As of 2024, Timor-Leste's population is 99 percent Christian, with 97 percent identifying as Catholics.
Timor-Leste (East Timor), the youngest country in Asia, is a democratic republic occupying the eastern half of Timor Island, with the western half forming part of Indonesia.
The Catholic faith reached Timor in the 16th century when the Portuguese landed on this Southeast Asian island, leading to the evangelization of its eastern half.
In contrast, the western half of Timor was a Dutch East Indies territory, where Protestantism, particularly Calvinist and Lutheran, was introduced during Dutch colonial rule.
The course of East Timor's history shifted dramatically after the Carnation Revolution in Portugal in 1974, which ended the authoritarian Estado Novo regime and Portuguese colonial rule.
However, before this, Indonesia, under Dutch colonial rule, experienced Japanese occupation during World War II. Indonesia declared independence from the Netherlands in 1945, which was officially recognized in 1949.
As the Portuguese departed East Timor in August 1975, Indonesian forces began to move in from the west.
Anticipating an invasion, East Timor's elected government proclaimed the Democratic Republic of East Timor in November 1975.
Despite resistance, Indonesia invaded in December 1975 and officially annexed East Timor in 1978.
At the time of annexation, East Timor was 20 percent Catholic, but the invasion ironically spurred a massive conversion to Catholicism.
By the late 1980s, Catholics comprised 95 percent of the population.
After 24 years of occupation, East Timor gained independence in 2002, with the Catholic Church playing a crucial role in its transition to democracy.
Priests and nuns protected human rights and supported the East Timorese during military abuses.
Among these groups is the Divine Word Missionaries (SVD), who began their mission in the country and subsequently became an independent region, separate from SVD's Timor province.
The Divine Word Missionaries (SVD) Mission in East Timor became an independent region following the country's independence.
Throughout the conflict, many SVD missionaries, mostly Indonesians, chose to remain in East Timor to support its people.
In 2023, Fr. Gregory Minz, an SVD, addressed government representatives, UN committee members, and civil society delegates at a forum in New York.
He acknowledged the progress in Timor-Leste over the past 20 years but emphasized the need for improved human rights protection.
Minz recommended increasing the health budget to reduce malnutrition, which stood at 47 percent.
He also called for transparency, public participation in decision-making, equal rights, access to justice, and strong institutions.
As of 2024, Timor-Leste's population is 99 percent Christian, with 97 percent identifying as Catholics.
The country maintains a separation of state and religion and has no state religion.
Despite being a young UN-member nation, Timor-Leste boasts the highest percentage of Catholics.
The Vatican, with a population of 526, is 100 percent Catholic but is not a UN member, although it has a permanent observer status allowing its diplomats to attend UN meetings as observers.
