The Spiritual Need in Portugal

Located on the Iberian Peninsula at the southwestern tip of Europe and bordered only by Spain and the Atlantic Ocean, Portugal once had a powerful maritime economy and global influence because of its coveted geographical and economic position. Though Roman Catholicism was established as the state religion and has since been formally separated from the state, it maintains a very important role in traditional Portuguese culture and identity. With 93% of Portugal’s 10 million people identifying as Christian, 87% are Roman Catholic at least in name, and just 3.4% are evangelical believers.

The Portuguese have higher affiliation with belief in God than many of their European counterparts, and even though many Catholic congregants are no longer going to church regularly, there is still openness to spiritual topics. The evangelical church has faced some opposition as it focuses on gospel-centered teaching and relationship with Christ, and the need for believers to share Christ’s love through genuine relationship and dedicated investment is great.

The ease of travel between parts of Portugal and international hubs like Tangier also create opportunities for ministry in North Africa. A missionary based in Portugal could more easily navigate traveling in and out of Islamic cultures while training North African believers for ministry in their own contexts.

Christian Missions To Portugal

Our team in Portugal has planted seven churches and transitioned them to local leadership, putting in place a model for continued expansion of the gospel. We have also built the Lisbon Training Center which houses the Greater Lisbon Christian Academy, where teammates skilled in education, administration and accounting, and leadership development are needed. By serving in the vital role of a teacher for missionary kids during Christian missions to Portugal, educators can free up missionary families to engage in important evangelistic work and alleviate the pressure of securing adequate education, which is a common reason why missionaries leave field service. Other opportunities to serve in Portugal include working within our established ministry to the deaf, children’s and student ministries, and more. Serving as an ABWE missionary, you’ll help bring up the next generation of believers and foster church planting in Portugal.

Is God leading you to join us?