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'{{short description|Religion in Vietnam}} {{Cleanup bare URLs|date=August 2022}} {{Pie chart | caption = '''Religion in Vietnam''' (2018)<ref name="RIRF" /> | label1 = [[Irreligion]]/[[Vietnamese folk religion|folk belief]] | value1 = 73.7 | color1 = Red | label2 = [[Buddhism in Vietnam|Buddhism]] | value2 = 14.9 | color2 = Gold | label3 = [[Catholic Church in Vietnam|Catholicism]] | value3 = 7.4 | color3 = Purple | label4 = [[Protestantism in Vietnam|Protestantism]] | value4 = 1.1 | color4 = Blue | label5 = [[Hòa Hảo|Hoahaoism Buddhism]] | value5 = 1.5 | color5 = Yellow | label6 = [[Caodaism]] (Including combine [[Buddhism]], [[Taoism]], [[Confucianism]]) | value6 = 1.2 | color6 = DarkRed | label7 = Others | value7 = 0.2 | color7 = Chartreuse }} [[File:Buddha statue, Nha Trang.jpg|thumb|Gautama Buddha at Long Sơn Temple, Nha Trang.]] [[File:Dinhlaxuyen.jpg|thumb|A [[Vietnamese communal temple|communal hall]] in northern Vietnam.]] [[File:DiNau, kieu2020.png|thumb|[[Litter (vehicle)|Palanquin]] procession to venerate [[Mary, mother of Jesus|Saint Mary]] in traditional Vietnamese style.]] {{Culture of Vietnam}} The majority of Vietnamese do not follow any [[organized religion]], instead participating in one or more practices of [[Vietnamese folk religion|folk religions]], such as [[veneration of the dead|venerating ancestors]], or praying to deities, especially during [[Tết]] and other festivals. Folk religions were founded on endemic cultural beliefs that were historically affected by [[Confucianism]] and [[Taoism]] from [[China]], as well as by various strands of [[Buddhism]].<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Vuong|first1=Quan-Hoang|date=2020|title=On how religions could accidentally incite lies and violence: folktales as a cultural transmitter |journal=Palgrave Communications|volume=6|issue=1|pages=82|doi=10.1057/s41599-020-0442-3|s2cid=203593592 |doi-access=free}}</ref> These [[three teachings]] or ''tam giáo'' were later joined by [[Christianity]] which has become a significant presence. [[Vietnam]] is also home of two indigenous religions: syncretic [[Caodaism]] and quasi-Buddhist [[Hòa Hảo|Hoahaoism]]. According to estimates by the [[Pew Research Center]] in 2010, most of the [[Vietnamese people]] practiced (exclusively) folk religions (45.3%). 16.4% of the population were Buddhists, 8.2% were Christians, and about 30% were [[irreligion|unaffiliated]] to any religion.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Global Religious Landscape|url=https://www.pewforum.org/2012/12/18/global-religious-landscape-exec/ |publisher=The Pew Forum|date=December 2012}}</ref> Officially, the [[Socialist Republic of Vietnam]] is an [[State atheism|atheist state]], as declared by its [[Communist Party of Vietnam|communist government]].<ref>Jan Dodd, Mark Lewis, Ron Emmons. ''The Rough Guide to Vietnam'', Vol. 4, 2003. p. 509: "After 1975, the Marxist-Leninist government of reunified Vietnam declared the state atheism while theoretically allowing people the right to practice their religion under the constitution."</ref> According to statistics from the Government Committee for Religious Affairs, as of 2018, [[Buddhism in Vietnam|Buddhists]] account for 14.9% of the total population, [[Christians]] 8.5% ([[Catholic Church in Vietnam|Catholics]] 7.4% & [[Protestantism in Vietnam|Protestants]] 1.1%), [[Hòa Hảo|Hoahao Buddhists]] 1.5%, and [[Caodaism]] followers 1.2%.<ref name="RIRF" /> Other religions include [[Hinduism in Vietnam|Hinduism]], [[Islam in Vietnam|Islam]], and [[Baháʼí Faith in Vietnam|Baháʼí Faith]], representing less than 0.2% of the population. Folk religions (worship of ancestors, gods and goddesses), not included in government statistics, have experienced revival since the 1980s.<ref>Philip Taylor (2004). ''Goddess on the Rise: Pilgrimage and Popular Religion in Vietnam''.</ref> ==Overview== Although according to a 1999 census most Vietnamese list themselves as having no religious affiliation,<ref name="ciafactbook">{{cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/vietnam/ |title=Vietnam |publisher=Central Intelligence Agency |work=World Factbook |access-date=17 May 2010 }}</ref> religion, as defined by shared beliefs and practices, remains an integral part of Vietnamese life,<ref name="vnembassy">{{cite web |url=http://www.vietnamembassy-usa.org/learn_about_vietnam/culture/beliefs_and_religions/ |title=Beliefs and religions |publisher=Embassy of Vietnam (USA) |access-date=17 May 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100521040905/http://www.vietnamembassy-usa.org/learn_about_vietnam/culture/beliefs_and_religions/ |archive-date=21 May 2010 }}</ref> dictating the social behaviours and spiritual practices of Vietnamese individuals in Vietnam and abroad. The [[triple religion]] ({{lang-vi|tam giáo}}), referring to the [[syncretism|syncretic]] combination of [[Mahayana Buddhism]], [[Confucianism]], and [[Taoism]], and [[Vietnamese folk religion]] (often assimilated), remain a strong influence on the beliefs and practices of the Vietnamese, even if the levels of formal membership in these religious communities may not reflect that influence. One of the most notable and universal spiritual practices common to Vietnamese is [[veneration of the dead|ancestor veneration]]. It is considered an expression of ''hiếu thảo'' ([[filial piety]]), a key virtue to maintain a harmonious society.<ref>Trần Quốc Anh (2015). [https://hdgmvietnam.com/chi-tiet/giao-ly-tam-phu-va-dao-hieu-40872 "Giáo lý Tam Phụ và Đạo Hiếu"]</ref> Regardless of formal religious affiliation, it is very common to have an altar in the home and business where prayers are offered to their ancestors. These offerings and practices are done frequently during important traditional or religious celebrations (e.g., [[death anniversary|death anniversaries]]), the starting of a new business, or even when a family member needs guidance or counsel. Belief in [[Ghost in Vietnam|ghosts and spirits]] is very common; many believe that the traditions are important links to culture and history and are enjoyable, while others believe that failing to perform the proper rituals for one's ancestors will literally cause them to become [[hungry ghost]]s ({{lang-vi|ma đói}}).<ref name="hungryghosts" group="nb">"If properly buried and worshipped, the dead would be happy to remain in their realm and act as benevolent spirits for their progeny. But those who died alone and neglected, and to whom no worship was given, disturbed the dead and preyed on the living." {{cite web |url=http://www.asiasociety.org/countries-history/religions-philosophies/religion-vietnam |title=Religion in Vietnam: A World of Gods and Spirits |author= Hue-Tam Ho Tai |date=2008-08-20 |work=Asia Society |access-date=2010-06-11|page=1}}</ref> A 2002 [[Pew Research Center]] report claimed that 24% of the population of Vietnam view religion as "very important".<ref name="pew-2002">{{cite web|title=Among Wealthy Nations, U.S. Stands Alone In Its Embrace of Religion|work=Pew Global Attitudes Project|publisher=Pew Research Center|url=http://pewglobal.org/2002/12/19/among-wealthy-nations/|date=2002-12-19|access-date=2010-06-22}}</ref> ===Statistics=== ;Varied sources indicate very different statistics of religious groups in Vietnam {| class="wikitable sortable" style="margin:auto;" |- style="text-align:center;" ! Religious<br />group ! % Population <br />'''2009'''<ref>[http://www.gso.gov.vn/default.aspx?tabid=512&idmid=5&ItemID=10798 Full results of the 2009 Population and Housing Census of Vietnam, part #1].</ref> ! % Population <br />'''2010'''<ref>[http://www.globalreligiousfutures.org/countries/vietnam#/?affiliations_religion_id=0&affiliations_year=2010&region_name=All%20Countries&restrictions_year=2016 Pew Research Center]</ref> ! % Population <br />'''2014'''<ref name="2014data">Vietnamese Government Committee for Religious Affairs (2014). Cited in the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. [http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=14914&LangID=E "Press Statement on the visit to the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam by the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief"]. Hanoi, Viet Nam 31 July 2014. [http://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Issues/Religion/StatementVietnameseVersion31July2014.pdf Vietnamese].</ref> ! % Population <br />2018<ref name= "RIRF">Vietnamese Government Committee for Religious Affairs (2018). Cited in the US {{cite document|author=Office of International Religious Freedom|year=2018|title=Report on International Religious Freedom: Vietnam|url=https://www.state.gov/reports/2018-report-on-international-religious-freedom/vietnam/|publisher=US Department of State}}</ref> ! % Population <br />2019<ref name="Census">{{Cite web |title=Completed results of the 2019 Viet Nam population and housing census – General Statistics Office of Vietnam |url=https://www.gso.gov.vn/en/data-and-statistics/2020/11/completed-results-of-the-2019-viet-nam-population-and-housing-census/}}</ref> |- ! style="background:#e3ffff; color:black;"| Vietnamese folk religion,<br /> and non-religion/atheism | 81.6% || 45.3% <br />29.6% || 73.1% |73.52% |86.32% |- ! style="background:#ffdab0;"| Buddhism | 7.9% || 16.4% || 12.2% |14.91% |4.79% |- ! style="background:Turquoise;"| Christianity | rowspan="3" | 7.5% ''<small>6.6%</small>''<br /> ''<small>0.9%</small>'' | rowspan="3" | 8.2% <small>n/a</small><br /> <small>n/a</small> | rowspan="3" | 8.4% <small>''6.9%''</small><br /> ''<small>1.5%</small>'' | rowspan="3" |8.44% ''<small>7.35%</small>''<br /> ''<small>1.09%</small>'' | rowspan="3" |7.10% ''<small>6.10%</small>''<br /> ''<small>1.00%</small>'' |- ! style="background:#edb7e9;"| <small>''Catholicism''</small> |- ! style="background:#87CEFA;"| <small>''Protestantism''</small> |- ! style="background:#fffa75;"| Hoahaoism | 1.6% || n/a || 1.4% |1.47% |1.02% |- ! style="background:#b3ff9e;"| Caodaism | 1.0% || n/a || 4.8% |1.16% |0.58% |- ! style="background:#fcf7f7;"| Other religions | 0.2% || 0.5% || 0.1% |0.50% |0.19% |} {{clear}} === Statistics controversy === Government statistics of the religion in Vietnam, are counts of members of religious organization recognized by the government.<ref name="Census" /> Hence, this does not include people practicing folk religion, which is not recognized by government. Also, many people practice religion such as Buddhism without taking any membership of specific government organization. [[Official statistics]] from the 2019 Census, also not categorizing folk religion, indicates that Catholicism is the largest (organized) religion in Vietnam, surpassing Buddhism. While some other surveys reported 45-50 millions Buddhist living in Vietnam, the government statistics counts for 6.8 millions.<ref name="GNO" /> It is the [[Buddhist Sangha of Vietnam]], however, does not reports official statistics on its adherents. The great gaps in statistics on the number of Buddhist adherents is due to disagreement on the very criteria of what constitute a Buddhist.<ref name="Lk">{{cite web |author1=Thái Thanh |title=Thống kê số tín đồ Phật giáo: Nhà nước nói giảm, giáo hội hụt hẫng |url=https://www.luatkhoa.org/2021/02/thong-ke-so-tin-do-phat-giao-nha-nuoc-noi-giam-giao-hoi-hut-hang/ |website=Luật khoa Tạp chí |date=2021-02-18}}</ref> ==History== The earliest forms of Vietnamese religious practice were [[animism|animistic]] and [[totem]]ic in nature.<ref name="htht-asiasociety">{{cite web |url=http://www.asiasociety.org/countries-history/religions-philosophies/religion-vietnam |title=Religion in Vietnam: A World of Gods and Spirits |author= Hue-Tam Ho Tai |date=2008-08-20 |work=Asia Society |access-date=2010-05-15}}</ref> The decorations on [[Dong Son drum|Dong Son bronze drum]]s, generally agreed to have ceremonial and possibly religious value,<ref group="nb">"It is generally agreed that Dong Son drums were used for ceremonial purposes (e.g. Higham 1996: 133), and it could be argued that they were produced within a particular religious context, so we might talk about Dong Son religion, in the sense we talk about the Buddhist religion, as a cultural production but one which we know little about specifically." {{cite journal |last1=Bowdler |first1=Sandra |year=2006 |title=The Hoabinhian: Early Evidence for SE Asian Trade Networks? |journal=Uncovering Southeast Asia's Past: Selected Papers from the 10th International Conference of the European Association of Southeast Asian Archaeologists |editor1-first=Elisabeth A. |editor1-last=Bacus |editor2-first=Ian |editor2-last=Glover |editor3-first=Vincent C. |editor3-last=Pigott |publisher=National University of Singapore |page=357 }}</ref> depict the figures of birds, leading historians to believe birds were objects of worship for the early Vietnamese. Dragons were another frequently recurring figure in Vietnamese art, arising from the veneration of [[Lạc Long Quân]], a mythical dragon-king who is said to be the father of the Vietnamese people. The Golden Turtle God [[Kim Qui#The legend of Kim Qui|Kim Quy]] was said to appear to kings in times of crisis, notably to [[Lê Lợi]], from whom he took the legendary sword [[Thuận Thiên (sword)|Thuận Thiên]] after it had been dropped into [[Hoan Kiem Lake]]. Contact with Chinese civilization, and the introduction of the [[triple religion]] of Buddhism, Confucianism and Daoism, added a further ethical and moral dimension to the indigenous Vietnamese religion.<ref name="htht-asiasociety" /> A recent research using folkloristic computations has provided evidence on the existence of "cultural additivity" by examining the interaction of Buddhism, Confucianism and Daoism throughout the history of Vietnam.<ref name=CulturalAdd2018>{{cite journal|title=Cultural additivity: behavioural insights from the interaction of Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism in folktales|journal=Palgrave Communications|volume=4|date=December 4, 2018|doi=10.1057/s41599-018-0189-2|last1=Vuong|first1=Quan-Hoang|last2=Bui|first2=Quang-Khiem|last3=La|first3=Viet-Phuong|last4=Vuong|first4=Thu-Trang|last5=Nguyen|first5=Viet-Ha T.|last6=Ho|first6=Manh-Toan|last7=Nguyen|first7=Hong-Kong T.|last8=Ho|first8=Manh-Tung|doi-access=free}}</ref> ==Folk religions== {{Main|Vietnamese folk religion}} Scholars such as Toan Ánh (''Tín ngưỡng Việt Nam'' 1991) have listed a resurgence in traditional belief in many local, village-level, spirits.<ref>Philip Taylor (2007). ''Modernity and Re-Enchantment: Religion in Post-Revolutionary Vietnam''. page 163 "Toan Ánh lists more specific examples [Tín-ngưỡng Việt-Nam 1991] ... Both Cổ Nhuế village in Hà Đông (Hanoi), and Đông Vệ village of Vĩnh Tường prefecture, Vĩnh Yên (Vĩnh Phú) province, worship the spirit who handles excrement."</ref> ===Đạo Mẫu=== {{Main|Đạo Mẫu}} [[File:Lien2.jpeg|thumb|150px|A ''lên đồng'' practitioner performs in a temple.]] [[Đạo Mẫu]] is a distinct form of Vietnamese folk religion, it is the worship of mother goddesses in Vietnam. There are distinct beliefs and practices in this religion including the worship of goddesses such as Thiên Y A Na, The Lady of the Realm (Bà Chúa Xứ), The Lady of the Storehouse (Bà Chúa Kho) and Princess Liễu Hạnh (1), legendary figures like Âu Cơ, the Trung Sisters (Hai Bà Trưng), Lady Trieu (Bà Triệu), and the cult of the Four Palaces. Đạo Mẫu is commonly associated with spirit mediumship rituals—known in Vietnam as lên đồng. It is a ritual in which followers become spirit mediums for various deities. The Communist government used to suspend the practice of lên đồng due to its superstition, but in 1987, the government legalized this practice. ===Đạo Dừa=== {{Main|Đạo Dừa}} [[Ông Đạo Dừa]] (1909-1990) created the [[Coconut Religion]] ([[Vietnamese language|Vietnamese]]: ''Đạo Dừa'' or ''Hòa đồng Tôn giáo''), a syncretic Buddhist, Christian and local Vietnamese religion which at its peak had 4,000 followers, before it was banned. Its adherents ate [[coconut]] and drank [[coconut milk]]. In 1975 the [[Reunification Day|Reunited Vietnam]] authorities forced this religion to go underground. ==Buddhism== [[File:Vn-hanoi-einsäulenpagode-02-08-07.jpg|thumb|180px|[[Hanoi]]'s reconstructed [[One Pillar Pagoda]], a historic Buddhist temple.]] [[File:La pagode But Thap 4.jpg|thumb|180px|[[Amitābha|Amitabha Buddha]] statue at [[Bút Tháp Temple]].]] [[Image:Vietnam Incense.jpg |thumb|200px|right| Vietnamese girl in [[Áo dài]] offering incense]] {{Main|Buddhism in Vietnam}} Vietnam was conventionally considered to be a Buddhist country.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=Vietnam: Ethnic and religious groups|url=https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/695864/Vietnam_-_Ethnic_and_Religious_groups|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Buddhism]] came to [[Vietnam]] as early as the second century AD through the North from China and via Southern routes from India.<ref name="nguyen97-9">Cuong Tu Nguyen. Zen in Medieval Vietnam: A Study of the Thiền Uyển Tập Anh. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1997, pg 9.</ref> [[Mahayana]] Buddhism first spread from India via sea to Vietnam around 100 AD.{{sfn|Kiernan|2019|p=92}} During the 15th and 16th centuries, [[Theravāda]] became established as the state religion in Cambodia and also spread to Cambodians living in the [[Mekong Delta]], replaced Mahayana.<ref>{{cite book|last=Harris|first=Ian|year=2008|title=Cambodian Buddhism: History and Practice|publisher=University of Hawaii Press|pages=35–36}}</ref> Buddhism as practiced by the [[Vietnamese people|ethnic Vietnamese]] is mainly of the Mahayana school, although some ethnic minorities (such as the [[Khmer Krom]] in the southern Delta region of Vietnam) adhere to the Theravada school.<ref name="nguyenbarb98-130">Cuong Tu Nguyen & A.W. Barber. "Vietnamese Buddhism in North America: Tradition and Acculturation". in Charles S. Prebish and Kenneth K. Tanaka (eds). The Faces of Buddhism in America. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1998, pg 130.</ref> Today, more than half of the Vietnamese population, consider themselves as adherents of Mahayana Buddhism. Theravada and Hòa Hảo Buddhism are also present in significant numbers.<ref name=":0" /> Buddhist practice in Vietnam differs from that of other Asian countries, and does not contain the same institutional structures, hierarchy, or [[sangha]]s that exist in other traditional Buddhist settings. It has instead grown from a symbiotic relationship with [[Taoism]], Chinese spirituality, and the indigenous Vietnamese religion, with the majority of Buddhist practitioners focusing on devotional rituals rather than meditation.<ref name="nguyenbarb98-132">Cuong Tu Nguyen & A.W. Barber 1998, pg 132.</ref> ===Thiền tông=== {{main|Vietnamese Thiền}} [[Zen|Zen Buddhism]] arrived in Vietnam as early as the 6th century CE, with the works of [[Vinītaruci]].{{sfn|Kiernan|2019|p=107}} It flourished under the Lý and Trần dynasties. [[Trúc Lâm|Trúc Lâm Zen]] is the only native school of Buddhism in Vietnam. ===Pure Land=== [[Pure Land Buddhism]] is a broad branch of [[Mahayana]] [[Buddhism]] and is said to be one of the most popular schools of Buddhism in Vietnam, in which practitioners commonly recite [[Sūtra|sutras]], chants and dharanis looking to gain protection from [[bodhisattvas]] or Dharma-Protectors.<ref>Cuong Tu Nguyen 1997, p. 94.</ref> While Pure Land traditions, practices and concepts are found within Mahayana cosmology, and form an important component of Buddhist traditions in Vietnam, Pure Land Buddhism was not independently recognized as a sect of Buddhism (as Pure Land schools have been recognized, for example, in Japan) until 2007, with the official recognition of the Vietnamese Pure Land Buddhism Association as an independent and legal religious organization.<ref name="vnnews-pureland">{{cite news | title=Pure Land Buddhism recognised by Gov't. | agency=Viet Nam News | publisher=AmericanBuddhist.net | date=2007-12-27 | url=http://www.americanbuddhist.net/pure-land-buddhism-recognised-gov-t | access-date=2010-05-19 | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100620194206/http://americanbuddhist.net/pure-land-buddhism-recognised-gov-t | archive-date=2010-06-20 }}</ref> ===Bửu Sơn Kỳ Hương=== {{main|Đạo Bửu Sơn Kỳ Hương}} {{Emptysection|date=February 2013}} ===Hòa Hảo=== [[Hòa Hảo]] is a religious tradition, based on [[Buddhism]], founded in 1939 by [[Huỳnh Phú Sổ]], a native of the [[Mekong Delta]] region of southern Vietnam. Adherents consider Sổ to be a [[prophet]], and Hòa Hảo a continuation of a 19th-century Buddhist ministry known as [[Bửu Sơn Kỳ Hương]] ("Strange Perfume from Precious Mountains", referring to the [[Thất Sơn]] range on the Vietnam-[[Cambodia]] border). The founders of these traditions are regarded by Hòa Hảo followers as living [[Buddhahood|Buddhas]]—destined to save mankind from suffering and to protect the Vietnamese nation. An important characteristic of Hòa Hảo is its emphasis on [[peasant]] farmers, exemplified by the old slogan ''"Practicing Buddhism While Farming Your Land."'' Hòa Hảo also stresses the practice of Buddhism by lay people in the home, rather than focusing primarily on temple worship and ordination. Aid to the poor is favored over [[pagoda]] building or expensive rituals. Today, as an officially recognized religion, it claims approximately two million followers throughout Vietnam; in certain parts of the Mekong Delta, as many as 90 percent of the population of this region practice this tradition. Since many of the teachings of Huỳnh Phú Sổ related in some way to Vietnamese nationalism, adherence to Hòa Hảo outside of Vietnam has been minimal, with a largely quiescent group of followers presumed to exist among the [[Vietnamese diaspora]] in the United States. ===Tứ Ân Hiếu Nghĩa=== Tứ Ân Hiếu Nghĩa ''("Four Debts of Gratitude")'', a Buddhist sect based in [[An Giang Province]], is one of the most recently registered religions in Vietnam. It is based on the teachings of Ngô Lợi (1831–1890). Official government statistics report that Tứ Ân Hiếu Nghĩa claimed over 70,000 registered followers and 476 religious leaders as of 2005, centred in 76 places of worship spread across 14 provinces, mainly in Southern Vietnam.<ref name="relwp">[http://www.vietnamembassy.us/docs/Vietnam%20White%20Paper%20on%20Religion.pdf White Paper on Religion and Policies regarding religion in Viet Nam] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070224223005/http://www.vietnamembassy.us/docs/Vietnam%20White%20Paper%20on%20Religion.pdf |date=2007-02-24 }} (PDF)</ref><ref>{{cite news |author = VietNamNet Bridge |title = News Highlights August 10 |work = VietNamNet Bridge |publisher = VietNamNet Bridge |date = 2006-08-10 |url = http://english.vietnamnet.vn/reports/2006/08/600705/ |access-date = 2009-02-08 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080515161033/http://english.vietnamnet.vn/reports/2006/08/600705/ |archive-date = May 15, 2008 }}</ref> {{ill|Minh Sư Đạo|vi}} is a sect that is related to Cao Đài.<ref>[http://www.viet-studies.info/CaoDai_Sep2010.pdf Divination and Politics in Southern Vietnam:Roots of Caodaism]</ref> ==Christianity== {{Main|Christianity in Vietnam}} ===Catholicism=== [[File:Hanoi_sjc.jpg|thumb|220px|[[St. Joseph's Cathedral, Hanoi]].]] {{Main|Catholic Church in Vietnam}} By far the most widespread Christian denomination in Vietnam, [[Catholic Church|Roman Catholicism]] first entered the country through Portuguese and Spanish [[missionary|missionaries]] in the 16th century, although these earliest missions did not bring very impressive results. Only after the arrival of [[Society of Jesus|Jesuits]], who were mainly Italians, Portuguese, and Japanese, in the first decades of the 17th century did [[Christianity]] begin to establish its positions within the local populations in both domains of ''[[Đàng Ngoài]]'' ([[Tonkin]]) and ''[[Đàng Trong]]'' ([[Cochinchina]]).<ref name="Tran 2018">{{cite journal |last1=Tran|first1=Anh Q. |title=The Historiography of the Jesuits in Vietnam: 1615–1773 and 1957–2007 |journal=Jesuit Historiography Online |url=https://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/jesuit-historiography-online/the-historiography-of-the-jesuits-in-vietnam-16151773-and-19572007-COM_210470 |publisher=Brill |date=October 2018 }}</ref> Two priests [[Francesco Buzomi]] and Diogo Carvalho established the first Catholic community in [[Hội An]] in 1615. Between 1627 and 1630, Avignonese [[Alexandre de Rhodes]] and Portuguese Pero Marques converted more than 6,000 people in Tonkin.<ref name="caen">[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07765a.htm Catholic Encyclopedia, Indochina] {{webarchive |url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160303234625/http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07765a.htm |date=March 3, 2016 }}</ref> 17th-century Jesuit missionaries including [[Francisco de Pina]], Gaspar do Amaral, Antonio Barbosa, and de Rhodes developed an alphabet for the Vietnamese language, using the [[Latin script]] with added [[diacritic]] marks.<ref>{{cite conference |url = https://www.academia.edu/41197889 |title = Từ Nước Mặn đến Roma: Những đóng góp của các giáo sĩ Dòng Tên trong quá trình La tinh hoá tiếng Việt ở thế kỷ 17 |last1 = Trần | first1 = Quốc Anh| last2 = Phạm | first2 = Thị Kiều Ly | date = October 2019 |publisher = Committee on Culture, [[Catholic Bishops' Conference of Vietnam]] |conference= Conference 400 năm hình thành và phát triển chữ Quốc ngữ trong lịch sử loan báo Tin Mừng tại Việt Nam |location = Hochiminh City}}</ref> This writing system continues to be used today, and is called [[Vietnamese alphabet|''chữ Quốc ngữ'']] (literally "national language script"). Meanwhile, the traditional ''[[chữ Nôm]]'', in which [[Girolamo Maiorica]] was an expert, was the main script conveying Catholic faith to Vietnamese until the late 19th century.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Ostrowski |first1=Brian Eugene |editor-last=Wilcox |editor-first=Wynn |title=Vietnam and the West: New Approaches |date=2010 |publisher=[[Cornell Southeast Asia Program#SEAP Publications|SEAP Publications]], Cornell University Press |location=Ithaca, New York |isbn=9780877277828 |chapter= The Rise of Christian Nôm Literature in Seventeenth-Century Vietnam: Fusing European Content and Local Expression |pages=23, 38 }}</ref> Since the late 17th century, French missionaries of the [[Paris Foreign Missions Society|Foreign Missions Society]] and Spanish missionaries of the [[Dominican Order]] were gradually taking the role of evangelisation in Vietnam. Other missionaries active in pre-modern Vietnam were [[Franciscans]] (in Cochinchina), Italian Dominicans & [[Discalced Augustinians]] (in Eastern Tonkin), and those sent by the [[Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples|''Propaganda Fide'']]. During the 17th and 18th centuries, Catholicism successfully integrated into Vietnamese society and culture.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Keith|first1=Charles|title=Catholic Vietnam: A Church from Empire to Nation|date=2012|publisher=University of California Press|pages=4, 18–21|isbn=9780520272477}}</ref> The French missionary priest [[Pigneau de Behaine]] played a role in Vietnamese history towards the end of the 18th century by befriending [[Nguyễn Ánh]], the most senior of the ruling [[Nguyễn lords]] to have escaped the rebellion of the [[Tây Sơn]] brothers in 1777.<ref>{{Cite book|title= A History of South-east Asia| first= D. G. E.|last=Hall | publisher=[[Macmillan Publishers|Macmillan]] |year=1981 |isbn=978-0-333-24163-9}}, p. 423.<br />{{Cite journal|title= Southeast Asia: Its Historical Development| first= John F.|last=Cady | publisher=[[McGraw Hill]] |year=1964}}, p. 282.<br />{{Cite book |first=Mark W. |last=McLeod | title=The Vietnamese response to French intervention, 1862&ndash;1874 |publisher=Praeger | year=1991 |isbn=978-0-275-93562-7 }}, p. 7.<br />{{Cite book| last=Karnow| first=Stanley | title=Vietnam: A history|year=1997 |location=New York|publisher=Penguin Books | isbn=978-0-670-84218-6|author-link=Stanley Karnow}}, p. 75.</ref> Becoming Nguyễn Ánh's loyal confidant, benefactor and military advisor during his time of need,<ref>{{Cite book |first=Mark W. |last=McLeod | title=The Vietnamese response to French intervention, 1862&ndash;1874 |publisher=Praeger | year=1991 |isbn=978-0-275-93562-7 }}, p. 9.<br />{{Cite journal|title= Southeast Asia: Its Historical Development| first= John F.|last=Cady | publisher=[[McGraw Hill]] |year=1964}}, p. 284.<br />{{Cite book|title= A History of South-east Asia| first= D. G. E.|last=Hall | publisher=[[Macmillan Publishers|Macmillan]] |year=1981 |isbn=978-0-333-24163-9}}, p. 431.</ref> he was able to gain a great deal of favor for the Church. During Nguyễn Ánh's subsequent rule as Emperor [[Gia Long]], the Catholic faith was permitted unimpeded missionary activities out of his respect to his benefactors.<ref>Buttinger, pp. 241, 311.</ref> By the time of the Emperor's accession in 1802, Vietnam had 3 Catholic [[diocese]]s with 320,000 members and over 120 Vietnamese priests.<ref name="lavang.co.uk">{{cite web | title = Catholic Church in Vietnam with 470 years of Evangelization | work = Rev. John Trần Công Nghị, Religious Education Congress in Anaheim | year = 2004| url = http://www.lavang.co.uk/raditruyengiao/Catholic%20Church%20in%20Vietnam-%20470%20years%20of%20Evangelization.htm | access-date = 2007-05-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100614074451/http://www.lavang.co.uk/raditruyengiao/Catholic%20Church%20in%20Vietnam-%20470%20years%20of%20Evangelization.htm |archive-date=2010-06-14}}</ref> The Catholic Church in Vietnam today consists of 27 dioceses organized in 3 ecclesiastical provinces of Hanoi, Hue and Saigon. The government census of 2019 shows that Catholicism, for the first time, is the largest religious denomination in Vietnam, surpassing Buddhism.<ref name="GNO">{{cite web |title=Số người theo Phật giáo còn 4,6 triệu, đứng thứ hai ở VN! |url=https://giacngo.vn/so-nguoi-theo-phat-giao-con-4-6-trieu-dung-thu-hai-o-vn-post49910.html |website=Giác Ngộ Online |date=December 2019}}</ref> Ecclesiastical sources report there are about 7 million Catholics, representing 7.0% of the total population.<ref>"[https://web.archive.org/web/20200102041220/http://vietcatholicnews.net/News/Html/254004.htm Giáo trình lớp Hội nhập Văn hoá ''Văn hoá Công Giáo Việt Nam'']".</ref> ===Protestantism=== {{Main|Protestantism in Vietnam}} Protestantism was introduced to [[Da Nang]] in 1911 by a Canadian [[missionary]] named [[Robert A. Jaffray]]; over the years, he was followed by more than 100 missionaries, members of the [[Christian and Missionary Alliance]], an [[Evangelical]] Protestant denomination. The two officially recognized [[Protestant]] organizations recognized by the government are the Southern [[Evangelicalism|Evangelical Church]] of Vietnam (SECV), recognized in 2001, and the smaller Evangelical Church of Vietnam North (ECVN), recognized since 1963.<ref name="liberty">{{cite web | title=Vietnam |work=International Religious Freedom Report 2005 | publisher=[[U.S. Department of State]]: [[Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor]]| date = 2005-06-30| url = https://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2005/51535.htm | access-date = 2010-05-19 }}</ref> Present estimates of the number of Protestants range from the official government figure of 500,000 to claims by churches of 1 million. Growth has been most pronounced among members of minority peoples ([[montagnard (Vietnam)|Montagnard]]s) such as the [[Hmong people|Hmong]], [[E De people|Ede]], [[Jarai people|Jarai]], and [[Bahnar people|Bahnar]], with internal estimates claiming two-thirds of all Protestants in Vietnam are members of ethnic minorities.<ref name="protconf" /> By some estimates, the growth of Protestant believers in Vietnam has been as much as 600 percent over the past ten years. Some of the new converts belong to unregistered evangelical [[house church]]es, whose followers are said to total about 200,000.<ref name="protconf">{{cite web |author = Compass Direct| title =Vietnam Protestants Call Conference 'Miraculous' | work = Christianity Today| date = 2002-09-20| url = http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2001/107/36.0.html| access-date = 2006-07-21 }}</ref> [[Baptist]] and [[Mennonite]] movements were officially recognized by Hanoi in October, 2007, which was seen as a notable improvement in the level of religious freedom enjoyed by Vietnamese Protestants.<ref name="ASN">{{cite news|url=http://www.asianews.it/index.php?l=en&art=10466&size=A |title=Hanoi officially recognises Baptists and Mennonites |publisher=Asianews.it |date=2007-10-03 |access-date=2010-05-19}}</ref> Similarly, in October 2009, the [[Assemblies of God]] movement received official government permission to operate, which is the first step to becoming a legal organization.<ref name="assemgod">{{cite web |author = Vietnam News| title =Assemblies of God receive permit covering 40 provinces | work = Vietnam News| date = 2009-10-20| url = http://vietnamnews.vnagency.com.vn/social-issues/religion/193105/assemblies-of-god-receive-permit-covering-40-provinces-.html | access-date = 2012-07-28 }}</ref> The Assemblies of God were said to consist of around 40,000 followers in 2009,<ref name="assemgod" /> the Baptist Church around 18,400 followers with 500 ministers in 2007,<ref name="ASN" /> and The Mennonite Church around 10,000 followers. ===Eastern Orthodoxy=== {{Main|Eastern Orthodoxy in Vietnam}} For Orthodox Christianity, the [[Russian Orthodox Church]] is represented in [[Vũng Tàu]], Vietnam, mainly among the Russian-speaking employees of the Russian-Vietnamese joint venture "Vietsovpetro". The parish is named after [[Our Lady of Kazan]] icon was opened in 2002 with the blessing of the [[Holy Synod]] of the [[Russian Orthodox Church]], which had been given in [[Troitse-Sergiyeva Lavra]]. The representatives of the foreign relations department of the [[Russian Orthodox Church]] come to Vũng Tàu from time to time to conduct the Orthodox divine service.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ricolor.org/rz/vietnam/mp/pasha_2006/ |title=Holy Week and Easter celebrated in Vietnam |language=ru |publisher=Educational Orthodox Society "Russia in colors" in Jerusalem |access-date=2010-05-19}}</ref> There are also two recently organized parishes in Hanoi and Hochiminh City. Vietnam is also mentioned as territory under the jurisdiction of the [[Eastern Orthodox Metropolitanate of Hong Kong and Southeast Asia|Metropolitanate of Hong Kong and Southeast Asia]] ([[Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople]]), though there is no information on its organized activities there. === Jehovah's Witnesses === [[Jehovah's Witnesses]] established their permanent presence in Saigon in 1957.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/301991017#h=120 | title=Thailand — Watchtower ONLINE LIBRARY }}</ref> As of 2019, Jehovah's Witnesses are a target of government oppression in Vietnam.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.rferl.org/a/countries-where-jehovahs-witnesses-activities-are-banned/29757419.html|title = Countries Where Jehovah's Witnesses' Activities Are Banned}}</ref> ===The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints=== On May 31, 2016, leaders of [[the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]] (LDS Church) met with Vietnamese officials. The Government Committee for Religious Affairs officially recognized the church's representative committee.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/official-recognition-granted-church-vietnam?HP_FR_3-6-2016_dCN_fBLOG_xLIDyL2-1_ |title=Vietnam Grants Official Recognition to Church |language=en|publisher=Newsroom for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints |date= 2016-06-03|access-date=2016-06-08}}</ref> Congregations currently meet in [[Hanoi]] and [[Ho Chi Minh City]]. ==Cao Đài== [[File:Cao Dai prayers 2.jpg|thumb|225px|Monks praying in the [[Cao Đài]] [[Episcopal See|Holy See]] in [[Tây Ninh]], Vietnam.]] [[Cao Đài]] is a relatively new, [[syncretism|syncretist]], [[monotheistic]] [[religion]], officially established in the city of [[Tây Ninh]], southern Vietnam, in 1926. The term ''Cao Đài'' literally means "highest tower", or figuratively, the highest place where God reigns. Cao Đài's first disciples, [[Ngô Văn Chiêu]], Cao Quỳnh Cư, [[Phạm Công Tắc]] and Cao Hoài Sang, claimed to have received direct communications from God, who gave them explicit instructions for establishing a new religion that would commence the Third Era of Religious Amnesty. Adherents engage in ethical practices such as [[prayer]], [[ancestor worship|veneration of ancestors]], [[nonviolence]], and [[vegetarianism]] with the minimum goal of rejoining God the Father in Heaven and the ultimate goal of [[Nirvana (Buddhism)|freedom from]] [[reincarnation|the cycle of birth and death]]. Official government records counted 2.2 million registered members of Tây Ninh Cao Đài in 2005, but also estimated in 2007 that there were 3.2 million Caodaists including roughly a dozen other denominations.<ref>Hoskins, Janet Alison (2015). ''The Divine Eye and the Diaspora: Vietnamese Syncretism Becomes Transpacific Caodaism''. p. 239. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press {{ISBN|978-0-8248-5140-8}}</ref> According to the official statistics, in 2014, the estimated number of Caodaists is 4.4 million, it was a dramatic increase of 1.2 million followers or an increase of 37.5%. Country Information and Guidance — Vietnam: Religious minority groups. December 2014. Quoting United Nations' "Press Statement on the visit to the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam by the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief". It is more likely that "unofficial" Caodaists have decided that it is now acceptable to identify themselves as followers of the religion in the last seven years. Many outside sources give 4 to 6 million. Some estimates are as high as 8 million adherents in Vietnam. An additional 30,000 (numbers may vary) (primarily [[Overseas Vietnamese|ethnic Vietnamese]]) live in the United States, Europe, and Australia. ==Hinduism== {{Main article|Hinduism in Vietnam}} [[File:Hindu Temples Cham Empire Nha Trang Vietnam.jpg|thumb|[[Hindu temple]] in [[Nha Trang]] ]] Adherence to [[Hinduism]] in Vietnam is associated with the [[Cham people|Cham]] ethnic minority; the first religion of the [[Champa]] kingdom was a form of [[Shaivite]] Hinduism, brought by sea from India. The Cham people erected Hindu temples (''Bimong'') throughout Central Vietnam, many of which are still in use today; the now-abandoned [[Mỹ Sơn]], a [[UNESCO]] [[World Heritage Site]], is perhaps the most well-known of Cham temple complexes. Approximately 50,000 ethnic Cham in the south-central coastal area practice a devotional form of Hinduism. Most of the Cham Hindus belong to the [[Kshatriya#Nagavanshi|Nagavamshi Kshatriya]] [[caste]],<ref>India's interaction with Southeast Asia, Volume 1, Part 3 By Govind Chandra Pande, Project of History of Indian Science, Philosophy, and Culture, Centre for Studies in Civilizations (Delhi, India) p.231,252</ref> but a considerable minority are [[Brahmins]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2004/35433.htm |title=Vietnam |work=International Religious Freedom Report 2004 |publisher=[[U.S. Department of State]]: [[Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor]] |date=2002-10-22 |access-date=2010-05-19}}</ref> Another 4,000 Hindus (mostly [[Tamil people|Tamil]], and otherwise of Cham or mixed Indian-Vietnamese descent) live in [[Ho Chi Minh City]], where the [[Mariamman Temple, Ho Chi Minh City|Mariamman Temple]] acts as a focal point for the community. In Ninh Thuận Province, where most of the Cham in Vietnam reside, Cham Balamon (Hindu Cham) numbers 32,000; out of the 22 villages in Ninh Thuận, 15 are Hindu. As per the census of 2009, there are a total of 56,427 Cham Hindus in Vietnam. Out of this number, 40,695 are in Ninh Thuận, and another 15,094 are in Bình Thuận.<ref>http://www.gso.gov.vn/Modules/Doc_Download.aspx?DocID=12724</ref> ==Islam== [[File:Mosque near Chau Doc, Vietnam.jpg|right|A mosque in [[An Giang]]|thumb|225px]] {{Main|Islam in Vietnam}} Much like Hinduism, adherence to Islam in Vietnam is primarily associated with the [[Cham people|Cham]] ethnic minority, although there is also a Muslim population of mixed ethnic origins, also known as Cham, or Cham Muslims, in the southwest ([[Mekong Delta]]) of the country. Islam is assumed to have come to Vietnam much after its arrival in China during the [[Tang Dynasty]] (618&ndash;907), through contact with Arab traders. The number of followers began to increase as contacts with [[Sultanate of Malacca]] broadened in the wake of the 1471 collapse of the Champa Kingdom, but Islam would not become widespread among the Cham until the mid-17th century. In the mid-19th century, many Muslim Chams emigrated from [[Cambodia]], settling in the Mekong Delta and further bolstering the presence of Islam in Vietnam. Vietnamese Muslims remained relatively isolated from the mainstream of world Islam, and their isolation, combined with the lack of religious schools, caused the practice of Islam in Vietnam to become [[Syncretism|syncretic]]. Although the Chams follow a localised adaptation of Islamic theology, they consider themselves Muslims. However, they pray only on Fridays and celebrate [[Ramadan]] for only three days. [[Circumcision]] is performed not physically but symbolically, with a religious leader making the gestures of circumcision with a wooden toy knife.<ref>''The Lonely Planet Guide to Vietnam'', 8th Edition 1991, 2005, pp. 47-48.</ref> Vietnam's largest mosque was opened in January 2006 in [[Xuân Lộc]], [[Đồng Nai Province]]. Its construction was partially funded by donations from [[Saudi Arabia]].<ref>{{Cite news|title=Xuan Loc district inaugurates the biggest Minster for Muslim followers|periodical=Đồng Nai Radio and Television Station|date=2006-01-16|access-date=2007-03-29|url=http://www.dongnai.gov.vn/thong_tin_KTXH/van_hoa_xh/lelan20060116_B5?set_language=en&cl=en|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070927200731/http://www.dongnai.gov.vn/thong_tin_KTXH/van_hoa_xh/lelan20060116_B5?set_language=en&cl=en <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archive-date = 2007-09-27}}</ref> A 2005 census counted over 66,000 Muslims in Vietnam, up from 63,000 in 1999.<ref name="relwp" /><ref>Census 1999, {{harvnb|Table|83}}</ref> Over 77% lived in the [[Southeast (Vietnam)|Southeast]], with 34% in [[Ninh Thuận Province]], 24% in [[Bình Thuận Province]], and 9% in [[Ho Chi Minh City]]. Another 22% lived in the Mekong Delta region, primarily in [[An Giang Province]]. In Ninh Thuận Province, where most of the Cham in Vietnam reside, Cham Bani (Muslim Cham) number close to 22,000. Out of the 22 villages in Ninh Thuận, 7 are Muslim.<ref name="hardy105">''Champa and the archaeology of Mỹ Sơn (Vietnam)'' by Andrew Hardy, Mauro Cucarzi, Patrizia Zolese p.105</ref> The Cham in Vietnam are only recognized as a minority, and not as an indigenous people by the Vietnamese government despite being indigenous to the region. Both Hindu and Muslim Chams have experienced religious and ethnic persecution and restrictions on their faith under the current Vietnamese government, with the Vietnamese state confiscating Cham property and forbidding Cham from observing their religious beliefs. Hindu temples were turned into tourist sites against the wishes of the Cham Hindus. In 2010 and 2013, several incidents occurred in Thành Tín and Phươc Nhơn villages where Cham were murdered by Vietnamese. In 2012, Vietnamese police in Châu Giang village stormed into a Cham mosque, stole the electric generator and raped Cham girls.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.chamtoday.com/index.php/news-tin-t-c/100-mission-to-vietnam-advocacy-day |title=Mission to Vietnam Advocacy Day (Vietnamese-American Meet up 2013) in the U.S. Capitol. A UPR report By IOC-Campa |publisher=Chamtoday.com |date=2013-09-14 |access-date=2014-06-17 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140222133028/http://www.chamtoday.com/index.php/news-tin-t-c/100-mission-to-vietnam-advocacy-day |archive-date=2014-02-22 }}</ref> Cham Muslims in the Mekong Delta have also been economically marginalized and pushed into poverty by Vietnamese policies, with ethnic Vietnamese [[Vietnamese people|Kinh]] settling on majority Cham land with state support, and religious practices of minorities have been targeted for elimination by the Vietnamese government.<ref>{{cite journal |last= Taylor |first= Philip |date= December 2006 |title= Economy in Motion: Cham Muslim Traders in the Mekong Delta |url= http://www.chamstudies.com/members/philiptaylor(chammuslimtraders).pdf |journal= The Asia Pacific Journal of Anthropology |publisher= The Australian National University |volume= 7 |issue= 3 |page= 238 |doi= 10.1080/14442210600965174 |s2cid= 43522886 |issn= 1444-2213 |access-date= 3 September 2014 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150923202224/http://www.chamstudies.com/members/philiptaylor(chammuslimtraders).pdf |archive-date= 23 September 2015 |url-status= dead |df= dmy-all }}</ref> The Vietnamese government fears that evidence of [[Champa]]'s influence over the [[Spratly Islands dispute|disputed area in the South China Sea]] would bring attention to human rights violations and killings of ethnic minorities in Vietnam such as in the 2001 and 2004 uprisings, and lead to the issue of Cham autonomy being brought into the dispute, since the Vietnamese conquered the Hindu and Muslim Chams in an 1832 war and continuing to destroy evidence of Cham culture and artifacts left behind, plundering or building on top of Cham temples, building farms over them, banning Cham religious practices, and omitting references to the destroyed Cham capital of Song Luy in the 1832 invasion in history books and tourist guides. The situation of Chams compared to ethnic Vietnamese is substandard, lacking water and electricity and living in houses made out of mud.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Bray |first=Adam |date= June 16, 2014 |title= The Cham: Descendants of Ancient Rulers of South China Sea Watch Maritime Dispute From Sidelines |url= http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/06/140616-south-china-sea-vietnam-china-cambodia-champa/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190510083432/https://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/06/140616-south-china-sea-vietnam-china-cambodia-champa/|archive-date=May 10, 2019|journal= National Geographic News |publisher=National Geographic |access-date=3 September 2014}} [http://www.chamtoday.com/index.php/history-l-ch-s/169-the-cham-descendants-of-ancient-rulers-of-south-china-sea-watch-maritime-dispute-from-sidelines Alt URL]</ref> ==Judaism== {{Main|History of the Jews in Vietnam}} The first [[Jews]] to visit Vietnam likely arrived following the French colonization of the country, in the latter half of the 19th century. There are a handful of references to Jewish settlement in [[Saigon]] sprinkled through the pages of the ''[[Jewish Chronicle]]'' in the 1860s and 1870s. As late as 1939, the estimated combined population of the Jewish communities of [[Haiphong]], [[Hanoi]], [[Saigon]] and [[Tourane]] in French [[Indo-China]] numbered approximately 1,000 individuals.<ref>''[http://www.ajcarchives.org/AJC_DATA/Files/1939_1940_8_Statistics.pdf Statistics of Jews]'', American Jewish Committee, 1940.</ref> In 1940 the [[anti-Semitic]] Vichy-France [[Law on the status of Jews]] was implemented in French Indo-China (Vietnam), leading to increased restrictions and widespread discrimination against Jews. The anti-Jewish laws were repealed in January 1945.<ref>Dommen, Arthur J.''The Indochinese Experience of the French and the Americans: Nationalism and Communism in Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam'' Indiana University Press, 2001 {{ISBN|0-253-33854-9}} Page 69</ref> Prior to the French evacuation of Indochina in 1954, the Jewish population in Indochina (which encompassed Vietnam, [[Laos]] and [[Cambodia]]) was reportedly 1,500; most of these Jews were said to have left with the French, leaving behind no organized Jewish communal structure.<ref>Elazar, Daniel J. ''People and Polity: The Organizational Dynamics of World Jewry'' Wayne State University Press, 1989 {{ISBN|0-8143-1843-6}} Page 472</ref> In 1971, about 12 French Jews still remained in [[South Vietnam]], all in Saigon.<ref>Cohen, Roberta ''The Jewish Communities of the World: Demography, Political and Organizational Status, Religious Institutions, Education, Press'' Institute of Jewish Affairs in association with the World Jewish Congress, 1971, Original from the University of Michigan {{ISBN|0-233-96144-5}} Page 74</ref> In 2005, the U.S. State Department's "International Religious Freedom Report" noted "There were no reported [[anti-Semitic]] incidents during the period covered by this report. The country's small Jewish population is {{sic|comprised |hide=y}} almost entirely of expatriates."<ref name="liberty" /> ==Baháʼí Faith== {{Main|Baháʼí Faith in Vietnam}} Established in the 1950s, the Vietnamese [[Baháʼí Faith|Baháʼí]] community once claimed upwards of 200,000 followers, mainly concentrated in the South.<ref name="irfr2007">{{cite web | url = https://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2007/90159.htm | title = International Religious Freedom Report - Vietnam | date = 2007-09-14 | access-date = 2008-02-23 | author = Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor | publisher = United States State Department}}</ref> The number of followers dwindled as a result of the banning of the practice of the Baháʼí Faith after the Vietnam War. After years of negotiation, the Baháʼí Faith was registered nationally in 2007, once again receiving full recognition as a religious community.<ref name="irfr2007"/> In 2009 it was reported that the Baháʼí community has about 7,000 followers and 73 assemblies.<ref>{{cite news |author=Vietnam News Agency |title = Baha'i Vietnam community to strengthen national unity |work = Thanh Nien |publisher = Thanh Nien Daily |date = 2009-05-04 |url = http://www.thanhniennews.com/2009/Pages/200954221229048481.aspx |access-date = 2010-11-12}}</ref> ==Religious freedom== {{Main|Freedom of religion in Vietnam}} The [[Constitution of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam]] formally allows religious freedom,<ref name=ConstArt20>{{cite web |url = http://www.vietnamembassy-usa.org/learn_about_vietnam/politics/constitution/chapter_five/ |title = Constitution Chapter Five: Fundamental Rights and Duties of the Citizen |publisher = Embassy of the Socialist republic of Vietnam in the United States of America |access-date = 2007-09-27 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20050729111950/http://www.vietnamembassy-usa.org/learn_about_vietnam/politics/constitution/chapter_five/ |archive-date = 2005-07-29 }} (See Article 70)</ref> however, government restrictions remain on organized activities of many religious groups. The government maintains a prominent role overseeing officially recognized religions. Religious groups encounter the greatest restrictions when they are perceived by the government as a challenge to its rule or to the authority of the Communist party.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.persecution.org/awareness/persecuted-countries/vietnam/ | title=Vietnam accused of crackdown ahead of UN rights probe | date=8 May 2009 }}</ref>{{Unreliable source?|date=September 2011}} In 2007, Viet Nam News reported that Viet Nam has six religions recognised by the State ([[Buddhism]], [[Catholicism]], [[Protestantism]], [[Islam]], [[Cao Đài]], and [[Hòa Hảo]]), but that the Baháʼí Community of Viet Nam had been awarded a "certificate of operation" from the Government's Committee for Religious Affairs.<ref name=01REL220307>[http://vietnamnews.vnagency.com.vn/Social-Isssues/Religion/162979/Nations-Bahai-community-gets-religious-recognition.html Nation’s Baha’i community gets religious recognition] (22-03-2007), Viet Nam News, Vietnam News Agency Hanoi, Vietnam</ref> In 2007, the Committee for Religious Affairs was reported to have granted operation registration certificates to three new religions and a religious sect in addition to six existing religions.<ref name=01REL220307 /> Every citizen is declared free to follow no, one, or more religions, practice religion without violating the law, be treated equally regardless of religious belief, and to be protected from being violated in their religious freedom, but is prohibited from using religion to violate the law.<ref name=ConstArt20 /> In fact, there are some limitations in religious practice in Vietnam. Foreign [[missionary|missionaries]] are not legally allowed to proselytize or perform religious activities. No other religions than the aforementioned eight are allowed. Preachers and religious associations are prohibited to use religion to propagate ideologies that are opposed to the government. Many Vietnamese preachers who fled for America and other countries say that they were suppressed by the Communist government for no, unreasonable or ethnic reasons; however, preachers and religious associations who abide by the law working in Vietnam today are aided and honored by the government. The Vietnamese government has been criticized for its religious violations by the United States, the [[Holy See|Vatican]], and expatriate Vietnamese who oppose the Communist government. However, due to recent improvements in religious liberty, the United States no longer considers Vietnam a [[Country of Particular Concern]]. The Vatican has also considered negotiations with Vietnam about freedom for Vietnamese Catholics, and was able to reach a permanent agreement which would allow a permanent representative in the future to the country. Despite some substantial attempts by the Vietnamese government to improve its international image and ease restrictions on religious freedom, the cases of dissident religious leaders' persecution has not stopped in the recent years. The general secretary of the [[Mennonite Church in Vietnam]] and religious freedom advocate [[Nguyen Hong Quang]] was arrested in 2004, and his house razed to the ground.<ref>{{cite web | title = Vietnam: Attack on Mennonites Highlights Religious Persecution | work = Human Rights Watch | date = 2004-10-22| url = http://hrw.org/english/docs/2004/10/22/vietna9552.htm | access-date = 2006-05-12}}</ref> Christian [[degar|Montagnards]] and their [[house church]]es continue to suffer from state control and restrictions.<ref name="state">{{cite web | title = Vietnam report | work = US State Department| date = 2006-09-22| url = https://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2006/71363.htm| access-date = 2006-05-12}}</ref> In March, 2007, a member of the main Hanoi congregation of the legally recognized [[Evangelicalism|Evangelical Church]] of Vietnam (North) Nguyen Van Dai was arrested for accusations relating to his defense of religious freedom, including disseminating alleged "infractions" of religious liberty.<ref>{{cite web | title =Encourage the Wife of Imprisoned Vietnamese Lawyer | work = Persecution blog | date = 2007-04-25| url = http://www.persecutionblog.com/2007/04/encourage_the_w.html| access-date = 2006-04-27 }}</ref>{{Unreliable source?|date=December 2007}} However, during this period of time, it is unknown whether the causes of their protests were more due to personal circumstances, like [[Poverty in Vietnam|poverty]], or if the government was really suppressing religious freedom, which is unlikely due to the diversity and number of religious institutes allowed to operate in Vietnam.<ref>{{Cite web|last=VietnamPlus|date=2021-12-13|title=Vietnam respects, ensures right to belief, religious freedom {{!}} Society {{!}} Vietnam+ (VietnamPlus)|url=https://en.vietnamplus.vn/vietnam-respects-ensures-right-to-belief-religious-freedom/218052.vnp|access-date=2021-12-18|website=VietnamPlus|language=en}}</ref> ==See also== {{portal|Vietnam|Religion}} * [[Freedom of religion in Vietnam]] * [[Vietnamese philosophy]] * [[Taoism in Vietnam]] * [[Vietnamese folk religion]] * [[Baháʼí Faith in Vietnam]] * [[Buddhism in Vietnam]] * [[Hinduism in Vietnam]] * [[Islam in Vietnam]] * [[History of the Jews in Vietnam|Judaism in Vietnam]] * [[Caodaism]] * [[Hòa Hảo]] * [[Christianity in Vietnam]] ** [[Catholic Church in Vietnam]] ** [[Eastern Orthodoxy in Vietnam|Orthodoxy in Vietnam]] ** [[Protestantism in Vietnam]] * [[:Category:Vietnamese Confucianists]] ==Notes== ===Footnotes=== {{reflist|group=nb}} ===Citations=== {{reflist}} ==References== {{Refbegin|2}} * ''Modernity and Re-Enchantment: Religion in Post-Revolutionary Vietnam'', edited by Philip Taylor, ISEAS, Singapore, 2007. {{ISBN|978-981-230-438-4}}; Lexington Books, Maryland, 2008, {{ISBN|978-0-7391-2739-1}}. * Hoskins, Janet Alison. [http://www.cseas.kyoto-u.ac.jp/edit/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/NL643-6.pdf "What Are Vietnam's Indigenous Religions?"]. Center for Southeast Asian Studies Kyoto University. * {{cite book|last=Kiernan|first=Ben|author-link=Ben Kiernan|year=2019|title=Việt Nam: A History from Earliest Time to the Present|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]}} * {{cite book |last=Tran |first=Anh Q. |title=Gods, Heroes, and Ancestors: An Interreligious Encounter in Eighteenth-Century Vietnam |date=2017 |publisher=Oxford University Press |doi=10.1093/oso/9780190677602.001.0001 |isbn=9780190677602 |url=https://oxford.universitypressscholarship.com/view/10.1093/oso/9780190677602.001.0001/oso-9780190677602 }} * {{cite book |editor-last=Dror |editor-first=Olga |title=Opusculum de Sectis apud Sinenses et Tunkinenses: A Small Treatise on the Sects among the Chinese and Tonkinese |date=2002 |publisher=Cornell University Press |isbn=9780877277323 |url=https://www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/book/9780877277323/opusculum-de-sectis-apud-sinenses-et-tunkinenses/ }} {{Refend}} ;Journal articles * {{cite journal |last1=Trần |first1=Claire Thị Liên |title=Communist State and Religious Policy in Vietnam: A Historical Perspective |journal=Hague Journal on the Rule of Law |date=2013 |volume=5 |issue=2 |pages=229–252 |doi=10.1017/S1876404512001133|s2cid=154978637 }} * {{cite journal |last1=Nguyen |first1=Phi-Vân |title=A Secular State for a Religious Nation: The Republic of Vietnam and Religious Nationalism, 1946–1963 |journal=The Journal of Asian Studies |year=2018 |volume=77 |issue=3 |pages=741–771 |doi=10.1017/S0021911818000505 |doi-access=free}} * {{cite journal |last1=Roszko |first1=Edyta |title=Controlled Religious Plurality: Possibilities for Covenantal Pluralism in Vietnam |journal=The Review of Faith & International Affairs |date=2021 |volume=19 |issue=3 |pages=89–103 |doi=10.1080/15570274.2021.1954421 |doi-access=free}} * {{cite journal |last1=Mai |first1=Cuong T. |title=The Karma of Love: Buddhist Karmic Discourses in Confucian and Daoist Voices in Vietnamese Tales of the Marvelous and Uncanny |journal=Journal of Vietnamese Studies |date=2021 |volume=16 |issue=3 |pages=1–76 |doi=10.1525/vs.2021.16.3.1 |doi-access=free}} ** [https://leminhkhai.blog/a-really-great-article-on-premodern-vietnamese-religion/ "A Really Great Article on (Premodern) Vietnamese Religion"]. Review by [[Liam Kelley]]. ==External links== {{Commons category-inline|Religion in Vietnam}} {{Vietnam topics|state=autocollapse}} {{Asia in topic|Religion in}} [[Category:Religion in Vietnam| ]]'