. with approximately 60% belonging to Sunni Islam and 40% belonging to Shia Islam (Zaidi). Amongst the native population, there were approximately 1,000 Christians, and 6 remaining Jews in 2016. However, Pew-Templeton estimates the number of Christians to be as high as 40,000, though most do not publicly identify as such, due to fears of religious persecution. According to WIN/Gallup International polls, Yemen has the most religious population among Arab countries and it is one of the most religious populations world-wide.
The Catholic Church in Samoa is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, which, initiated by the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and under the spiritual leadership of the Pope and Roman curia in the Vatican City is the largest Christian church in the world. Catholic missionaries arrived in Samoa in 1845 and today Catholics account for around 20% of the overall population. Archbishop Alapati Lui Mataeliga was ordained as head of the Archdiocese of Samoa-Apia in 2003.
The Catholic Church is the largest non-government provider of health care services in the world. It has around 18,000 clinics, 16,000 homes for the elderly and those with special needs, and 5,500 hospitals, with 65 percent of them located in developing countries. In 2010, the Church's Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Health Care Workers said that the Church manages 26% of the world's health care facilities. The Church's involvement in health care has ancient origins.
The Missionaries of Charity attack in Aden was a mass murder crime committed by unknown gunmen inside a home for older people in Aden, Yemen on 4 March 2016.
The St. Mary Help of Christians Church or simply Sanaa Catholic church is a religious building that is located in the city of Sanaa, the capital of the Asian country of Yemen.
The Apostolic Vicariate of Arabia was an apostolic vicariate of the Catholic Church with territorial jurisdiction for Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, United Arab Emirates and Yemen. The last Apostolic Vicar is Msgr. Paul Hinder, OFM Cap.