The Catholic Church in El Salvador is part of the worldwide

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, under the spiritual leadership of the

Pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

and the

Episcopal Conference of El Salvador The episcopate of the country is called the Episcopal Conference of El Salvador (Spanish: Conferencia Episcopal de El Salvador, CEDES). ECES is a member of the Latin American Episcopal Conference and the Central Episcopal Secretariate Central of ...

. There are almost 5 million Catholics in El Salvador. The country is divided into eight

diocese In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associa ...

s including one archdiocese, San Salvador. The

Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these princ ...

explicitly recognizes the Catholic Church and it has legal status. Despite its legal status, Catholicism in El Salvador has been in decline for the last 17 years with the most devout members above age 53. According to some sources, Catholicism is only adhered to by 39% of its populace. However, the religion remains a majority in all age groups, although it is a slim majority among the young. Catholicism is most dominant in the

San Vicente Department San Vicente () is a Departments of El Salvador, department of El Salvador in the center of the country. The capital is San Vicente, El Salvador, San Vicente. On October 4, 1834, San Vicente City of Austria and Lorenzana (Ciudad de San Vicente de ...

and weakest in Santa Ana. In the fall of 2018, El Salvador had its first saint, Blessed

Oscar Romero Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People * Oscar (given name), an Irish- and English-language name also used in other languages; the article includes the names Oskar, Oskari, Oszkár, Óscar, and other forms. * Oscar (Irish mythology) ...

History and society

Catholicism began in the nation in the sixteenth century with the invasion of Pedro de Alvarado. San Salvador was made an archdiocese on February 11, 1913 with Monsignor Antonio Adolfo Perez as first Archbishop. Prior to that date it had been under the jurisdiction of Guatemala. Archbishop

Luis Chávez y González Luis Chávez y González (1901 – 1987) was the seventh Bishop and third Archbishop of San Salvador, El Salvador, and immediate predecessor of Archbishop Óscar Romero. Unlike Romero, who served for three years before being assassinated in ...

from 1939 to 1977 encouraged priests to study farming cooperatives and made efforts toward improving the poorest sectors of El Salvador (although in other respects he was a conservative who favored film censorship, staunchly opposed

Communism Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a ...

, and was devoted to Pope Pius XII). The governments have had a mixed relationship with the Catholic Church varying from friendly to anti-clerical. The most overtly Catholic-influenced political party might be the Partido Demócrata Cristiano with

José Napoleón Duarte José Napoleón Duarte Fuentes (23 November 1925 – 23 February 1990) was a Salvadoran politician who served as President of El Salvador from 1 June 1984 to 1 June 1989. He was mayor of San Salvador before running for president in 1972. He l ...

as one of its most noted founding members. The dealings of the government with the Catholic Church or Catholic organizations varied depending on the leadership of church or state at any given time. In modern times El Salvador is noted for having members linked to social and reform movements. At times these include followers of what's termed

Liberation theology Liberation theology is a Christian theological approach emphasizing the liberation of the oppressed. In certain contexts, it engages socio-economic analyses, with "social concern for the poor and political liberation for oppressed peoples". I ...

. The most well-known figure in the El Salvadoran church's history is

Archbishop of San Salvador The Archdiocese of San Salvador is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in El Salvador. Its archepiscopal see is the Salvadoran capital, San Salvador, and the surrounding region. The current Archbishop ...

Óscar Romero Óscar Arnulfo Romero y Galdámez (15 August 1917 – 24 March 1980) was a prelate of the Catholic Church in El Salvador. He served as Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of San Salvador, the Titular Bishop of Tambeae, as Bishop of Santiago ...

. On March 24, 1980, during the

civil war A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

in El Salvador he was assassinated while saying

Mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different eleme ...

because of his positions regarding the government and demands to the end of the violence in the nation. In 2004 the Church in El Salvador asked for a reinvestigation of the case. A federal judge trying a conspiracy count against a former Salvadoran military officer termed Romero's killing "a

crime against humanity Crimes against humanity are widespread or systemic acts committed by or on behalf of a ''de facto'' authority, usually a state, that grossly violate human rights. Unlike war crimes, crimes against humanity do not have to take place within the ...

." Despite that, most of the church in El Salvador is more conservative than this and had no sympathy to the rebels during the civil war.

Fernando Sáenz Lacalle Fernando Sáenz Lacalle (16 November 1932 – 28 April 2022) was a Spanish Roman Catholic prelate, 10th Bishop and sixth Archbishop of San Salvador, El Salvador. He was the successor of Arturo Rivera y Damas. Sáenz held the post once held b ...

, originally of Opus Dei, is the current

. He is in general an opponent of

and his appointment in 1995 was viewed with disdain by followers of that school of thought. He has been active in charitable work for earthquake victims and outspoken against violence. El Salvador's first and only Cardinal, Gregorio Rosa Chavez (who is under 80 and therefore still a potential cardinal-elector should a conclave occur), who is- unlike the usual case for Cardinals serving in dioceses or archdioceses- an Auxiliary Bishop to the Archbishop of San Salvador Jose Luis Escobar Alas, was appointed by Pope Francis.

Churches of El Salvador

Iglesia El Rosario, frente a Plaza Libertad.jpg, Iglesia El Rosario, San Salvador File:Catedral Metropolitana de San Salvador.png,

San Salvador Cathedral The Metropolitan Cathedral of the Holy Savior ( es, Catedral Metropolitana de San Salvador) is the cathedral church of the Catholic Archdiocese of San Salvador in San Salvador, El Salvador. History The Cathedral site is the place where the old ...

CATEDRAL DE SAN MIGUEL, EL SALVADOR - panoramio.jpg, Cathedral Basilica of Queen of Peace, San Miguel Iglesia Don Rua.JPG, Iglesia Don Rua, San Salvador Fachada principal de la Iglesia El Calvario.JPG, Iglesia El Calvario, San Salvador El Carmen SantaTecla.jpg,

Iglesia El Carmen The Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Carmen (Spanish for Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel) is a catholic parish church in the city of Santa Tecla, La Libertad Department, El Salvador. It was completed in 1914 in a neo-gothic style. History The ...

, San Salvador Basílica Sagrado Corazón de Jesús.jpg, Basílica del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús, San Salvador Santa Ana Catedral Nuestra Señora de Santa Ana 2.jpg, Cathedral of Santa Ana (El Salvador) Iglesia Santa Lucía de Suchitoto.JPG, Iglesia Santa Lucía, Suchitoto Iglesia Catolica Dulce Nombre de Maria.jpg, Church in Dulce Nombre de María Santa Ana Iglesia El Carmen.jpg, Iglesia El Carmen, Santa Ana, El Salvador Iglesia Nuestra Señora de la Asunción..jpg, Iglesia Nuestra Señora de la Asunción,

Ahuachapán Ahuachapán () is a city, and municipality, and the capital of the Ahuachapán Department in western El Salvador. The municipality, including the city, covers an area of 244.84 km² and as of 2007 has a population of 110,511 people. Situat ...

Zacatecoluca Catedral Nuestra Señora de los Pobres 2.jpg,

Our Lady of the Poor Cathedral, Zacatecoluca The Our Lady of the Poor Cathedral ( es, Catedral de Nuestra Señora de los Pobres) also known as the Zacatecoluca Cathedral, is the main church of the Catholic Diocese of ''Zacatecoluca'', in the city of Zacatecoluca, in the Central American count ...

San Salvador Iglesia Nuestra Señora de Candelaria.jpg, Iglesia Nuestra Señora de Candelaria,

San Salvador Department San Salvador () is a department of El Salvador in the west central part of the country. The capital is San Salvador, which is also the national capital. The department has North of the Rio Lempa Valley, the "Valle de las Hamacas" (Hammock Valley ...

Iglesia del Cristo Negro de Juayua.jpg, Iglesia del Cristo Negro, Juayua Iglesia de San Pedro Perulapán.jpg, Iglesia de San Pedro Perulapán Iglesia Parroquial de Santiago Apostol, Santiago Texacuangos, San Salvador.jpg, Iglesia Parroquial de Santiago Apostol, Santiago Texacuangos,

Iglesia del Perpetuo Socorro.JPG, Iglesia del Perpetuo Socorro, San Salvador Iglesia El Calvario San Miguel El Salvador.jpg, Iglesia El Calvario San Miguel,

San Miguel, El Salvador San Miguel () is a city in eastern El Salvador. It is the country's third most populous city. It is located 138 km east of the capital, San Salvador. It is also the capital of the department of San Miguel and a municipality. The population ...

Iglesia Parroquial de San José Guayabal.JPG, Iglesia Parroquial de

San José Guayabal San José Guayabal is a municipality in the Cuscatlán department Cuscatlán () is a department of El Salvador, located in the center of the country. With a surface area of , it is El Salvador's smallest department. It is inhabited by over ...

Catedral San Vicente.jpg, Cathedral of San Vicente, El Salvador Iglesia Parroquial San Miguel Arcangel en Ilobasco.JPG, Iglesia Parroquial San Miguel Arcangel in Ilobasco Iglesia San Francisco Gotera - panoramio.jpg, Iglesia San Francisco Gotera Iglesia Santa Barbara en Sensuntepeque, Cabañas.jpg, Iglesia Santa Barbara en

Sensuntepeque Sensuntepeque () is a town and municipality in the Cabañas department of El Salvador. It is the seat of the department and principal town in the area. Sensuntepeque is located about northeast of the capital, San Salvador, at an altitude of . His ...

Iglesia de Chalchuapa.jpg, Parroquia Santiago Apostol,

Chalchuapa Chalchuapa is a town and a municipality located in the Santa Ana department of El Salvador. The city of Chalchuapa is in a wide valley at 650 meters above sea level, and watered by the Pampe River. Overview It is situated 15 kilometers west ...

IGLESIA EL CALVARIO.JPG, Iglesia el Calvario, Santa Ana, El Salvador Iglesia de San Pedro Nonualco.JPG, Iglesia de

San Pedro Nonualco San Pedro Nonualco is a municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The te ...

Iglesia de la Parroquia Nuestra Señora de los Dolores Izalco.jpg, Iglesia de la Parroquia Nuestra Señora de los Dolores

Izalco Izalco (in Nawat: ''Itzalku'') is a municipality in the Sonsonate department of El Salvador. Volcan Izalco is an icon of the country of El Salvador, a very young Volcano on the flank of Santa Ana volcano. From when it was born in 1770 until 1 ...

Catedral de Sonsonate.jpg,

Sonsonate Cathedral The Most Holy Trinity Cathedral ( es, Catedral de la Santísima Trinidad ) Also Sonsonate Cathedral is the name given to a religious building affiliated with the Catholic Church located in the city of Sonsonate in the department of the same name, i ...

Iglesia Parroquial San Juan Evangelista, San Juan Opico, El Salvador. Fachada.jpg, :Iglesia Parroquial San Juan Evangelista, San Juan Opico 100 4073.JPG, Iglesia de

Panchimalco Panchimal is a town in the San Salvador department of El Salvador. Panchimalco ("The Place of Flags and Shields," from the Nahuatl, "Pantli," meaning banner or flag; "Chimalli," meaning shield or herald, and "co," place) Its 35,000 inhabitants, s ...

Statistics

Culture and festivals

A variety of saint days are celebrated as local holidays. The country itself is called "El Salvador" which translates as "The Savior" and takes the Transfigured Jesus, ''the Divine Savior of the World'', as its patron saint, and His Feast Day on August 6 is a national holiday. The nation's co-patroness is ''Our Lady of Peace.'' A noted Catholic school is the Jesuit

Externado San José Externado San Jose is a private Catholic primary and secondary school located in San Salvador, El Salvador. The institution began in 1921 as San Jose Seminary to which "outsiders" were later admitted. When the seminarians moved to a new facility t ...

whose alumni include ex-president

Armando Calderón Sol Armando Calderón Sol (24 June 1949 – 9 October 2017) was President of El Salvador from 1 June 1994, to 1 June 1999, representing the Nationalist Republican Alliance. He was the first president elected in El Salvador after twelve years of ci ...

and

Roque Dalton Roque is an American variant of croquet played on a hard, smooth surface. Popular in the first quarter of the 20th century and billed "the Game of the Century" by its enthusiasts, it was an Olympic sport in the 1904 Summer Games, replacing cr ...

, a Communist poet. A prominent seminary is San José de la Montaña in San Salvador where both Romero and liberation theologian Rutilio Grande studied.

Notes

External links