Morocco, officially 99% Sunni Muslim, holds a unique place at the crossroads of Africa, Europe, and the Middle East. While its Islamic and Judaic heritage is widely recognized, the history of Christianity in Morocco is often overlooked. Despite the challenges and occasional persecution, Christianity has found refuge in Morocco across the millennia.
Religious spaces offer a location of home, identity, and belonging.
Today, Christians in Morocco constitute less than 1% of the country's population.
Most of the Christian adherents are Catholic and Protestants.
This article delves into the historical presence of Christianity in Morocco, from its early roots to its current status, exploring the interplay of cultures and religions in this North African nation.
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Early Christianity in Morocco
Christianity was introduced to the region in the 2nd century AD. By the end of the 4th century, the Romanized areas had been Christianized, and inroads had been made among the Berber tribes, who sometimes converted en masse.
At the same time Saint Augustine was reshaping early Christian theology from his home in Algeria, Christianity had already spread throughout Northern Morocco, and much of the Roman/Byzantine Empire in 300 C.E.
According to tradition, the martyrdom of St. Marcellus took place on 28 July 298 at Tingis (Tangier) during the reign of Diocletian.
The Diocletianic Persecution resulted in the so-called heresy of Donatism, which caused a schism in the region.
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Many Jewish-Moroccan communities thrived in ports and trade zones across the country.
Interestingly, both Saint Augustine and many of the Jewish Moroccans were Amaziert, the indigenous people of Morocco and much of North Africa.
The Impact of Islamic Conquests
During the 7th century AD, Muhammad grew political influence and started building an empire.
This led to the Arab Conquests, as Muslim Arab armies from Saudi Arabia invaded numerous countries, including Morocco.
Once an early epicenter of Christianity and a province of the Byzantine Empire, Morocco became part of the first Islamic Empire and served as the Muslim bridge to take West Africa.
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The original Moroccan Berbers resisted fiercely and were converted to Islam only at sword point.
As Islam swept across North Africa and Iberia in the 8th century, Christian congregations diminished, and the Muslim call to prayer eventually became the beating heart of Moroccan society.
Local Catholicism came under pressure when the Muslim fundamentalist regimes of the Almoravids and especially the Almohads came into power, and the record shows persecutions and demands made that the local Christians of Maghreb were forced to convert to Islam.
The Almohad Abd al-Mu'min forced the Christians and Jews of Tunis and Maghrib to convert in 1159.
Berber Christians continued to live in the Maghrib until the early 15th century, and "[i]n the first quarter of the fifteenth century, we even read that the native Christians of Tunis, though much assimilated, extended their church, perhaps because the last of the persecuted Christians from all over the Maghreb had gathered there."
Christian Missions and European Influence
In June 1225, Pope Honorius III issued the bull Vineae Domini custodes, which permitted two friars of the Dominican Order, named Dominic and Martin, to establish a mission in Morocco and look after the affairs of Christians there.
The Bishop of Morocco, Lope Fernandez de Ain, was made the head of the Church of Africa, the only church officially allowed to preach in the continent, on 19 December 1246 by Pope Innocent IV.
Another group of Christians who came to North Africa after being deported from Islamic Spain were called the Mozarabs.
The bishopric of Marrakesh continued to exist until the late 16th century and was borne by the suffragans of Seville.
Juan de Prado had attempted to re-establish the mission but was killed in 1631.
Between the last years of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, an estimated 250,000 Spaniard Catholics lived in Morocco.
Christianity in Modern Morocco
Independence prompted a mass exodus of the European Catholic settlers; after 1956 more than 75% of Catholic settlers left the country.
During the French and Spanish protectorates, Morocco had significant populations of European Catholic settlers: on the eve of independence, an estimated 470,000 Catholics resided in Morocco.
Since independence in 1956, the European Catholic population has decreased substantially, and many Catholics left to France or Spain.
Today the expatriate Christian community (Catholic and Protestant) consists of 40,000 practicing members, although estimates of Christians residing in the country at any particular time range up to 40,000.
Approximately 3,000 foreign residents belong to the Russian and Greek Orthodox churches.
Most Christians reside in the Casablanca, Tangier, Marrakesh, and Rabat urban areas.
The majority of Christians in Morocco are foreigners, although Voice of the Martyrs reports there is a growing number of native Moroccans (45,000) converting to Christianity, especially in the rural areas.
There are around 30,000 Catholics in Morocco.
Most of them are European expatriates, principally French and Spanish due to the country's historic ties to France and Spain.
Another group is composed of Sub-Saharan immigrants, mainly students.
The country is divided into two archdioceses; Rabat and Tangier.
While most areas of Africa (including eastern North Africa) have independent Anglican dioceses and provinces, the western part of North Africa, including the Anglican Church of Morocco, is part of the Diocese of Europe, which is itself part of the Province of Canterbury in the Church of England.
There are two permanent chaplaincies, one in Casablanca and one in Tangier.
The Anglican Church of St John the Evangelist, Casablanca, is centrally located, near to the Hyatt Regency hotel in the city centre.
It has a well-established congregation, and holds two services every Sunday morning to accommodate all worshippers.
Legal and Social Challenges
According to the Moroccan constitution, the country is a “sovereign Muslim state,” making Islam the country’s official religion.
Article 3 of the Moroccan constitution "guarantees to all the free exercise of beliefs".
However, the Moroccan criminal code prohibits conversions to other religions than Islam.
According to Article 220 of the Moroccan Penal Code, "anyone who employs incitements to shake the faith of a Muslim or to convert him to another religion" incurs a sentence of three to six months' imprisonment and a fine of 200 to 500 dirhams.
Any attempt to induce a Muslim to convert is illegal.
Foreign missionaries either limit their proselytizing to non-Muslims or attempt to conduct their work discreetly.
Despite accusations against the Moroccan king for not being harsh enough against missionaries and Christians, Call of Hope Frontline Workers risk arrest and interrogation to reach the nation of Morocco with the Gospel message.
Many Moroccans question if this portrayal of Christians is realistic and search for truth.
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