And visit. A Christian state is a country that recognizes a form of Christianity as its official religion and often has a state church (also called an established church ), [1] which is a Christian denomination that supports the government and is supported by the government. Most of 43 countries with a state religion are in Middle East and North Africa with majority Muslim, according to research. Asia | Continent, Countries, Regions, Map, & Facts Israel is the only country in the world with Judaism as its official state religion.11 And no country names Hinduism as its official state religion though India has a powerful Hindu political party, and Nepal came close to enshrining Hinduism in 2015, when the rejection of a constitutional amendment declaring Hinduism as the state religion led to a confrontation between pro-Hindu protesters and police.12. Research on this topic was conducted in tandem with the annual coding process for the Centers study of global restrictions on religion (for details on this process, see the Methodology section of Global Restrictions on Religion Rise Modestly in 2015, Reversing Downward Trend). A state with an official religion (also known as confessional state or religious state), while not a secular state, is not necessarily a theocracy. Indeed, Christian churches receive preferential treatment in more countries 28 than any other unofficial but favored faith. Many Countries Favor Specific Religions | Pew Research Center Julian does not appear to have reinstated the persecutions of the earlier Roman emperors. Islam is the worlds most common official religion. though in many countries affiliation is much lower than in the United States. One of these indicators focuses on whether the government favors a specific religion, including whether it gives funds or other benefits to the religion. The majority 106 countries, or 53 percent of those studied have "no official or preferred" religion. In other words, states with these state-religion relationships will, by definition, always score highly on the GRI; it is an endogenous relationship. In addition, countries with state-endorsed (or established) faiths tend to more severely regulate religious practice, including placing restrictions or bans on minority religious groups., The report adds: In a few cases, a countrys official religion is primarily a legacy of its history and now involves few, if any, privileges conferred by the state. Which Countries Have State Religions? - Geopolitical Futures This page was last edited on 12 July 2023, at 08:32. No country has Hinduism as its state religion. There also usually are financial benefits for official state religions. (+1) 202-419-4300 | Main There Are 13 Countries Where Atheism Is Punishable by Death More than 20% of countries have official state religions - survey Buddhism is the spiritual heritage of Bhutan, which promotes the principles and values of peace, non-violence, compassion and tolerance. These include countries like the United States that may give benefits or privileges to religious groups, but generally do so without systematically favoring a specific group over others.2. Most Religious Countries In The World The fact that the Muslim population was not defined as a religious community does not affect the rights of the Muslim community to practice their faith. [citation needed], Catholic Christianity, as opposed to Arianism and other ideologies deemed heretical, was declared to be the state religion of the Roman Empire on 27 February 380[163] by the decree De fide catolica of Emperor Theodosius I. [165], During the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty of China (12711368 CE), Tibetan Buddhism was established as the de facto state religion by the Kublai Khan, the founder of the Yuan dynasty. In these countries, adherence to the official religion is not mandatory, but other religions are not given the same benefits and their activities are sometimes heavily restricted by the government. Historians often trace the Bible Belt's history back to the end of the 18th century, and the beginning of the 19th century. States with official or preferred religions also are more likely than other states to interfere with worship or other religious practices. The Hole Free Zone More Scientology status by country describes the status of Scientology and its recognition as a religion in varying contexts or in different countries. Seven sub-Saharan countries (15%) have a favored religion, while five (10%) have an official state religion: Comoros, Djibouti, Mauritania, Somalia and Zambia. Jamaica maintains a ban on Obeah, an Afro-Caribbean shamanistic religion, although it is not actively enforced. One of the ways states with official or preferred religions restrict religion is through formally banning certain religious groups.40Among the 34 countries in the world that have this kind of ban in place, 44% are countries with an official state religion, while 24% are countries that have a preferred or favored religion. Among these countries, 78% interfered with the worship of religious groups in 2015 to some degree (e.g., in a few cases, many cases or a blanket prohibition). Lutheranism is present on all inhabited continents with an estimated 81 million adherents, out of which 74.2 million are affiliated with the Lutheran World Federation.A major movement that first began the Reformation, it constitutes one of the largest Protestant branches, claiming about 80 million of 920 million Protestants, The Lutheran World Federation brings together the vast majority of . Again, this relationship holds even when taking population size, democratic processes and social hostilities into account. For more detail on why North Korea often has been excluded from other analyses, see the Methodology section of Pew Research Centers April 2017 report, , While these countries may not legally recognize a religion as the state religion or give benefits to one group over others, they may restrict religion in other ways. And in Poland, only a minority (28%) say the Catholic Church should receive financial support from the government. Lebanon is the only country in the region without an official or favored religion, although key officials are elected or appointed based on religious affiliation (Sunni, Shiite, Maronite Catholic and other minority religious groups) under the terms of Lebanons 1943 National Pact, which is intended to distribute power among the countrys major religious sects. Furthermore, the Edict of Milan cited that Christians may openly practice their religion unmolested and unrestricted, and provided that properties taken from Christians be returned to them unconditionally. Since gaining independence, these predominantly Muslim countries have allowed nominal freedom of worship, and many of their leaders have publicly embraced Islam. [1] [2] [3] Outline Christianity portal v t e As of the year 2023, Christianity had approximately 2.6 billion adherents and is the largest-religion by population respectively. A slim majority (53%) of counties has no official or preferred religion, and 10 (5%) are hostile to religion, according to a report by the Washington-based Pew Research Center. Among the 43 countries with a state religion, 27 (63%) name Sunni Islam, Shia Islam or just Islam in general as their official faith. Note, however, there is a debate over whether Confucianism (including Neo-Confucianism) is a religion or purely a philosophical system. WHICH COUNTRIES HAVE STATE RELIGIONS? The 23 countries where Islam is declared the state religion are: Afghanistan, Algeria, Bahrain, Bangladesh . By David Masci Throughout history, many kingdoms and nations have closely aligned themselves with religion by establishing official, government-endorsed faiths. In a few cases, a countrys official religion is primarily a legacy of its history and now involves few, if any, privileges conferred by the state. Two countries in the Americas Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic and one in the Asia-Pacific region Tuvalu have Christianity as their official state religion. Respondents in all 18 countries were asked whether they think their government should promote religious values and beliefs, or if religion should be kept separate from government policies. For example, people in countries with official or preferred religions are more likely to support government promotion of religious values and beliefs, as well as government funding of the dominant church; they also tend to believe religion is important to their sense of national belonging. One country in the Americas, Cuba, has a heavily restrictive relationship with religion. A further 20 per cent of the states have preferred . It is a subsidiary of The Pew Charitable Trusts. In five countries - Afghanistan, Pakistan, Qatar, Somalia, and the United Arab Emirates - there is no legal clarity and the death penalty could be applied. AFP An Indian gay rights activist. A new Pew Research analysis finds that 30 of the world's countries (15%) belong to a unique group of nations that call for their heads of state to have a particular religious affiliation. Asia, the world's largest and most diverse continent.It occupies the eastern four-fifths of the giant Eurasian landmass. By contrast, Russia recognizes multiple traditional religions, but favors Orthodox Christianity more than the others (see here for more information). It conducts public opinion polling, demographic research, media content analysis and other empirical social science research. ", "Turkish Constitution | Anayasa Mahkemesi", "Religion Youth for Understanding Trkiye", "Turkey may have reclaimed the leadership of Sunni Islam from Saudi Arabia", "2008 Report on International Religious Freedom Afghanistan", "Religion and the Secular State in Turkmenistan - Silk Road Paper", "Islam and Secular State in Uzbekistan: State Control of Religion and its Implications for the Understanding of Secularity", "Religious surge in once-atheist China surprises leaders", "A surprising map of where the world's atheists live", "Party's secret directives on how to eradicate religion and ensure the victory of atheism", "China announces "civilizing" atheism drive in Tibet", "Religion in Indonesia | Indonesia Investments", "Russian Orthodoxy now de facto state religion", The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles, "The Russian Orthodox Church: from farce to tragedy? Data for population sizes in 2015 from UN population estimates. A state religion (also called official religion) is a religion or creed officially endorsed by a sovereign state. (modern). All four countries with Buddhism as the favored religion Burma (Myanmar), Laos, Mongolia and Sri Lanka are in the Asia-Pacific region. There also are four states with an official religion in each case, Islam that make adhering to that religion mandatory for their citizens: Comoros, Maldives, Mauritania and Saudi Arabia. A constitutional amendment in 2012 began the process of separating the Church of Norway from the state, although the provisions of the amendment did not formally take effect until Jan. 1, 2017. 8 Countries Where Religious Freedom Is Actually Under Attack China, for example, does not have an official state religion, nor does it have a preferred religion. Within their borders, these countries treat different religions (e.g., Christianity, Islam) more or less equally, and their governments generally have a neutral relationship with religion. 1. Nine of these countries are in Europe, including the United Kingdom, Denmark, Monaco and Iceland. The State has no official religion.". For example, Russian law designates Christianity, Islam, Judaism and Buddhism as the countrys traditional religions, while also recognizing the special contribution of Russian Orthodox Christianity to Russian history. However, a past . It restricts Muslim prayer to certain locations, regulates mosques and bars children (those under 18) from participating in public religious activities. The state frequently detained, arrested or harassed members of both registered and unregistered religious groups in 2015.10. They include China, Cuba, North Korea, Vietnam and several former Soviet republics.
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