Religion in Poland

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Religion in Poland (2021)[1]

  Catholicism (71.3%)
  Other Christian denominations and religions (1.2%)
  Unanswered (20.6%)
  No religion (6.9%)
Catholic branch of Christianity
.

Religion in Poland is rapidly declining, although historically it had been one of the most Catholic countries in the world.[2]

According to a 2018 report by the

Law and Justice party, often considered its de facto political proxy in the country.[2][3][4]

The current extent of this numerical dominance results largely from

Greek Catholics in Poland.[12] Other religions practiced in Poland, by less than 0.1% of the population, include Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, and Buddhism.[13]

In the

Greek Catholic Churches. According to Statistics Poland in 2018, 93.5% of the population was affiliated with a religion; 3.1% did not belong to any religion. Roman Catholicism comprised 91.9% of the population, with Eastern Orthodoxy at 0.9% (rising from 0.4% in 2011, caused in part by recent immigration from Ukraine).[14]

In 2015, 61.1% of the population gave religion high to very high importance whilst 13.8% regarded religion as of little or no importance. The percentage of believers is much higher in the eastern parts of Poland.[15]

Religion
2011 census[16]
 2021 census[1]
Number % Number %
Christianity 34,194,133 88.79 27,550,861 72.43
–Roman Catholics 33,728,734 87.58 27,121,331 71.30
–Orthodox Christians 156,284 0.41 151,648 0.40
–Jehovah's Witnesses 137,308 0.36 108,754 0.29
–Lutherans 70,766 0.18 65,407 0.17
–Greek Catholics 33,281 0.09 33,209 0.09
–Pentecostals 26,433 0.07 30,105 0.08
–Mariavites 9,990 0.03 12,248 0.03
–Polish Catholics 8,807 0.02 6,942 0.02
–Baptists 5,982 0.02 5,181 0.01
–Seventh-day Adventists 4,947 0.01 3,129 0.01
–Other Christians 11,601 0.03 12,907 0.03
Buddhism 4,817 0.01 3,236 0.01
Islam 4,593 0.01 2,209 0.01
Other religions 18,408 0.05 44,694 0.12
No religion 929,420 2.41 2,611,506 6.87
Undeclared 3,360,451 8.73 7,823,612 20.57
Total 38,511,822 100.00 38,036,118 100.00

History

For centuries the ancient West Slavic and

pagan religions were gradually eradicated over the next few centuries during the Christianization of Poland. However, this did not put an end to pagan beliefs in the country. The persistence was demonstrated by a series of rebellions known as the Pagan reaction in the first half of the 11th century, which also showed elements of a peasant uprising against landowners and feudalism,[21] and led to a mutiny that destabilized the country.[22][23][24][25] By the 13th century Catholicism had become the dominant religion throughout the country. Nevertheless, Christian Poles coexisted with a significant Jewish segment of the population.[26][27]

In the 15th century, the

reactionary movement succeeded in reducing the scope for tolerance by the late 17th and early 18th century – as evidenced by events such as the Tumult of Toruń (1724).[28][29][30]

When Poland was divided between its neighbors in the late eighteenth century, some Poles were subjected to religious discrimination in the newly expanded German Prussia and Russia.[31]

Prior to the

endecja and small ONR groups and factions), but not directly by the Polish government itself.[33]

According to a 2011 survey by

agnostic; 2% adhere to unspecified other religions; and 5% did not answer the question.[34]

According to an opinion poll conducted in "a representative group of 1,000 people" by the

Centre for Public Opinion Research (CBOS), published in 2015, 39% of Poles claim they are "believers following the Church's laws", while 52% answered that they are "believers in their own understanding and way", and 5% stated that they are atheists.[35][36]

The Polish Constitution and religion

Percentage of persons who declared that they believe or very deeply believe, 2015.[37]

The Polish Constitution assures freedom of religion for all. The Constitution also grants national and ethnic minorities the rights to establish educational and cultural institutions and institutions designed to protect religious identity, as well as to participate in the resolution of matters connected with their cultural identities.[38]

Religious organizations in the Republic of Poland can register their institution with the

Ministry of Interior and Administration
, creating a record of churches and other religious organizations which operate under separate Polish laws. This registration is not necessary, but it does serve the laws guaranteeing freedom of religious practice.

Slavic

Światowid (Święte Koło Czcicieli Światowida), and the Polish Slavic Church (Polski Kościół Słowiański).[39]
This native Slavic religion is promoted also by the Native Faith Association (Zrzeszenie Rodzimej Wiary, ZRW), and the Association for Tradition founded in 2015.

Major denominations

Around 125 faith groups and minor religions are registered in Poland.

Główny Urząd Statystyczny, Poland's Central Statistical Office.[12]

Denomination Members Leadership
Latin
Byzantine-Ukrainian
Armenian
 32,910,865
55,000
670
Apostolic Nuncio to Poland
Jan Martyniak, Archbishop Metropolite
of Byzantine-Ukrainian Rite
Polish Autocephalous Orthodox Church 507,196 Metropolitan of Warsaw
Sawa
Jehovah's Witnesses in Poland 116,935 Warszawska 14, Nadarzyn Pl-05830
Evangelical-Augsburg Church in Poland
 61,217 Bishop Fr. Jerzy Samiec
Pentecostal Church in Poland 25,152 Bishop Marek Kamiński
Old Catholic Mariavite Church in Poland
(data from 2017) 		22,849 Chief Bishop Fr. Marek Maria Karol Babi
Polish Catholic Church (Old Catholic) 18,259 Bishop Wiktor Wysoczański
Seventh-day Adventist Church in Poland 9,726 President of the Church, Ryszard Jankowski
Church of Christ in Poland 6,326 Bishop Andrzej W. Bajeński
New Apostolic Church in Poland 6,118 Bishop Waldemar Starosta
Baptist Christian Church of the Republic of Poland 5,343 President of the Church: Dr. Mateusz Wichary
Church of God in Christ 4,611 Bishop Andrzej Nędzusiak
Evangelical Methodist Church in Poland
(data from 2017) 		4,465 General Superintendent, Andrzej Malicki
Evangelical Reformed Church in Poland 3,335 President consistory Dr. Witold Brodziński
Catholic Mariavite Church in Poland 1,838 Bishop Damiana Maria Beatrycze Szulgowicz
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Poland 1,729 President of the Church: Russel M. Nelson

Warsaw Mission President: Mateusz Turek

Islamic Religious Union in Poland 523 President of the Supreme Muslim College Stefan Korycki
Union of Jewish Religious Communities in Poland 1,860  • President of the Main Board Piotr Kadlčik
 • Chief Rabbi of Poland Michael Schudrich

Selected locations

See also

Notes

References

  1. ^ a b "Tablice z ostatecznymi danymi w zakresie przynależności narodowo-etnicznej, języka używanego w domu oraz przynależności do wyznania religijnego - NSP 2021". Statistics Poland. 28 September 2023. Retrieved 28 September 2023.
  2. ^ a b Higgins, Andrew (24 October 2023). "Polish Bishop Resigns After Diocese Is Rocked by Sex Scandal". The New York Times. Retrieved 25 October 2023. Trust in the church, according to experts, has also been damaged by its close alliance with Poland's nationalist governing party, Law and Justice... Long seen as a Catholic stronghold that, in contrast to Ireland and Spain, had managed to hold back a tide of secularization that has swept across most of Europe, Poland has over the past decade seen a sharp decline in church attendance, though most still declare themselves Christians. Enrollment in seminaries has also plummeted, forcing several to shut down. Lamenting that a process previously referred to by experts as "creeping secularization" was now "galloping," the church report warned that "the church in Poland is entering a rather dangerous 'twist' in its history. Much depends on how it will be able to defeat this."
  3. ^
    ISSN 0099-9660
    . Retrieved 7 October 2023.
  4. ^ a b c Tilles, Daniel (29 September 2023). "Proportion of Catholics in Poland falls to 71%, new census data show". Notes From Poland. Retrieved 7 October 2023.
  5. ^ "Religion in Poland". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 9 January 2018.
  6. ^ Tilles, Daniel (14 January 2023). "Dramatic fall in church attendance in Poland, official figures show". Notes From Poland. Retrieved 7 October 2023.
  7. ^ Project in Posterum, Poland World War II casualties. Retrieved 20 September 2013.
  8. ^ Holocaust: Five Million Forgotten: Non-Jewish Victims of the Shoah. Remember.org.
  9. ^ AFP/Expatica, Polish experts lower nation's WWII death toll, Expatica.com, 30 August 2009
  10. ISBN 978-83-7629-067-6 (Introduction online. Archived 1 February 2013 at the Wayback Machine
    )
  11. ^ [1] Archived 1 April 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  12. ^
    ISSN 1640-3630. {{cite book}}: |journal= ignored (help
    )
  13. ^ Ciecieląg, Paweł, ed. (2016). Wyznania religijne w Polsce 2012-2014 (PDF). Warszawa: Główny Urząd Statystyczny. pp. 142–173.
    ISBN 9788370276126
    .
  14. ^ "Quality of life and social capital in Poland. Results of the Social Cohesion Survey 2018". stat.gov.pl. Retrieved 8 September 2022.
  15. ^ "Infographic - Religiousness of Polish inhabitiants". stat.gov.pl. Retrieved 17 June 2019.
  16. ^ "Wybrane tablice dotyczące przynależności narodowo-etnicznej, języka i wyznania - NSP 2011". Statistics Poland. 24 April 2014. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
  17. ^ "Polish Paganism - Polish Toledo - Archive of Okana". polishtoledo.com.
  18. ^ Gniazdo – Rodzima wiara i kultura, nr 2(7)/2009 – Ratomir Wilkowski: Rozważania o wizerunku rodzimowierstwa na przykładzie...
  19. ^ "Rodzimy Kościół Polski". Rodzimy Kościół Polski.
  20. ^ "Paganism in Poland | Living, News, Paganism, World". The Wild Hunt. 6 July 2016.
  21. ^ Zawada, Grażyna (29 August 2013). "Resurgence of Pre-Christian Beliefs in Poland".
  22. ISBN 978-83-85483-46-5
    . Retrieved 27 March 2013.
  23. ISBN 978-83-85483-46-5
    . Retrieved 27 March 2013.
  24. ^ Słownik starożytności słowiańskich: encyklopedyczny zarys kultury słowian od czasów najdawniejszych. Zkład Narodowy im. Ossolińskich. 1967. p. 247. Retrieved 27 March 2013. Widziano w M. wodza powstania pogańsko-ludowego
  25. ISBN 978-1-00-128802-4
    . Retrieved 27 March 2013.
  26. ISBN 978-0-674-92685-1
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  27. ISBN 978-0-521-85332-3
    . Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  28. ^
    JSTOR 25778627
    .
  29. ISBN 978-0-313-26007-0
    .
  30. ISBN 978-90-04-16623-3
    .
  31. ^ "Anna M". Web.ku.edu. Retrieved 9 January 2018.
  32. ISBN 978-0-7818-0901-6
    .
  33. ^ Poland's Holocaust by Tadeusz Piotrowski. Published by McFarland. From Preface: policy of genocide.
  34. ^ Views on globalisation and faith Archived 17 January 2013 at the Wayback Machine. Ipsos MORI, 5 July 2011.
  35. ^ Boguszewski, Rafał (February 2015). "Zmiany W Zakresie Podstanowych Wskaźników Religijności Polaków Po Śmierci Jana Pawla II" (PDF). CBOS. p. 6. Retrieved 23 January 2017.
  36. ^ "Wierzę w Boga Ojca, ale nie w Kościół powszechny". Oko.press. 23 January 2017. Retrieved 9 January 2018.
  37. ^ "Infographic - Religiousness of Polish inhabitiants". stat.gov.pl.
  38. ^ Works related to Constitution of the Republic of Poland at Wikisource
  39. ^ Simpson, Scott (2000). Native Faith: Polish Neo-Paganism at the Brink of the 21st Century
  40. ^ a b "Society". Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 2002. Retrieved 3 December 2008.

External links

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