20th-century history of the Catholic Church in the United States greater frequency. 20th-century history of the Catholic Church in the United States The 20th-century history of the Catholic Church in the United States was characterized by a period of continuous growth for the Church in the United States, with Catholics progressively evolving from a small minority to a large minority. In 1900 the Catholic population was 10 million, under the control of 14 Archbishops, 77 bishops, and 12,000 priests . The community had built 10,000 churches, of which two-thirds had resident pastors. Catholic schools educated nearly 1,000,000 children and youth. Catholics were heavily concentrated in the industrial and mining centers
History of the Catholic Church in Brazil and human rights record. During the 1970s, the Catholic Church emerged as a key pro-democracy voice within civil society. Ecclesiastical Base Communities (CEBs), small groups of believers who focused on linking grassroots religious and secular change, spread throughout the countryside. These became the foundations of the so-called "popular church," which assertively advocated social justice and became increasingly influential within the Church. By 1979, the Brazilian Church was the most progressive in Latin America, while managing to avoid many of the confrontations between radicals and conservatives that wracked other churches in the region. In the 20th century, such controversial issues as