The global church

Christianity in Asia

Asia is where Christianity was born and where some of its oldest and most surprising stories are still being written. The faith began in the Middle East, reached India by the ancient Thomas tradition and China along the Silk Road, made the Philippines a great Christian nation, and grew remarkably in Korea and, quietly, in China. Across most of Asia Christians are a minority, often small, yet the church here is ancient, resilient, and in many places growing.

Born in Asia

It is easy to forget that Christianity is an Asian-born faith. Jesus lived and taught in the land of Israel, in western Asia. From there the Gospel moved east as well as west: the Syriac-speaking Church of the East carried it along the trade roads to India and all the way to the Tang capital of China by the seventh century.

India treasures the tradition that the apostle Thomas himself reached its shores in the first century, and the Saint Thomas Christians of Kerala have kept an Eastern faith from deep antiquity, long before any European arrived.

Many Asias, many churches

Asian Christianity refuses a single shape. The Philippines is overwhelmingly Christian, the great Catholic nation of Asia. South Korea saw a lay-founded Catholic church and then dramatic Protestant growth, and now sends missionaries worldwide. China's church has grown remarkably despite restriction, much of it in house churches. Indonesia holds a large Christian minority within the world's most populous Muslim nation. Across the Middle East, the oldest churches on earth still endure. No American template is at work in any of this.

The traditions here

Asia holds the whole family of the church, from the most ancient Eastern communions to the newest movements, each given here its due and none ranked above another.

The Catholic Church

The largest single communion, led by the Bishop of Rome, present on every continent and expressed through both the Latin rite and many Eastern Catholic churches.

Eastern Orthodoxy

The ancient churches of the Greek, Slavic, and other Eastern traditions, such as the Greek, Russian, Serbian, Romanian, and Antiochian Orthodox, keeping the liturgy and the councils of the first millennium.

Oriental Orthodoxy

The oldest churches of the East, including the Coptic (Egypt), Ethiopian and Eritrean, Armenian Apostolic, and Syriac Orthodox, each with its own ancient language, calendar, and rite.

Anglican and Episcopal churches

A worldwide communion born in England and now strongest in Africa, holding together sacramental worship and the open Bible.

Lutheran churches

Rooted in the Reformation of Martin Luther, strong in Germany and Scandinavia and, today, very numerous in Ethiopia, Tanzania, and across Africa and Asia.

Reformed and Presbyterian churches

The tradition of Calvin and the Reformation, from the Church of Scotland to large churches in Korea, Africa, and the Americas.

Baptist churches

Congregations gathered around believer's baptism and the local church, widespread across the Americas, Africa, and beyond.

Methodist and Wesleyan churches

Born in the revival of John Wesley, marked by warm-hearted faith and works of mercy, and now global.

Pentecostal and Charismatic churches

The fastest-growing stream, emphasizing the Holy Spirit, prayer, and healing, immense across Africa, Latin America, and Asia.

Evangelical and nondenominational churches

A wide family centered on the Gospel, the Bible, and personal faith in Christ, crossing many denominations.

African Independent (Initiated) Churches

Thousands of churches founded and led by Africans, such as the Aladura and Zion and Kimbanguist churches, giving African expression to the faith in Christ.

Countless local expressions

House churches, village congregations, minority communities, and new movements, in every language under heaven, each a real part of the one Body.

This is not a ladder to be climbed but a family to be loved. The apostle prayed that all who follow Jesus would be one, as he and the Father are one, so that the world might believe.

Find community

Reading about the church is good. Belonging to it is better. Here are honest doors into the living communities behind these words, and into a church near you.

Meet Jesus in your language

The Gospel has never belonged to one nation or one tongue. From the first day the Spirit came, people heard the wonderful works of God each in their own language, and that is still the heart of the church. Wherever you are, and whatever words you pray in, Jesus draws near.

More languages are opening over time. If your language is not here yet, the Gospel of John and an honest prayer in your own words are a good place to begin.

Frequently asked questions

Was Christianity born in Asia?

Yes. Jesus lived and taught in western Asia, and the faith spread east as well as west, reaching India by ancient tradition and China along the Silk Road by the seventh century.

Which Asian country is most Christian?

The Philippines, the great Christian nation of Asia, where the large majority are Christian, mostly Catholic. Timor-Leste is also strongly Christian, and South Korea has a large Christian population.

Are Christians a minority in Asia?

Across most of Asia, yes, often a small minority, but an ancient and resilient one. In some countries such as the Philippines and Timor-Leste they are a large majority, and in China the church has grown remarkably.