Muslim boom in France: more mosques, fewer churches

Madrid, Spain, Nov 5, 2006 / 22:00 pm

In the last thirty years more mosques and Muslim prayer centers have been built in France than Catholic churches in the last century.  Spanish weekly Alba revealed the statistics last week which, they say, indicate a Muslim boom in a nation historically considered “the eldest daughter of the Church.”

According to the publication, “immigration in France has led to a strong growth in the building of mosques and evangelical places of worship, which has been paralleled by the decrease in Catholic churches.  France now has more than 1,500 mosques, almost as many as exist in Istanbul, Turkey.”

The publication also notes that “in that last five years the Catholic Church has built 20 churches, mostly in Paris, Pontoise, and Nice, and 60 churches have been decommissioned.”

“The Muslim population in the European Union increases by one million people per year, and consequently, at that pace, the EU will have at least 40 million Muslims by 2025.  France is the country with the greatest number of followers of Islam: 10% of the population,” the article adds.

“The EU continues to attract immigrants.  According to Eurostat, the EU’s Office of Statistics, “the relative economic prosperity and the political stability of the European Union are highly attractive factors,” Alba notes.

“Europe is increasingly Islamized and France is at the head of the pack,” the article adds.