page_title: Ponce, Puerto Rico
section_title: Religion
hierarchical_section_title: Ponce, Puerto Rico / Culture / Religion
caption_attribution_description: English: Puerto Rico Islamic Center at Ponce in Barrio Cuarto, Ponce, Puerto Rico
context_page_description: Ponce is both a city and a municipality on the southern coast of Puerto Rico. The city is the seat of the municipal government.
  Ponce, Puerto Rico's most populated city outside the San Juan metropolitan area, was founded on 12 August 1692 and is named for Juan Ponce de León y Loayza, the great-grandson of Spanish conquistador Juan Ponce de León. Ponce is often referred to as La Perla del Sur, La Ciudad Señorial, and La Ciudad de las Quenepas. The city serves as the governmental seat of the autonomous municipality as well as the regional hub for various Government of Puerto Rico entities, such as the Judiciary of Puerto Rico. It is also the regional center for various other Government of Puerto Rico and US Federal Government agencies. Ponce is a principal city of both the Ponce Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Ponce-Yauco-Coamo Combined Statistical Area.
  The Municipality of Ponce, officially the Autonomous Municipality of Ponce, is located in the southern coastal plain region of the island, south of Adjuntas, Utuado, and Jayuya; east of Peñuelas; west of Juana Díaz; and bordered on the south by the Caribbean Sea.
context_section_description: During and after colonization, the Roman Catholic Church became the established religion of the colony. Gradually African slaves were converted to Christianity, but many incorporated their own traditions and symbols, maintaining African traditions as well. Ponce Cathedral, listed in the National Register of Historic Places, was built in 1839. The Royal Decree of Graces of 1815 allowed for non-Catholics to immigrate legally to Puerto Rico, but it required those who wanted to settle on the island to make a vow of alliance to the Catholic Church. Ponce was the first city in Puerto Rico where Protestant churches were built.
  With the U.S. invasion, there was a significant change in the religious landscape in the City and in Puerto Rico. "The Protestant missionaries followed the footprints of the United States soldiers, right after the Treaty of Paris was ratified and Puerto Rico was ceded to the American government."  By March 1899, eight months after the occupation, executives from the Methodists, Episcopalians, Baptists, Presbyterians, and others, had arranged for an evangelical division whereby Ponce would have Evangelical, Baptist, and Methodist "campaigns".  With the passing of the Foraker Act in 1900, which established total separation between Church and State, the absolute power of the Catholic Church eroded quickly.
  Various Protestant churches were soon established and built in Ponce; today many are recognized as historic sites.  Among them are the McCabe Memorial Church (Methodist) (1908), and the Missionary Society of the Methodist Episcopal Church (Methodist) (1907).
  The bell of the Episcopalian Holy Trinity Church in Barrio Cuarto, rang again when the Americans arrived on 25 July 1898. Built in 1873, the church was allowed to function by the Spanish Crown under the conditions that its bell would not be rung, its front doors would always remain closed, and its services would be offered in English only.
  
  Today, Ponce is home to a mix of religious faiths: both Protestants and Catholics, as well as Muslims, have places of worship in Ponce. Baptists, Methodists, Presbyterians, Episcopalians, Pentecostals, Adventists, Evangelicals, Disciples of Christ, and Congregationalists are among the Protestant faiths with a following in Ponce.  Catholicism is the faith of the majority of ponceños. In 2009, the Catholic Church had 18 parishes in the municipality, two bishops and 131 priests. In his Memoirs, Albert E. Lee summed up Ponce's attitude towards religion:
  Ponce was not only tolerant, it was indifferent in religious matters. Protestants and Catholics, and even atheists, lived together socially on the friendliest terms. Religion was strictly a personal affair in Ponce while in San Juan at times gave the impression that it was ready to practice the auto-de-fe [sic]."
caption: Islamic Center at Ponce: numerous religious faiths are practiced in the city
exif: {}