The Landscape of Religion in Texas
Texas Religion focuses on the unique slogans and symbols used to describe Texas religious identity and culture, including how religion gets mixed with people’s support of college’s like Texas A&M University.
Texas religions encompass a diverse tapestry of faiths and practices, from traditional Christian denominations such as Baptists and Methodists to a growing number of Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, and followers of other world religions, reflecting the state’s rich cultural and demographic diversity.
Can you identify which state cut-out matches these religious identities?
Texas remains one of the Americas more “religious” states and ranks in the upper half among the states in percentage of the population belonging to a denomination.
This number reflects a significant portion of the population that may adhere to secular beliefs, alternative spiritual practices, or simply identify as non-religious.
The eight wood cutouts of the state of Texas represent the primary and diverse expressions of religion found across of the state.
Inspired by the Mexican Milagros style of decoration, these wood cutouts are adorned with a variety of religious pins, medals and pendants found at thrift shops throughout the Brazos Valley and East Texas. Each cutout spotlights a different religious tradition.
Milagros, in Spanish, means miracle. Mexican artists make tin charms to look like people, body parts, animals or other objects that mirror items people want prayer for. Such charms are used in collages, often put on crosses and hung in places of worship, just as these Milagros seek to draw spiritual attention to people’s personal needs.
Similarly, the cutouts seek to draw the viewer’s attention to the distinct spiritual identities and diverse religious beliefs found in the Brazos Valley.
The large wood Texas plaque provides a visual map of the geographies where the largest concentrations of religious adherents are found around the state. Christianity is the dominant religion in Texas, while the Catholic Church is currently the largest religious denomination.
