Protestants in Myanmar make up 5% of that nation's population in 2023. Most Christians are from the minority ethnic groups such as Karen, Lisu, Kachin, Chin, and Lahu. An estimated 0.1% of the Bamar population is Christian.
History
Protestant Christianity in Myanmar began in the early 19th century, largely through the missionary efforts of the Americans Adoniram and Ann Judson, Baptist missionaries who first arrived in 1813. Later missionaries such as Arthur and Laura Carson, also Baptist missionaries from America, established work in the Chin Hills in 1899. By the 1920s, missionaries of the Assemblies of God brought Pentecostalism to the northern parts of modern-day Myanmar, among the Lisu people; Lisu evangelists would continue to spread Pentecostalism among the Kachin and, since the 1970s, among the Chin.
In 1966 all missionaries were expelled by the Burmese government. Protestantism is strongest among minority ethnic groups, often juxtaposed against the Bamar majority ethnic group who tend to be Buddhists.
Denominations
Baptists, Assemblies of God, Methodists and Anglicans form the strongest denominations in Myanmar.
Anglicanism
The Anglican Communion is represented in Burma by the Church of the Province of Myanmar. , it has about 62,000 members.
Baptist
The Myanmar Baptist Convention is an association of Baptist churches in Myanmar.
The famous American Baptist missionaries, Adoniram and Ann Judson, moved to Yangon in 1813 when British authorities refused to allow them to stay in India. The Judsons were in Burma six years before their first convert was baptised. Adoniram Judson gathered a group of believers and laboured under many trials, but his missionary tenure of almost 40 years helped firmly establish the Baptist work in Myanmar. His monumental work included translating the Bible into Burmese, which was completed in 1834. George Dana Boardman began a work among the Karen peoples in 1828. Today the Karen Baptist Convention is the largest member body of the Myanmar Baptist Convention, which was formed in 1865.
HIV/AIDS is a significant problem in Myanmar. In 1992, the Baptist Convention created a 32-member AIDS commission, because they see the problem as spiritual, as well as social and medical.
In Myanmar about 6% of the population is Christian, with two-thirds of them being considered Protestant. Almost half of these Protestants are Baptists. In 2012, the Convention had over 1.6 million members in 4929 churches. The Myanmar Baptist Convention has 18 affiliated conventions and two directly affiliated local churches under its umbrella, and is a member of the World Council of Churches and the Baptist World Alliance.
During 5-8 December 2013 Myanmar Baptist Convention celebrated its 200th anniversary arrival of missionary Judson. They are actively planning to evangelise all the unreached people groups of it and plant as many as 1200 churches in their project entitled: Golden Myanmar Baptist Mission, Second Decade (2014-2024).
The Convention operates the Myanmar Institute of Theology, the leading Christian seminary in Myanmar, founded in 1927 and located in Insein.
Methodist Church
The British Methodist Missionary Society travelled to Upper Myanmar in 1887 and established a church in Mandalay. The Upper Myanmar Methodist Church became an autonomous church in 1964. Methodists established several schools (including the Methodist English High School in Yangon) mainly to educate the Anglo-Burmese and British. The school exists to this day and is now known as Dagon State High School; it is still attached to the Methodist Church.
The United Methodist Church works with the Lower Myanmar Methodist Church which was founded by American Methodist missionaries in 1870. There have been discussions about merging with the church in Upper Myanmar as they already conduct joint missions. The church concentrates on leadership development through scholarships and continuing education. It also provides a home for the elderly, helps youth develop job skills, cares for orphans and provides environmental education.