Understanding Spiritual Soils: Chile

Chile, the longest country in the world, is situated between the Andes Mountains of South America and the Pacific Ocean. On average, it is only 109 miles wide. It is 95 percent Hispanic, with Spanish as its official language. Chile is one of the more developed countries in Latin America, yet there is still widespread poverty. Following the brutal Pinochet dictatorship of 1973-1989, the country now has a democratic government. The Catholic Church has a strong influence on society; however, the number of evangelicals has grown over the past 40 years and now forms 18 percent of the population.