Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

is the most widely professed religion in Croatia and a large majority of the Croatian population declare themselves to be members of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

has no official religion and

freedom of religion Freedom of religion or religious liberty is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance. It also includes the freedom ...

is a right defined by the

Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of Legal entity, entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When ...

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

, which also defines all

religious communities Religion is usually defined as a social-cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, tra ...

as equal in front of the law and separate from the state.

History

In the 16th century,

Protestantism Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...

reached Croatia, but was mostly eradicated due to the

Counter-Reformation The Counter-Reformation (), also called the Catholic Reformation () or the Catholic Revival, was the period of Catholic resurgence that was initiated in response to the Protestant Reformation. It began with the Council of Trent (1545–1563) a ...

implemented by the

Habsburgs The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...

. There is also significant history of the Jews in Croatia through the Holocaust. The

history of the Jews in Croatia The history of the Jews in Croatia dates back to at least the 3rd century, although little is known of the community until the 10th and 15th centuries. According to the 1931 census, the community numbered 21,505 members, and it is estimated t ...

dates back to at least the 3rd century, although little is known of the community until the 10th and 15th centuries. By the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, the community numbered approximately 20,000 members, most of whom were murdered during the

Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...

that took place on the territory of the Nazi puppet state called

Independent State of Croatia The Independent State of Croatia ( sh, Nezavisna Država Hrvatska, NDH; german: Unabhängiger Staat Kroatien; it, Stato indipendente di Croazia) was a World War II-era puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy. It was established in p ...

. After World War II, half of the survivors chose to settle in

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

, while an estimated 2,500 members continued to live in Croatia. According to the 2011 census, there were 509 Jews living in Croatia, but that number is believed to exclude those born of mixed marriages or those married to non-Jews. More than 80 percent of the Zagreb Jewish community were thought to fall in those two categories.

Demographics

According to the 2011 census 86.28% of Croatians are Catholics, while

Orthodox Christians Orthodoxy (from Greek: ) is adherence to correct or accepted creeds, especially in religion. Orthodoxy within Christianity refers to acceptance of the doctrines defined by various creeds and ecumenical councils in Antiquity, but different Churc ...

make up 4.44% of the population,

Muslims Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abraha ...

1.47%, and

Protestants Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...

0.34% of the population. 3.81% of Croatians are not religious and atheists, 0.76% are agnostics and sceptics, and 2.17% are undeclared. In the

Eurostat Eurostat ('European Statistical Office'; DG ESTAT) is a Directorate-General of the European Commission located in the Kirchberg, Luxembourg, Kirchberg quarter of Luxembourg City, Luxembourg. Eurostat's main responsibilities are to provide statis ...

Eurobarometer Poll of 2005, 67% of the population of Croatia responded that "they believe there is a God". In a 2009 Gallup poll, 70% answered yes to the question "Is religion an important part of your daily life?". However, only 24% of the population attends religious services regularly.

Interaction between religious and secular Life

Public schools allow religious teaching in cooperation with religious communities having agreements with the state, but attendance is not mandated. Religion classes ( hr, vjeronauk) are organized widely in public elementary and secondary schools, most commonly coordinated with the Catholic Church. The

public holidays in Croatia Public holidays in Croatia are regulated by the Holidays, Memorial Days and Non-Working Days Act ( hr, Zakon o blagdanima, spomendanima i neradnim danima). * In 2020 there was a change in holidays: June 25 (was Statehood Day until 2019, became ...

also include the

religious festival A religious festival is a time of special importance marked by adherents to that religion. Religious festivals are commonly celebrated on recurring cycles in a calendar year or lunar calendar. The science of religious rites and festivals is known ...

s ( hr, blagdan) of Epiphany, Easter Monday, Corpus Christi Day, Assumption Day, All Saints' Day, Christmas, and St. Stephen's or Boxing Day. The primary holidays are based on the Catholic

liturgical year The liturgical year, also called the church year, Christian year or kalendar, consists of the cycle of liturgical seasons in Christian churches that determines when feast days, including celebrations of saints, are to be observed, and whi ...

, but other believers are legally allowed to celebrate other major religious holidays.

Marriage Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between ...

s conducted by the religious communities having agreements with the state are officially recognized, eliminating the need to register the marriages in the civil registry office. The

Catholic Church in Croatia , native_name_lang = hr , image = St. Peter's Cathedral, Dakovo.jpg , imagewidth = 200px , alt = , caption = Đakovo Cathedral. , abbreviation = , type = Nationa ...

receives state financial support and other benefits established in

concordat A concordat is a convention between the Holy See and a sovereign state that defines the relationship between the Catholic Church and the state in matters that concern both,René Metz, ''What is Canon Law?'' (New York: Hawthorn Books, 1960 st Edi ...

s between the Government and the

Vatican Vatican may refer to: Vatican City, the city-state ruled by the pope in Rome, including St. Peter's Basilica, Sistine Chapel, Vatican Museum The Holy See * The Holy See, the governing body of the Catholic Church and sovereign entity recognized ...

. The concordats and other government agreements with non-Catholic religious communities allow state financing for some salaries and pensions for religious officials through government-managed pension and health funds. The concordats and agreements also regulate public school

catechism A catechism (; from grc, κατηχέω, "to teach orally") is a summary or exposition of doctrine and serves as a learning introduction to the Sacraments traditionally used in catechesis, or Christian religious teaching of children and adult c ...

s and

military chaplain A military chaplain ministers to military personnel and, in most cases, their families and civilians working for the military. In some cases they will also work with local civilians within a military area of operations. Although the term ''cha ...

s. In line with the concordats signed with the Roman Catholic Church and in an effort to further define their rights and privileges within a legal framework, the government has additional agreements with the following 14 religious and Faith communities: *

Serbian Orthodox Church The Serbian Orthodox Church ( sr-Cyrl, Српска православна црква, Srpska pravoslavna crkva) is one of the autocephalous (ecclesiastically independent) Eastern Orthodox Christian denomination, Christian churches. The majori ...

(SPC) * Islamic Community of Croatia *

Evangelical Church in the Republic of Croatia The Evangelical Church in the Republic of Croatia ( hr, Evangelička (luteranska) crkva u Hrvatskoj or ECRH) is a Lutheran denomination in Croatia. It is a member of the Lutheran World Federation, which it joined in 1951. It is also a member of t ...

Reformed Christian Church in Croatia The Reformed Christian Church in Croatia (the ''Reformirana kršćanska kalvinska Crkva u Hrvatskoj'' in Croatian) became an autonomous church in 1993, following the disintegration of Yugoslavia. Croatia became an independent state. The first or ...

* Protestant Reformed Christian Church in Croatia *

Pentecostal Church Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement

Union of Pentecostal Churches of Christ Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

Seventh-day Adventist Church The Seventh-day Adventist Church is an Adventist Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the seventh day of the week in the Christian (Gregorian) and the Hebrew calendar, as the Sabbath, and ...

* Union of Baptist Churches * Church of God * Church of Christ * Reformed Movement of Seventh-day Adventists * Bulgarian Orthodox Church (BPC) *

Macedonian Orthodox Church The Macedonian Orthodox Church – Archdiocese of Ohrid (MOC-AO; mk, Македонска православна црква – Охридска архиепископија), or simply the Macedonian Orthodox Church (MOC) or the Archdiocese o ...

(MPC–OA) *

Old Catholic Church of Croatia The Old Catholic Church of Croatia or Croatian Old Catholic Church (Croatian language, Croatian: ''Hrvatska starokatolička crkva'') consists of the Croatian parishes in full communion with the Union of Utrecht of the Old Catholic Churches, Union o ...

Legal status

The 2002 Law on the Legal Position of Religious Communities broadly defines religious and Faith communities' legal positions and covers such matters as government funding, tax benefits, and religious education in schools. Matters such as pensions for clergy; religious service in the military, penitentiaries, and police; and recognition of religious and Faith marriages are left to each religious and Faith community to negotiate separately with the Government. Registration of religious groups is not obligatory; however, registered groups are granted "legal person" status and enjoy tax and other benefits. The law stipulates that to be eligible for registration, a religious group must have at least 500 believers and be registered as an association for 5 years. All religious and Faith groups in the country prior to passage of the law in 2002 were registered without having to meet these conditions; religious and Faith groups new to the country after passage of the law must fulfill the requirements for the minimum number of believers and time as an association. Religious and Faith groups based abroad must submit written permission for registration from their country of origin. Minister of Public Administration runs a Registry of religious organizations in Republic of Croatia, currently recognizing 62 religious communities ().

References

External links