An Internet data base launched last week by Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary is the first to provide continually updated statistics and other information on all religions in each of the world's nations.
The evangelical Protestant seminary's new Center for the Study of Global Christianity sponsors the globalchristianity.org data base, building from research in the 2001 "World Christian Encyclopedia." The center is directed by that work's coeditor, Todd M. Johnson.
By the center's count, Christianity remains the world's largest faith, claiming just under 2 billion adherents in 34,000 separate denominations. Islam ranks second with 1,186,000,000 followers and Hinduism third, with 804 million.
The center estimates there are 762 million atheists or nonreligious people.
The seminary intends the data base to serve scholars, church strategists and journalists.