(RNS) — Hispanic Protestant churches are growing in the United States, and many of these congregations are relatively new, identify as evangelical and largely include people who are new to the country, according to a recently released survey.The study, conducted by evangelical research firm Lifeway, found that less than 9% of Hispanic congregations trace their history prior to 1950, with most (54%) having been established since 2000, including 32% founded in 2010 or later. Half of the churches (50%) are in a large metropolitan area with a population of 100,000 or more, and in the average Hispanic Protestant church, 35% of the congregation is under the age of 30, the survey found.
The people from the surveyed congregations are also fairly new to the U.S., with the majority (58%) reported to be first-generation Americans who were born outside of the country. As a result, a majority (53%) conduct their services only in Spanish, while 22% are bilingual.
“We see more and more English-speaking churches either planting a Hispanic church or adding a service in Spanish to their current congregation,” said Giancarlo Montemayor, director of global publishing for the research firm’s Hispanic division, Lifeway Recursos.
The study, which surveyed 692 pastors of Hispanic congregations, was sponsored by Lifeway Recursos, the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and Samaritan’s Purse. Only congregations that were …
US Hispanic Protestant churches are young, growing and largely new to the country
