Called the "Switzerland of the Americas," Costa Rica is located in Central America, between Nicaragua to the north and Panama to the south. This largely mountainous country, about the size of West Virginia, is home to about four million people (March 2001), two-thirds of which live in the fertile Central Valley.

Costa Rica was discovered by Christopher Colombus in 1502 during his fourth voyage to the Americas, when he sailed from Honduras to Panama and anchored briefly off the Caribbean coast of a land that was later called the "Rich Coast" due to its lush tropical vegetation. However, it was on the Pacific coast that the Spanish conquistadores first explored the territory of Costa Rica: Gáspar de Espinosa, accompanied by Hernán Ponce de León and Juan de Castañeda, in 1519; and Gil González Dávila en 1522. Participating in the later expedition was the Spanish Roman Catholic priest, Diego de Agüero, who became the first foreign religious worker to visit present-day Costa Rica and Nicaragua. After exploring the Nicoya Peninsula (northwestern territory), the Spaniards established a temporary settlement among the Chorotega Indians, where the priest claimed to have converted and baptized about 6,000 people--although neither the Spaniards nor the Chorotegas understood each other's language. The first Roman Catholic church in Costa Rica was built in 1544 in the village of Nicoya during the administration of the first governor, Diego Gutiérrez.

In addition to the Chorotegas, Costa Rica was inhabited by several other ethno-linguistical groups: the Huetares in the Central Valley and Caribbean coast, and the Bruncas in the southern region along the Pacific coast. Although scholars disagree about the size of the indigenous population in Costa Rica at the beginning of the Spanish Conquest, some early records (1569) indicate that there were probably no more than 30,000 Chibchan-speaking peoples present in 1502. Many of the Indians later died of disease or warfare at the hands of the Spaniards, which led to a decline in the total population. By 1611, the entire population of Costa Rica was reported as 15,000, including Indians, Spaniards and mestizos. Today, the descendants of these animistic tribal peoples number about 40,000 and are known as Cabécares, Bribris, Guaymí, Borucas, Téribes, Guatusos and Huértares.

The first Protestant worship services were conducted in San José, the nation's capital, in the 1840s among English-speaking foreigners, mainly Americans, British and German citizens. The first Protestant chapel, Church of the Good Shepherd, was constructed in San José in 1865 to serve the expatriate community. Although this church was founded as a non-denominational worship center, in 1896 it became part of the Anglican communion.

The activities of the British and Foreign Bible Society, beginning in 1845, and the American Bible Society (1890s) in San José and other major cities helped to promote Bible reading among Costa Ricans, and to strengthen the resolve of early Protestants to maintain their faith in an environment of religious intolerance by Roman Catholics.

The first Protestant mission agency (non-denominational) to work in the Central Valley of Costa Rica was the Central American Mission (now CAM International), founded in Dallas, Texas, by Dr. C.I. Scofield and three friends "to do something for the introduction of the Gospel into Central America" (The Central American Bulletin, Vol. 1, No. 1, 1891). The first CAM missionary couple was the Rev. and Mrs. William McConnell, who arrived in Port Limón on February 24, 1891, and located in San José with "a vision to evangelize the nation's 280,000 souls." This work progressed very slowly and with great difficulty.

By 1950, at least 15 Protestant mission agencies had begun work in Costa Rica, including those mentioned previously. Five missionary societies concentrated on the West Indians along the Caribbean coast, and the other societies dedicated their efforts on the Spanish-speaking population, largely in the Central Valley. The Methodist Episcopal Church arrived in 1917, followed by independent Pentecostal missionaries in 1918 (work now under the Pentecostal Holiness Church), the Latin American Evangelization Crusade (now known as the Latin America Mission, founded by Mr. and Mrs. Harry Strachan, Scottish Presbyterians) in 1921, the Church of God (Anderson, IN) in 1939, the Church of God (Cleveland, TN) also in 1939, the Southern Baptists in 1943, the Assemblies of God in 1944, the Pentecostal Church of God (from Puerto Rico) in 1945, and the American Baptist Association in 1946.

Between 1950 and 1985, at least 28 additional Protestant mission agencies started work in Costa Rica, and numerous church bodies came into existence as the result of the nationalization of missionary efforts, as a reaction to missionary domination, or as a result of independent efforts.

The Protestant denominations with the largest membership were the following:  the Assemblies of God (46,900); Seventh-Day Adventist Church (31,350); Church of God, Cleveland, TN (19,000); the Rose of Sharon Christian Mission (15,000); Pentecostal Holiness Church (8,770); Foursquare Church (5,940); Association of Central American Evangelical Churches (5,925); the Christian Pentecostal Church of the Worldwide Missionary Movement (5,000), the Methodist Church of Costa Rica (5,000), National Evangelical Church Council (4,768), Springs of Life Christian Association (4,200), Transworld Missions of Costa Rica (4,000) y Pentecostal Church of God (4,000).  These denominations had about 60% of all the local congregations and of the total Evangelical membership at the national level.  The average church size for all Evangelical congregations in the country was 102 members.

About three percent of the population belonged to "other religions," which in the context of Costa Rica includes Marginal Christian Groups (Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormons, Unity, Mita Congregation, Voice of the Chief Cornerstone, Light of the Word Church, Christadelphians, God is Love Church, Universal Church of the Kingdom of God, etc.) and non-Christian religions (about 80 distinct groups), including the following: Native American Animistic religions (7), Baha'i Faith (3), Judaism (3), Islam (2), Buddhism (5), Hinduism (at least 25 groups), Chinese religions (10), Ancient Wisdom (6) and Psychic-New Age groups (about 15). In addition, Obeah and Myalism are still practiced among some of the West Indians on the Caribbean coast.

A recent public opinion poll conducted by IDESPO, a research institute of the National University, showed that between 1995 and 2001 about 8% of the population of the San José Metropolitan area (population 1.1 million) had changed their religion: Catholics declining and Protestants increasing as well as those with "No Religion" (10.8%).

The total population of Costa Rica (3,824,593 in June 2000) is composed of the following ethnic groups: Spanish-speaking Costa Ricans, 77.7%; Spanish-speaking Nicaraguans, 13.8%; Other Spanish-speakers (Central and South Americans, Cubans and Puerto Ricans), 2.8%; Native American Indians, 1.1%; Asians (Chinese and Koreans) 1.0%; Afro-Americans (English-speaking), 2.0%; Caucasians (USA, Canadians, Europeans, Jewish), 2.0%. The literacy rate is 93%.

Sources:

Gómez, Jorge, El Crecimiento y la Deserción en la Iglesia Evangélica Costarricense (San José: Publicaciones IINDEF, 1977).

Holland, Clifton L., editor. World Christianity: Central America and the Caribbean. Monrovia, CA: MARC-World Vision, 1981.

IDESPO, La Población Costarricense del Gran Area Metropolitana Frente a sus valoraciones sobre la religión, la política y los riesgos naturales (Heredia: IDESPO, 2001).

Nelson, W. M. A History of Protestantism in Costa Rica. Lucknow, India: Lucknow Publishing House, 1963; and Historia del Protestantismo en Costa Rica (San José: Publicaciones IINDEF, 1983).