Reformation Day in Chile Date in the current year: October 31, 2024

Reformation Day is a religious holiday celebrated by Protestants around the world on October 31. On this day in 1517, German theologian and monk Martin Luther nailed the Ninety-five Theses on the door of the All Saints’ Church in Wittenberg and sent a copy to the Archbishop of Mainz. This event started a schism in the Catholic Church known as the Reformation.

Historically, the Latin American countries are predominantly Roman Catholic. However, the percentage of Protestant population is also considerable. 15% of Chileans and Brazilians and 20% of Guatemalans identify as Protestants. Most Latin American protestants are Pentecostals (Pentecostalism is a form of evangelical Protestantism).

In most Latin American countries, certain Catholic holidays are considered public holidays. Chile, however, became the first country in Latin America to introduce a public holiday for Protestants. Reformation Day officially became a public holiday in 2008 and was celebrated for the first time in 2009.