Religion in the Czech Republic has a long history. Various confessions are represented in the republic. Among them, there are those that have become widespread among local residents, and those that do not go beyond the diaspora.
History of religion in the Czech Republic
The Reformation led to the weakening of the Catholic denomination in the Czech Republic. She brought with her numerous sectarian strife, which adversely affected the dominance of the dominant religion. In addition, a very serious role fell on the shoulders of the so-called Hussites, who actively developed their ideology in the 15th century. At that time, the Czechs rebelled against ideological discrimination against Catholicism.
In the Czech Republic in those days, the power belonged to the Germans, who, in turn, invited priests of their faith for missionary purposes. This was largely reflected in the spread of Protestantism, which influenced the formation of both the Czech language and Czech culture and literature.
The movement of the followers of Jan Hus was broken by the Habsburgs (the German dynasty). The Habsburgs carried out many public executions, forced migrations of people on a religious basis. The uprising against Catholicism took place innineteenth century. Everyone blamed the Habsburgs for the unfavorable confessional situation.
When the Czech Republic regained its independence, society began to massively turn away from the dogmas of the church and adhere to atheism. This trend continued during the Second World War, and then - during the reign of communist ideology on the lands of the Czech Republic. The communists sought to completely abolish the church, to isolate this social institution from society.
What is the most popular religion in the Czech Republic?
The most popular Roman Catholic Church in the Czech Republic is divided into two parts, each headed by an archbishop. There is also a military vicariate who works in the Czech army. Together with the bishops, the Apostolic Exarchate of Catholics is at the head, which has the status of a legal entity representing the entire Catholic Church in the Czech Republic.
Due to its mass character, the Roman Catholic Church is the only church in the Czech Republic whose structure functions throughout the country. The Czech Catholic denomination is the largest religious organization in this country. Catholic councils and congregations of the Roman Catholic Church operate several primary and secondary schools and ultimately take part in the leadership of three theological departments of public universities.
The Roman Catholic Church professes Christianity - the main religion of the Czech Republic. According to the censusof the population, 1,083,899 people (10.26%) consider themselves adherents of the ideas of the Roman Catholic Church. According to statistics, four percent of the population attends Sunday services. The largest number of Catholics is in the region of South and Central Moravia, the smallest percentage is in North Bohemia.
Orthodoxy
The Orthodox Church appeared in the Czech Republic in 1921, when Bishop Matej Pavlik consecrated a small Orthodox community in the state. The denomination consisted mainly of people who turned their backs on the Roman Catholic Church and Byzantine Rite Catholics. Later, some of Pavlik's supporters broke away and went over to the Protestants.
During World War II, the Orthodox Church was persecuted by the Nazis. The Nazis executed many priests. Pavlik himself provided assistance to the assassins of Reinhard Heydrich, which caused a negative reaction from the government. Matei Pavlik was executed. However, he was canonized by the Orthodox Church in the Czech Republic and Slovakia in 1987.
After the collapse of Czechoslovakia, in 1993, the church was divided into two metropolitan provinces (Prague and Bratislava), which were united in one synod. Christians in the Czech Republic are approximately 50,000 believers, and in Slovakia - about 75,000.
Islam
If we consider the religions of the Czech Republic, in this country Islam is in the minority. The approximate number of Muslims in the Czech Republic is about 22 thousand (about 0.2% of the population). Almost all Muslims are Sunnis.
Islamic centers are located mainly in Prague and Brno, but also in Teplice, Hradec Králové, Liberec,Karlovy Vary. They have libraries where general reading of the Quran, Arabic lessons and children's programs are held. Their representatives also help in the refugee camps and, as far as possible, provide spiritual care to legates and condemned Muslims.
Other religions
The Czech religion also includes other confessions. One of the largest is Protestantism, whose adherents are about fifty thousand people. Other confessions come to the Czech Republic along with representatives of different cultures. However, their religions tend not to appeal to native Czechs and Slavic immigrants. Many are atheists as a result of the communist persecution of the church in the past.
In the Czech Republic there are many Christian denominations and many others. They do not oppose each other, but coexist peacefully.
