State religion facts for kids

Countries with state religions: Christianity Islam Buddhism

A state religion is a faith or belief system that a country officially supports. It's also called an official religion. This means the government accepts it as the main religion of the nation.

Sometimes, for Christian countries, the term state church is used. This refers to a specific Christian church that is officially linked to the government.

Countries with Official Religions

Many countries around the world have an official religion. This means their government recognizes a specific faith.

Christian Countries

Several countries recognize a form of Christianity as their official religion. These include different Christian groups:

Roman Catholic

Some countries officially recognize the Roman Catholic faith:

Costa Rica
Malta
Monaco
Some areas in Switzerland also have Roman Catholicism as their state religion. These include Appenzell Innerrhoden, Aargau, Basel-Country, Bern, Glarus, Graubünden, Nidwalden, Schwyz, Thurgau, and Uri.

Old Catholic

A few places in Switzerland recognize an Old Catholic church. These include Aargau, Basel-Country, and Bern.

Eastern Orthodox

Countries that recognize one of the Eastern Orthodox Churches as their official religion are:

Greece (the Greek Orthodox Church)
Georgia (the Georgian Orthodox Church)

Protestant

Some Protestant Christian groups are also official religions:

Lutheran

Denmark (the Church of Denmark)
Iceland (the Church of Iceland)
Finland (the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland)

Presbyterian

Scotland has the Church of Scotland as its established church.

Reformed

Some areas in Switzerland recognize a Reformed church. These include Aargau, Basel-Country, Bern, Glarus, Graubünden, Schwyz, Thurgau, Uri, and Zürich.

Other Christian Faiths

Anglican

England has the Church of England as its established church.

Islamic Countries

Many countries recognize Islam as their official religion:

Sunni Islam

Some countries specifically recognize Sunni Islam:

Shi'a Islam

Iran recognizes Shi'a Islam.

Buddhist Countries

Several governments recognize Buddhism as their official religion:

Bhutan (a specific school of Tibetan Buddhism)
Cambodia (Theravada Buddhism)
Laos (Theravada Buddhism)
Thailand (Theravada Buddhism)
Tibet Government in Exile (a specific school of Tibetan Buddhism)
Myanmar
Sri Lanka (Theravada Buddhism)

Hindu Countries

Currently, no country officially lists Hinduism as its state religion. Countries with a majority Hindu population are secular. Nepal used to be the world's only Hindu kingdom, but its 2015 constitution declared it a secular country.

Other Countries with Special Religious Status

Israel is defined as a Democratic Jewish state by some laws. However, it does not have an official state religion. Being "Jewish" can mean following the Jewish religion or being of Jewish descent.
The United States and other countries do not have a state religion. However, they sometimes help religious groups indirectly. For example, they might allow churches and religious organizations to be charitable organizations, which means they don't have to pay certain taxes.

History of State Religions

The idea of a state having its own official religion is very old.

Ancient Times

In ancient Egypt and Sumer, each city or group of people had its own god or gods. These were like their state religions.

Persian Empire

Zoroastrianism was the official religion of the Sassanid dynasty in Persia. This empire lasted from 226 to 651 AD.

Greek City-States

Many ancient Greek city-states also had a special god or goddess linked to their city.

Roman Religion and Christianity

In ancient Rome, the emperor was often seen as a god. People were sometimes punished if they refused to worship him. The Roman government wanted people to worship the emperor to show loyalty to the Empire. Many Christians and Jews were persecuted because their beliefs did not allow them to worship the emperor.

Later, on February 27, 380 AD, Catholic Christianity became the official state religion of the Roman Empire. This was declared by Emperor Theodosius I.

Chinese Dynasties

In China, the Han Dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD) made Confucianism its unofficial state religion. To work for the government, people had to pass tests based on Confucian writings.

Countries Without a State Religion

Many countries today do not have any official state religion. They choose to keep religion separate from the government. These countries include:

Former State Churches in Europe

Historically, many European countries had official state churches. Over time, many of these connections have changed or ended. For example, Norway's church was disestablished in 2012, and Sweden's in 2000.

In 1967, the Albanian government made atheism its "state religion." This meant no religion was allowed. This lasted until 1991.
Finland's state church was the Church of Sweden until 1809.
In France, the Concordat of 1801 made the Roman Catholic, Calvinist, Lutheran churches, and Judaism state-sponsored religions.
In Hungary, several churches were recognized as established churches in 1848, including Roman Catholic, Calvinist, Lutheran, Eastern Orthodox, and Unitarian. Later, Judaism was also recognized. By 1948, all differences between these groups were removed.
The Church in Wales separated from the Church of England in 1920.

Former State Churches in North America

In the past, some colonies in British North America also had official churches.

Protestant Colonies

Plymouth Colony was founded by Separatists.
Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations was founded by Baptists.
Province of Pennsylvania was founded by Quakers.

Catholic Colonies

When New France became part of Great Britain in 1763, the Roman Catholic Church was still allowed.
Province of Maryland was founded by Irish Catholics. However, its independence was lost during the English Civil War.
Spanish Florida became British in 1763. Both East and West Florida allowed Catholic residents to practice their faith.

Many of these official church systems ended around the time of the American Revolution in 1776. For example, the Church of England was disestablished in Georgia in 1789 and in Virginia in 1786.

In 1789, the Georgia Constitution was changed. It said that no one should be forced to worship in a certain way or pay taxes for a church they didn't believe in. It also stated that no one religious group should be favored over another.

From 1780, Massachusetts required everyone to belong to a church. Each church could tax its members. This system was abolished in 1833.

Until 1877, the New Hampshire Constitution required state lawmakers to be Protestant.

The North Carolina Constitution of 1776 ended the official status of the Anglican church. However, until 1835, only Protestants could hold public office. From 1835 to 1876, only Christians (including Catholics) could hold office. Today, the North Carolina Constitution only forbids atheists from holding public office. However, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1961 that such rules are against the First and Fourteenth Amendments, which protect religious freedom.

State of Deseret

The State of Deseret was a temporary state proposed in 1849 by Mormon settlers in Salt Lake City. This temporary state existed for about two years.

Freedom of religion