Introduction
Christianity and Islam are the major world religions. Christianity started in the 1st Century CE, while Islam started in the 7th Century CE. Christianity is based on the teachings, death, and resurrection of their savior, Jesus Christ. Islam is based on the teachings of Muhammad, which require one to submit to God’s will. Followers of Christianity are called Christians, while the followers of Islam are called Muslims. Christianity and Islam are persistent religions of the world because of the high fertility rate, age, and location of the adherents, most of whom are in developing countries.
Why Christianity and Islam have remained the Major World Religions
Christianity and Islam have continued to be the major world regions over the years. According to Hackett and McClendon (2017), as of 2015, Christians made up 31% of the world population (7.3b); their numbers increased by 116 million over the previous 5 years. This is a significant increase over the 5 years, greater than that of Muslims. As of 2015, Muslims formed about 24% (1.8b) of the world’s population (Hackett & McClendon (2017). The significant increase in the number of Christians and Muslims is attributed to the high fertility rate.
The number of deaths and births per given time determines the population growth. Fertility determines the number of births, while natural factors like diseases and accidents decrease population through death. Over the past decade, the number of Muslims has grown consistently because Muslims have the most fertile population of all religious groups, with a fertility rate of 2.9 children per woman (WorldAtlas, 2022). The fertility rate among Muslims may see the number grow to catch up with that of Christians (Hackett & McClendon, 2017). The Christian population is a result of the second-highest fertility rate of 2.6 children per woman. Other than births and dates, the age of the population confessing to a given religion will influence their numbers.
The age of adherents of religion determines their population. Hackett $ McClendon (2017) argue that a younger generation of women has many years of childbearing ahead. According to them, Muslims have the youngest median age among all religions, standing at 24 years. Christians have a median age of 30 years against the world median of 30 years (Hackett $ McClendon, 2017). Apart from Hindus’ median age of 24 years, other religions’ medians are greater than 30 years. This means Christians and Muslims have the potential to increase or sustain their population. Despite the younger median compared to Christians, the Hindu population had been small since the early years of religion, and therefore difficult for their population to catch up with that of Christians and Muslims.
Other than age, the region where most adherents are located will also influence the population of a religious group. Many of the adherents to Muslim ad Christianity are in developing nations where birth rates are high (Hackett $ McClendon, 2017). According to them, the infant mortality rate in developing nations has been falling, meaning their population will keep increasing. Hackett $ McClendon (2017) estimate that Christianity and Muslim religions will continue to grow in Sub-Saharan Africa while the unaffiliated population will continue to grow in Europe, North America, China, and Japan in favour of the two major religions.
Conclusion
Christianity and Muslim have remained the major world religions since the beginning of religion. The main reasons behind their persistence are high fertility rates compared to other religions, relatively young generation with many child-bearing years, and their location which is mainly in developing countries with high fertility rates. It is anticipated that their population will continue to rise in the coming years given the current population trends.
References
Hackett, C. & McClendon, D. (2017). Christians remain the world’s largest religious group, but they are declining in Europe. Pew Research Center. Web.
WorldAtlas (2022). Reasons Why Muslims Are The World’s Fastest-Growing Religious Group. WorldAtlas. Web.