Source: Religion News Service, August 19, 2024
The world’s 280 million immigrants have greater shares of Christians, Muslims, and Jews than the general population, according to a new Pew Research Center study released Monday (August 19).
“You see migrants coming to places like the U.S., Canada, different places through Western Europe, and being more religious—and sometimes more Christian in particular—than the native-born people in those countries,” said Stephanie Kramer, the study’s lead researcher.
While Christians make up about 30% of the world’s population, the world’s migrants are 47% Christian, according to the latest data collected in 2020. The study found that Muslims make up 29% of the migrant population but 25% of the world’s population. Jews, only 0.2% of the world’s population but 1% of migrants, are by far the most likely religious group to have migrated, with 20% of Jews worldwide living outside their country of birth compared to just 6% of Christians and 4% of Muslims.
Read the complete article. How should these dynamics affect our prayers and ministries?
You might enjoy an article about an opportunity Christian workers had to minister to the family of a pastor who continued to serve those around them after fleeing Pakistan (Beyond).
See also the UN’s recent interactive World Migration Report.