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Religion in Lithuania

According to the Lithuanian census of 2021, the predominant religion in Lithuania is Christianity, with the largest confession being that of the Catholic Church (about 74% of the population).[1] There are smaller groups of Orthodox Christians, Evangelical Lutherans, members of Reformed churches, other Protestants, Jews and Muslims as well as people of other religions.

Religion in Lithuania (2021 census)[1]

  Catholicism (74.19%)
  Lutheranism (0.56%)
  Other Christians (0.27%)
  No religion (6.1%)
  Other religions (0.7%)
  Undeclared (13.67%)
Franciscan Church in Vilnius

According to the 2010 Eurobarometer Poll,[2] 47% of Lithuanian citizens responded that "they believe there is a God", 37% answered that "they believe there is some sort of spirit or life force", and 12% said that "they do not believe there is any sort of spirit, god, or life force".

History edit

The first census in independent Lithuania, in 1923, established the following religious distribution: Catholic — 85.7 per cent; Jews — 7.7 per cent; Protestant — 3.8 per cent; Greek Orthodox — 2.7 per cent.[3]

Population by religious confession edit

Religion in Lithuania (2021 census)[1]
Catholic
74.2%
Orthodox
3.7%
Other religions
2.3%
Unaffiliated
6.1%
Undeclared
13.7%

According to the 2021 census:[1]

Christianity edit

 
Vilnius Cathedral is the heart of Christian spiritual life in Lithuania.

Catholic Church edit

According to the 2021 census, 74% of Lithuanians belonged to the Catholic Church,[1] which has claimed the adherence of the majority of Lithuanians since the Christianization of Lithuania in the 14th and 15th centuries.[4] Lithuania kept its Catholic identity under the Russian Empire and later under the Soviet Union when some Catholic priests led the resistance against the Communist regime, which is commemorated in the Hill of Crosses near Šiauliai, a shrine to the anti-communist resistance.

Greek Catholics edit

The center of Greek Catholic life in Lithuania is the Basilian Monastery and Church of the Holy Trinity in Vilnius. In the past, the monastery was multiethnic but now serves a mostly Ukrainian community.[5]

Protestantism edit

In the 16th century, Protestantism began spreading rapidly in Lithuania. The first wave of Protestantism was Lutheranism that reached Lithuania through Prussia; the second wave was Calvinism that mostly spread through Poland. This was because many Lithuanians had a relatively poor understanding of Catholic beliefs as there were few Lithuanian-speaking priests at the time. In addition, many sons of influential Lithuanian nobles would study abroad in Germany where they would learn about the ideas of Reformation. When they returned home, they would oftentimes use their right of patronage to confiscate Catholic churches and give them to pastors, convert their serfs either to Lutheranism or Calvinism. In 1536, the prevalence of Protestantism grew even more as Radziwiłł, Billewicz, Chodkiewicz families left the Roman Catholic Church. However, Protestantism in Lithuania Proper eventually lost ground as it failed to secure the support from the local clergymen and were at odds with one another, which weakened their positions in the country. There were also religious persecutions, which caused many Lithuanian pastors to flee to Lithuania Minor. Despite this, Protestantism remained to have a strong presence in Lithuania Proper until the late 17th century.[6]

Today Protestants are 0.8%, of which 0.6% are Lutheran and 0.2% are Reformed. According to Losch (1932), the Lutherans were 3.3% of the total population; they were mainly Germans in the Memel territory (now Klaipėda). There was also a tiny Reformed community (0.5%)[7] which still persists. Protestantism has declined with the removal of the German and Prussian Lithuanian populations, and today it is mainly represented by ethnic Lithuanians throughout the northern and western parts of the country, as well as large urban areas. Believers and clergy suffered greatly during the Soviet occupation, with many killed, tortured or deported to Siberia. Newly arriving evangelical churches have established missions in Lithuania since 1990.[8]

Lutheranism edit

 
Evangelical Lutheran Church in Vyžiai

Protestants make up 0.8% of the population,[9] with 0.56% belonging to the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Lithuania.

Lutheranism in Lithuania dates back to the 16th century, when it came mainly from the neighbouring German-controlled areas of Livonia and East Prussia. A Synod in Vilnius united the church in 1557. The parish network covered nearly all of the Grand Duchy, with district centers in Vilnius, Kedainai, Biržai, Slucke, Kojdanove and Zabludove later Izabeline. Small Protestant communities are dispersed throughout the northern and western parts of the country.

The majority of Prussian Lithuanians living in East Prussia and in Memelland (since 1945 the Klaipėda Region of Lithuania) belonged to the Evangelical Church of the old-Prussian Union. Most resettled in the West Germany after World War II along with the ethnic German inhabitants.

Since 1945, Lutheranism in Lithuania has declined largely due to the ongoing secularization that sweeps throughout Europe.

 
Lithuanian Evangelical Reformed Church in Biržai

Calvinism edit

The Lithuanian Evangelical Reformed Church is a historic denomination which was founded in 1557. A notable member was Szymon Zajcusz. In the second half of the 16th century the Unitarians separated. The denomination has over 7,000 members in 14 congregations. The church is a member of the World Communion of Reformed Churches[10] and the World Reformed Fellowship[11]

Other Protestants edit

Various Protestant churches have established missions in Lithuania since 1990, including the United Methodists,[12] the Baptist Union,[13] the Mennonites,[14] and World Venture.[15]

Eastern Orthodoxy edit

 
Cathedral of the Theotokos in Vilnius

Eastern Orthodoxy claims 4.1% of the population, mainly from the Russian minority.[9] Orthodox Christianity is the first form of Christianity to arrive in Lithuania, with the marriage of Algirdas to Maria of Vitebsk and the martyrdom of Ss. Anthony, John, and Eustathius of Vilnius. The church founded by Maria of Vitebsk, St. Paraskevi Church, is the oldest continuously existing Christian congregation in the country.

Since the 19th century, the Russian Orthodox Church has been represented by a diocese in the country. In March 2023, Patriarch Bartholomew announced his intention to form a church structure under the Ecumenical Patriarchate, following a meeting with Ingrida Šimonytė.[16]

Oriental Orthodoxy / Armenian Apostolic Church edit

Most of the Armenians in Lithuania, making up about 0.1% of population according to its own estimates, belong to the Armenian Apostolic Church, which is often classified as an Oriental Orthodox Church, in distinction from Eastern Orthodox (to which the main Russian, Greek and Georgian Churches belong).

An Armenian Apostolic Church dedicated to St. Vardan was opened in Vilnius in 2006.[17]

Islam edit

 
Kaunas Mosque

In Lithuania, Islam has a long history unlike in many other northern European countries. The medieval Grand Duchy of Lithuania of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth allowed Muslims, notably the Crimean Tatars to settle in the lands in the south.[18] Some of people from those lands were moved into ethnically Lithuanian lands, now the current Republic of Lithuania, mainly under the rule of Grand Duke Vytautas. The Tatars, now referred to as Lithuanian Tatars, lost their language over time and now speak Lithuanian as natives; however, they have strongly maintained their Muslim faith.

Judaism edit

 
Choral Synagogue of Vilnius, the only synagogue in Vilnius to survive the Nazi occupation

The Lithuanian Jewish community has roots that go back to before the time of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Lithuania was historically home to a large Jewish community and an important center of Jewish scholarship and culture from the 18th century until the community was almost entirely eliminated during the Holocaust. Before World War II, the Lithuanian Jewish population numbered some 160,000, about 7% of the total population.[19] Vilnius alone had a Jewish community of nearly 100,000, about 45% of the city's total population[20] with over 110 synagogues and 10 yeshivot in the city.[21]

There are communities of Jews of Lithuanian descent around the world, especially in Israel, the United States, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Brazil and Australia.

According to the 2001 census, there were 1,272 adherents of Rabbinic and Karaite Judaism.[22] About 4,000 Jews were counted in Lithuania during the 2005 census.[23]

Karaites edit

 
Karaite kenesa in Vilnius

According to a Karaite tradition, several hundred Crimean Karaites were invited to Lithuania by Grand Duke Vytautas to settle in Trakai ca. 1397. A small community remains in Trakai, which has preserved the Turkic Karaim language and distinctive customs, such as its traditional dish called "kibinai", a sort of meat pastry, and its houses with three windows, one for God, one for the family and one for Grand Duke Vytautas.

Romuva edit

 
A Romuvan procession

Medieval Lithuania was the last pagan nation in Europe, officially converting in the late 14th century. The neo-pagan movement Romuva, established in 1967, attempts to reconstruct and revive Lithuanian ethnic religion.[24]

Freedom of religion edit

In 2023, the country scored 4 out of 4 for religious freedom.[25]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d e "Population by religious community indicated, municipalities (2021)" (in Lithuanian). Statistics Lithuania. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  2. ^ "Eurobarometer on Biotechnology" (PDF). Ec.europa.eu. p. 11. Retrieved 5 May 2007.
  3. ^ "Lithuania" by Vytautas Vaitiekūnas, Assembly of Captive European Nations, 1965
  4. ^ Endre Bojtár, Foreword to the past: a cultural history of the Baltic people, p. 140
  5. ^ "Church of the Holy Trinity and Basilian Monastery - Aušros Vartų str. 7, Vilnius - Churches - Vilnius city guide". iVilnius.lt. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
  6. ^ Gidžiūnas, Viktoras. O.F.M. Marijos kultas Lietuvoje iki protestantizmo atoslūgio [The cult of Mary in Lithuania until the anticlimax of Protestantism]. Aidai.
  7. ^ (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 May 2016. Retrieved 14 January 2022.
  8. ^ "United Methodists evangelize in Lithuania with ads, brochures". Umc.org. 11 August 2006. Retrieved 25 April 2010.
  9. ^ a b "Romos katalikų daugiausia" (PDF) (in Lithuanian). Department of Statistics to the Government of the Republic of Lithuania. 7 November 2002.
  10. ^ . Evangelical Reformed Church of Lithuania. Archived from the original on 7 September 2012. Retrieved 14 January 2022.
  11. ^ . The World Reformed Fellowship. Archived from the original on 14 September 2008. Retrieved 14 January 2022.
  12. ^ "United Methodists evangelize in Lithuania with ads, brochures". UMC. 11 August 2006. Retrieved 25 April 2010.
  13. ^ "European Baptist Federation (EBF)". Retrieved 5 October 2017.
  14. ^ . Mennonite mission. Archived from the original on 21 June 2007. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
  15. ^ "Lithuania". Can I go where I want to?. World Venture. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
  16. ^ "Patriarcha Bartolomej chce litovskú pravoslávnu cirkev odčleniť od Moskvy". Svetkrestanstva.Postoj (in Slovak). TASR. Retrieved 2023-03-24.
  17. ^ davkstudio (1 February 2017), St. Vardan's Armenian apostolic church in Vilnius 2017, archived from the original on 2021-12-21, retrieved 14 April 2018
  18. ^ Shirin Akiner, Islamic peoples of the Soviet Union, pg. 85
  19. ^ "Lithuania". USHMM. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
  20. ^ "Vilnius (Vilna), Lithuania Jewish History Tour". Jewish Virtual Library. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
  21. ^ "Vilnius - Jerusalem of Lithuania". Litvakai.MCH.MII. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
  22. ^ "Gyventojai pagal tautybę ir tikybą" (in Lithuanian). Department of Statistics to the Government of the Republic of Lithuania.[permanent dead link]
  23. ^ . Stat.gov.lt. Archived from the original on 2 June 2009. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
  24. ^ Jones, Prudence; Pennick, Nigel (5 October 1997). A History of Pagan Europe. Psychology Press. ISBN 9780415158046. Retrieved 5 October 2017 – via Google Books.
  25. ^ Lithuania, Freedom House, 2022, retrieved 2023-08-08.

religion, lithuania, according, lithuanian, census, 2021, predominant, religion, lithuania, christianity, with, largest, confession, being, that, catholic, church, about, population, there, smaller, groups, orthodox, christians, evangelical, lutherans, members. According to the Lithuanian census of 2021 the predominant religion in Lithuania is Christianity with the largest confession being that of the Catholic Church about 74 of the population 1 There are smaller groups of Orthodox Christians Evangelical Lutherans members of Reformed churches other Protestants Jews and Muslims as well as people of other religions Religion in Lithuania 2021 census 1 Catholicism 74 19 Eastern Orthodoxy 4 4 Lutheranism 0 56 Other Christians 0 27 No religion 6 1 Other religions 0 7 Undeclared 13 67 Franciscan Church in VilniusAccording to the 2010 Eurobarometer Poll 2 47 of Lithuanian citizens responded that they believe there is a God 37 answered that they believe there is some sort of spirit or life force and 12 said that they do not believe there is any sort of spirit god or life force Contents 1 History 2 Population by religious confession 3 Christianity 3 1 Catholic Church 3 1 1 Greek Catholics 3 2 Protestantism 3 2 1 Lutheranism 3 2 2 Calvinism 3 2 3 Other Protestants 3 3 Eastern Orthodoxy 3 4 Oriental Orthodoxy Armenian Apostolic Church 4 Islam 5 Judaism 5 1 Karaites 6 Romuva 7 Freedom of religion 8 See also 9 ReferencesHistory editThe first census in independent Lithuania in 1923 established the following religious distribution Catholic 85 7 per cent Jews 7 7 per cent Protestant 3 8 per cent Greek Orthodox 2 7 per cent 3 Population by religious confession editReligion in Lithuania 2021 census 1 Catholic 74 2 Orthodox 3 7 Other religions 2 3 Unaffiliated 6 1 Undeclared 13 7 According to the 2021 census 1 Catholic 74 19 2 085 340 Orthodox 3 75 105 326 Orthodox Old Believers 0 65 18 196 Evangelical Lutherans 0 56 15 741 Evangelical Reformed 0 2 5 540 Sunni Muslim 0 08 2 165 Baptists and free churchpersons 0 04 1 092 Judaic 0 03 899 Greek Catholics Uniates 0 03 785 Karaites 0 01 255 Other religions 0 58 16 486 No religion 6 11 171 810 Did not specify 13 67 384 094 Christianity edit nbsp Vilnius Cathedral is the heart of Christian spiritual life in Lithuania Catholic Church edit Main article Catholic Church in Lithuania According to the 2021 census 74 of Lithuanians belonged to the Catholic Church 1 which has claimed the adherence of the majority of Lithuanians since the Christianization of Lithuania in the 14th and 15th centuries 4 Lithuania kept its Catholic identity under the Russian Empire and later under the Soviet Union when some Catholic priests led the resistance against the Communist regime which is commemorated in the Hill of Crosses near Siauliai a shrine to the anti communist resistance Greek Catholics edit The center of Greek Catholic life in Lithuania is the Basilian Monastery and Church of the Holy Trinity in Vilnius In the past the monastery was multiethnic but now serves a mostly Ukrainian community 5 Protestantism edit In the 16th century Protestantism began spreading rapidly in Lithuania The first wave of Protestantism was Lutheranism that reached Lithuania through Prussia the second wave was Calvinism that mostly spread through Poland This was because many Lithuanians had a relatively poor understanding of Catholic beliefs as there were few Lithuanian speaking priests at the time In addition many sons of influential Lithuanian nobles would study abroad in Germany where they would learn about the ideas of Reformation When they returned home they would oftentimes use their right of patronage to confiscate Catholic churches and give them to pastors convert their serfs either to Lutheranism or Calvinism In 1536 the prevalence of Protestantism grew even more as Radziwill Billewicz Chodkiewicz families left the Roman Catholic Church However Protestantism in Lithuania Proper eventually lost ground as it failed to secure the support from the local clergymen and were at odds with one another which weakened their positions in the country There were also religious persecutions which caused many Lithuanian pastors to flee to Lithuania Minor Despite this Protestantism remained to have a strong presence in Lithuania Proper until the late 17th century 6 Today Protestants are 0 8 of which 0 6 are Lutheran and 0 2 are Reformed According to Losch 1932 the Lutherans were 3 3 of the total population they were mainly Germans in the Memel territory now Klaipeda There was also a tiny Reformed community 0 5 7 which still persists Protestantism has declined with the removal of the German and Prussian Lithuanian populations and today it is mainly represented by ethnic Lithuanians throughout the northern and western parts of the country as well as large urban areas Believers and clergy suffered greatly during the Soviet occupation with many killed tortured or deported to Siberia Newly arriving evangelical churches have established missions in Lithuania since 1990 8 Lutheranism edit nbsp Evangelical Lutheran Church in VyziaiMain article Evangelical Lutheran Church of Lithuania Protestants make up 0 8 of the population 9 with 0 56 belonging to the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Lithuania Lutheranism in Lithuania dates back to the 16th century when it came mainly from the neighbouring German controlled areas of Livonia and East Prussia A Synod in Vilnius united the church in 1557 The parish network covered nearly all of the Grand Duchy with district centers in Vilnius Kedainai Birzai Slucke Kojdanove and Zabludove later Izabeline Small Protestant communities are dispersed throughout the northern and western parts of the country The majority of Prussian Lithuanians living in East Prussia and in Memelland since 1945 the Klaipeda Region of Lithuania belonged to the Evangelical Church of the old Prussian Union Most resettled in the West Germany after World War II along with the ethnic German inhabitants Since 1945 Lutheranism in Lithuania has declined largely due to the ongoing secularization that sweeps throughout Europe nbsp Lithuanian Evangelical Reformed Church in BirzaiCalvinism edit The Lithuanian Evangelical Reformed Church is a historic denomination which was founded in 1557 A notable member was Szymon Zajcusz In the second half of the 16th century the Unitarians separated The denomination has over 7 000 members in 14 congregations The church is a member of the World Communion of Reformed Churches 10 and the World Reformed Fellowship 11 Other Protestants edit Various Protestant churches have established missions in Lithuania since 1990 including the United Methodists 12 the Baptist Union 13 the Mennonites 14 and World Venture 15 Eastern Orthodoxy edit nbsp Cathedral of the Theotokos in VilniusEastern Orthodoxy claims 4 1 of the population mainly from the Russian minority 9 Orthodox Christianity is the first form of Christianity to arrive in Lithuania with the marriage of Algirdas to Maria of Vitebsk and the martyrdom of Ss Anthony John and Eustathius of Vilnius The church founded by Maria of Vitebsk St Paraskevi Church is the oldest continuously existing Christian congregation in the country Since the 19th century the Russian Orthodox Church has been represented by a diocese in the country In March 2023 Patriarch Bartholomew announced his intention to form a church structure under the Ecumenical Patriarchate following a meeting with Ingrida Simonyte 16 Oriental Orthodoxy Armenian Apostolic Church edit Most of the Armenians in Lithuania making up about 0 1 of population according to its own estimates belong to the Armenian Apostolic Church which is often classified as an Oriental Orthodox Church in distinction from Eastern Orthodox to which the main Russian Greek and Georgian Churches belong An Armenian Apostolic Church dedicated to St Vardan was opened in Vilnius in 2006 17 Islam edit nbsp Kaunas MosqueMain article Islam in Lithuania In Lithuania Islam has a long history unlike in many other northern European countries The medieval Grand Duchy of Lithuania of the Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth allowed Muslims notably the Crimean Tatars to settle in the lands in the south 18 Some of people from those lands were moved into ethnically Lithuanian lands now the current Republic of Lithuania mainly under the rule of Grand Duke Vytautas The Tatars now referred to as Lithuanian Tatars lost their language over time and now speak Lithuanian as natives however they have strongly maintained their Muslim faith Judaism editMain article Lithuanian Jews nbsp Choral Synagogue of Vilnius the only synagogue in Vilnius to survive the Nazi occupationThe Lithuanian Jewish community has roots that go back to before the time of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania Lithuania was historically home to a large Jewish community and an important center of Jewish scholarship and culture from the 18th century until the community was almost entirely eliminated during the Holocaust Before World War II the Lithuanian Jewish population numbered some 160 000 about 7 of the total population 19 Vilnius alone had a Jewish community of nearly 100 000 about 45 of the city s total population 20 with over 110 synagogues and 10 yeshivot in the city 21 There are communities of Jews of Lithuanian descent around the world especially in Israel the United States South Africa Zimbabwe Brazil and Australia According to the 2001 census there were 1 272 adherents of Rabbinic and Karaite Judaism 22 About 4 000 Jews were counted in Lithuania during the 2005 census 23 Karaites edit nbsp Karaite kenesa in VilniusAccording to a Karaite tradition several hundred Crimean Karaites were invited to Lithuania by Grand Duke Vytautas to settle in Trakai ca 1397 A small community remains in Trakai which has preserved the Turkic Karaim language and distinctive customs such as its traditional dish called kibinai a sort of meat pastry and its houses with three windows one for God one for the family and one for Grand Duke Vytautas Romuva editMain article Romuva religion nbsp A Romuvan processionMedieval Lithuania was the last pagan nation in Europe officially converting in the late 14th century The neo pagan movement Romuva established in 1967 attempts to reconstruct and revive Lithuanian ethnic religion 24 Freedom of religion editIn 2023 the country scored 4 out of 4 for religious freedom 25 See also editBuddhism in Lithuania Hinduism in Lithuania Islam in Lithuania nbsp Lithuania portal nbsp Religion portalReferences edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Religion in Lithuania a b c d e Population by religious community indicated municipalities 2021 in Lithuanian Statistics Lithuania Retrieved 2 January 2022 Eurobarometer on Biotechnology PDF Ec europa eu p 11 Retrieved 5 May 2007 Lithuania by Vytautas Vaitiekunas Assembly of Captive European Nations 1965 Endre Bojtar Foreword to the past a cultural history of the Baltic people p 140 Church of the Holy Trinity and Basilian Monastery Ausros Vartu str 7 Vilnius Churches Vilnius city guide iVilnius lt Retrieved 5 October 2017 Gidziunas Viktoras O F M Marijos kultas Lietuvoje iki protestantizmo atoslugio The cult of Mary in Lithuania until the anticlimax of Protestantism Aidai lmaleidykla lt PDF Archived from the original PDF on 9 May 2016 Retrieved 14 January 2022 United Methodists evangelize in Lithuania with ads brochures Umc org 11 August 2006 Retrieved 25 April 2010 a b Romos kataliku daugiausia PDF in Lithuanian Department of Statistics to the Government of the Republic of Lithuania 7 November 2002 Lietuvos evangeliku reformatu baznycia Unitas Lithuaniae Sinodas Evangelical Reformed Church of Lithuania Archived from the original on 7 September 2012 Retrieved 14 January 2022 Membership List The World Reformed Fellowship Archived from the original on 14 September 2008 Retrieved 14 January 2022 United Methodists evangelize in Lithuania with ads brochures UMC 11 August 2006 Retrieved 25 April 2010 European Baptist Federation EBF Retrieved 5 October 2017 Graduation Lithuania Christian College Mennonite mission Archived from the original on 21 June 2007 Retrieved 5 October 2017 Lithuania Can I go where I want to World Venture Retrieved 5 October 2017 Patriarcha Bartolomej chce litovsku pravoslavnu cirkev odclenit od Moskvy Svetkrestanstva Postoj in Slovak TASR Retrieved 2023 03 24 davkstudio 1 February 2017 St Vardan s Armenian apostolic church in Vilnius 2017 archived from the original on 2021 12 21 retrieved 14 April 2018 Shirin Akiner Islamic peoples of the Soviet Union pg 85 Lithuania USHMM Retrieved 5 October 2017 Vilnius Vilna Lithuania Jewish History Tour Jewish Virtual Library Retrieved 5 October 2017 Vilnius Jerusalem of Lithuania Litvakai MCH MII Retrieved 5 October 2017 Gyventojai pagal tautybe ir tikyba in Lithuanian Department of Statistics to the Government of the Republic of Lithuania permanent dead link Lithuanian population by ethnicity Stat gov lt Archived from the original on 2 June 2009 Retrieved 5 October 2017 Jones Prudence Pennick Nigel 5 October 1997 A History of Pagan Europe Psychology Press ISBN 9780415158046 Retrieved 5 October 2017 via Google Books Lithuania Freedom House 2022 retrieved 2023 08 08 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Religion in Lithuania amp oldid 1213881339 Christianity, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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