July 22, 2011. (Romereports.com) In light of the Pope's upcoming to trip to Spain for World Youth Day this August, the Vatican has released new figures on the number of Catholics living there. Spain has a population close to 46 million people and the Vatican estimates that 42 and a half million, or 92.2%, is Catholic. 


They released a similar report on Spain prior to his trip to Santiago de Compostela and Barcelona last November. The new numbers compared to that trip show the number of Catholics decreasing in some areas while gaining traction in others.

For example, the number of priests and religious lost hundreds of members. There are also less Catholic institutions such as hospitals and clinics but an increase in the number of elderly homes. And the number of Spanish bishops went from 124 to 126.

Also more than 200 parishes were added, giving Spain a total of 22,890 for the estimated 42 and a half million Spanish Catholics.