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In the Andes Mountains of Peru, 2760 meters (almost 1.75 miles) above sea level, Catholics observe Semana Santa – Holy Week – with a range of long-standing yet evolving rituals that tourism officials there like to promote as the second most important Holy Week celebration in the world. Over the course of ten days, the historic city center of Ayacucho is filled with activity, including daily processions, decorations, church visits and particular foods that draw attention to the season. These events complement, and apparently for many Catholics supplant, liturgy as the primary form of

Pilgrims hoping to visit the largest Marian shrine in the world might be surprised to learn that that aspiration would direct them not to Lourdes or Fátima, but instead to Brazil, to a small city halfway between São Paolo and Rio de Janeiro, to the shrine of Nossa Senhora Aparecida, Our Lady Aparecida.1 1In English, she is sometimes called Our Lady of Aparecida, Marya mistranslation of the Portuguese, Nossa Senhora Aparecida. As explained below, the title refers to how she was found (her statue appeared in fishermen’s nets), not to a place name where she was found. Given that the place where

The distinctive culture of Goa, a small state on the West Coast of India, is the legacy of local Konkan traditions reshaped during 450 years of Portuguese colonial rule. Portugese rule in Goa was the longest era of colonial rule in all of India. For centuries, Goa was the headquarters for Portuguese Catholic missionary activities throughout Asia, earning it the moniker “the Rome of the East.” Portugal’s influence on Catholicism in India is evident along the Coromandel and Malabar coasts, in Kerala and Tamil Nadu , but Portugal’s influence in Goa was particularly long and all-encompassing. Goa

In front of the celebrated Bom Jesus basilica, a UNESCO world heritage site in old Goa, India, the base of a large stone cross bears an inscription celebrating St. Francis Xavier as “Apostle of the Indies.” Inside the church, to the side of the altar, an elaborate reliquary houses most of the bodily remains of the saint, which pilgrims visit throughout the year. Though not the first missionary to Goa, Xavier is celebrated in most of the world for the reason written indicated in that title on the base of the cross—his energetic missionary work from India to Japan, which led the church to make

The distinctive culture of Goa, a small state on the West Coast of India, is the legacy of local Konkan traditions reshaped during 450 years of Portuguese colonial rule, the longest era of colonial rule in all of India. For centuries, Goa was the headquarters for Portuguese Catholic missionary activities throughout Asia, earning it the moniker “the Rome of the East.” Portugal’s influence on Catholicism in India is evident along the Coromandel and Malabar coasts, in Kerala and Tamil Nadu , but Portugal’s influence in Goa was particularly long and all-encompassing. Goa’s Portuguese heritage and

A survey by the Pew Research Center places the people of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) toward the high end of religious commitment in the world, with more than 80% of respondents reporting that religion is very important in their lives.1 Yet a visitor who relied only on sightings of religious art, shrines, statues, paintings, or religious references on businesses or outside homes for evidence that Catholic practice is important might not have the same impression 1Jonathan Evans, “ Where is the most religious place in the world? ,” Pew Research Center, published August 9, 2024.

Families in the Democratic Republic of Congo are large, with an average of almost 6 children each. The demographics of the D.R.C. are the inverse of most developed countries: There are few elderly people—life expectancy is 59 years—and the majority of the population is under age 24. Young Congolese engage with the Church in a wide variety of ways. Catholic schools educate most of the population and are likely the most significant institutional source of formation. Catholic parishes sponsor groups for young people like the Xaverians and the Scouts. Young people also have opportunities to serve

One persistent topic of interest for the Catholics & Cultures site’s comparative research is how Catholics in various cultural contexts are alike or different in their relationship to the Virgin Mary and the saints . In different contexts, Mary and the saints assume more or less central importance in typical Catholics’ prayer lives, and even where they might be equally significant, their importance can manifest differently. Mary can be perceived in different ways, and so can the saints, who might primarily be perceived as miracle workers, patrons, or role models. Belief in God is remarkably

Kinshasa is home to a wide variety of lay Catholic groups that function through local parishes. These groups include the Legion of Mary, prayer groups devoted to the Sacred Heart, basic ecclesial communities that each have a neighborhood chapel or meeting place, charismatic renewal groups, “Christian family” groups for couples and their children, choirs (several of them in most parishes–one parish reported having nine choirs with about 800 members), and a handful of groups for young peoples’ formation . One goal for research on Catholics & Cultures is to represent the variety of places, not

One of the most remarkable facets of Congolese Catholic life is a liturgy developed specifically for worship in a post-colonial Congolese cultural context.1 1In addition to the published sources cited here, these articles are based on interviews and research in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) from March 24 to April 7, 2024 at eight parishes: la Cathedrale de Notre Dame du Congo, Reine des Apôtres, St. Alphonse, Ste. Anne, St. Joseph, St. Pierre, St. Raphaël, and Sacré Coeur. Thanks to all of the parishes who welcomed me to attend and to video, and to those who were willing to