I'd discount the 79% figure in Mexico. Mexico is overwhelmingly Catholic but the Catholic church has an increasingly tenuous hold on its followers. Mexico would have likely gone down the same path as Guatemala if aggressive anti-clerical reforms weren't instituted and the Virgin of Guadalupe wasn't vigorously promoted as a national symbol. Because Catholicism isn't tarnished with right-wing politics and oppression in Mexico, it has escaped the rapid decline experienced in other Latin American countries. Nevertheless, Catholicism is very weak among the indigenous and is becoming a more nominal faith outside of the Bajío. Census statistics and surveys can't capture this because lapsed Catholics (there are many of them) are still recorded as Catholics. Mexico is similar to Ireland in this regard.
Ah, but as in Ireland, self-identification can be rather important and telling. Not that I disagree with what you say.
What is with 'modern religious movements' (I'm using a nice PC term
) and utterly pretentious architecture?
