Pray for Chile

From north to south, Chile stretches over 2,670 miles (4,300 km) and has one of the most diverse climates in the world, from beaches along the west coast to the snow-covered Andes Mountains in the eastern region. Northern Chile holds the world’s driest desert, while Central Chile experiences all four seasons, and the cold South is covered with lakes and glaciers. Chile has flourished into a prosperous nation under a stable democracy that generally protects civil liberties and political rights. Chile has a dependable, open-market economy that is backed by strong policies and has grown significantly over the last two decades. Today, Chile is one of the most developed and wealthy nations in Latin America.

Yet Chile is becoming more secular, which has caused increased feelings of hopelessness. The nation is drifting from traditional family structures, with marriages declining and divorce, cohabitation, and same-sex marriage increasing. Roughly 75 percent of babies are born out of wedlock, and the fertility rate of 0.99 children per woman is among the lowest in the world, well below the rate needed to sustain the population. Crime is also on the rise, and Chile’s theft rates are among the world’s highest. Chile was historically one of the safest nations in Latin America, but murder rates have grown significantly, as have drug and alcohol abuse, especially cannabis and opioids.

Catholicism was once the majority faith, but it is declining. In the 1990s, three-quarters of the population was Catholic. Today, Catholicism has decreased to just over half of the population, and only 10–20 percent of Catholics regularly attend Mass. Over the last few decades, the Catholic Church in Chile has experienced major abuse scandals, damaging public trust. However, evangelical Christianity has grown significantly in the last two decades and now makes up about 23 percent of the population.