Catholic Church in Colombia

Over 120 religious orders, institutes, and lay organizations run hundreds of primary and secondary schools, hospitals, clinics, orphanages, colleges, and 8 universities across the country.

[citation needed] Throughout Latin America, the Church was subject to Spain and served its purposes throughout the colonial period and part of the nineteenth century.

The role played by the clergy in Independence was decisive, because it contributed to the mobilization and recruitment of fighters; they served as chaplains and military leaders.

On October 31, 2012, Bishop Juan Vicente Córdoba, Secretary General of the Colombian Episcopal Conference, announced that the Catholic Church would seek parishioners in shopping centers, placing parishes in these commercial establishments.

In November 2023, a book by Colombian journalists Juan Pablo Barrientos and Miguel Ángel Estupiñán which detailed an investigation into sex abuse claims against the Catholic Church in Colombia, titled El archivio secreto, was published which named at least 569 Catholic clergy in Colombia who were accused of committing acts of sex abuse.