==Effect of Immigration on Mexican’s Religion==

When Mexicans immigrate to the United States their religious outlook sometimes changes.  Below is a chart of the religious demography of modern Mexico:

2000 Mexican Census

And a chart of the religious demography of Mexicans in the United States:

Pew Hispanic Research Center 2007 Survey

The graph shows that Mexicans are more likely to be Protestant and Evangelic in the United States and significantly more likely to have no religion at all. An even larger study (American Religious Identification Survey) than the one above resulted in 13% declaring no religion. Many more have kept their religious affiliation but have significantly reduced their religious observance.

In a New York Times article written by Laurie Goodstein, Mexicans are leaving, or becoming less attatched to, the church for a number of reasons. For some it is the heavy workload during the week that tires them out come sunday mass and some gave reason that they need to work on sunday itself. Some point to the overall secularizing effect American culture has, while others point to church scandals in the news turning them away from the Church. Many have pointed to the lack of tradition in the United States and the materialism that prevails. Others attribute devotion in Mexico to simply having nothing better to do on a sunday. Whatever the reason, it is becoming clear that Mexicans become more secular upon immigrating to the United States.

Despite the dropoff, Mexican immigrants are still relatively devoted to the Catholic Church, and Mexican churches have emerged in great numbers.  One such church, Our Lady of Guadalupe at St. Bernards (330 West 14th Street), was built in 2003, heavily stresses the Virgin of Guadalupe. The Church is displayed below:

Our Lady of Guadalupe at St. Bernards

A closeup of the image of the Virgin of Guadalupe found in the front of the Church.

==The Emergence of “Cultural Mexicans Catholics”==

While immigrants’ level of observance may have dropped, their devotion to the cultural aspects of their Catholocism have not.

Robert Suro, Director of the Pew Hispanic Center, suggests that “you can feel very strongly about the Virgin of Guadalupe and believe your children ought to be baptized, and still not participate in the Catholic Church or make it a major factor in your life.”((Laurie Goodstein,For Some Hispanics, Coming to America Also Means Abandoning Religion, NewYorkTimes.com, 15 Apr 2007.))

Laurie Goodstein suggests this is similar to the emergence of “cultural jews” that occurred due to secularization. Immigrants may have lost some of their religious observance, but they have not lost their religious identity.((Ibid.))

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