Katie Martin on Spiritual Believing: Ecuadorian Style

By: Katie Martin

March 2, 2010

"Pray before you drive off, and don’'t forget to ask God to protect you!" my host mom yells as my Ecuadorian brother and I sprint out the door. It’'s just the typical start of another great week in Quito, Ecuador.

After living in Ecuador for two months, I have become accustomed to the slightly concealed yet omnipresent importance of the Christian religion here. I have slowly taken note of the many Catholic motifs dispersed throughout most Ecuadorians’’ daily routines. Consistently blessing family members each morning, admiring the various religious paintings featured throughout the house, and wearing rosaries at all hours of the day are just a few examples of how religion has permeated throughout their daily lives.

Before coming to Ecuador, I was conscious of the fact that Catholicism has had a great presence in most South American countries, mainly owing to the history of Spanish colonization and significant Jesuit presence; however I don't believe I truly realized to what extent. In order to learn more about the actual legal status of religion in Ecuador, I’ve done some of my own snooping.

First, I examined the current Ecuadorian Constitution. I found that this official legal document explicitly guarantees the freedom to practice any religion without discrimination in Ecuador. It does not reference specific religions and is mainly concerned with eradicating intolerance of a difference in religion. I found this to be quite interesting but exactly what I had expected to find in a democratic country.

After analyzing the current constitution, I decided to extend my investigation to include previous Ecuadorian constitutions as well. Since Ecuador has had 20 constitutions since its independence in 1830, I felt this was only fair. My research revealed that the 1998 Ecuadorian Constitution also guaranteed the freedom of religion; however, interestingly enough, it featured another religious component with specific regards to Catholicism. Article 26 of the 1998 Ecuadorian Constitution guaranteed lawful and legal status to the Catholic religion. It also offered the possibility for other religions to obtain lawful recognition, but its emphasis clearly was placed on the legal importance of Catholicism in Ecuador. This intricate detail featured in the 1998 Ecuadorian Constitution showed me the significant importance of the Catholic religion in Ecuador.

During these past two months in Ecuador, I also have found preference towards Catholicism to be the case. I have become acquainted with a handful of evangelical Christians, a crowd of Protestants, and a plethora of Catholics. Although I have yet to meet any Jewish Ecuadorians, my host mom tells me there are quite a few; however they mostly reside on the coast. What about Ecuadorian Muslims? Well, I haven’t met any, but I walk past Ecuador’s Center for Ecuadorian Muslims daily. The diversity of religions in Ecuador did not surprise me, but the proportions of each religious sector did leave me a bit astonished.

After attending an overflowing Mass one Sunday, I thought it might be wise also to consult official statistical data regarding Ecuador’s religious demographic. This turned out to be quite a task. After perusing a few sources, the consensus is that the Ecuadorian population is 95 percent Catholic and 4 percent Protestant. Catholicism has quite the majority, a greater majority than I had anticipated. Considering such a proportion of the population is Catholic, I am truly surprised at their religious tolerance and separation of church and state.

Witnessing the manner in which religion is applied to daily life, reading the documents providing legal protection for and freedom of religion, and evaluating the statistical demographic evidence of religion in Ecuador has provided me with an informed way in which to view religion and Catholicism in this fine country.

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