Irreligion in Sweden
Religious affiliation in Sweden (2019)[1][2]
Irreligion is common in Sweden, and Sweden is one of the most secular nations in the world. The majority of Swedish citizens are members of the Church of Sweden, but very few are practicing members. Sweden has legally been a secular state since 2000 when the Church of Sweden was separated from the state.
History
[edit]Viktor Lennstrand was cited as one of the founders of Freethought in Sweden after he was imprisoned several times in the 1880s and 1890s for blasphemy.[3] During the 1960s, debate took place over the role of religion in Swedish society. Herbert Tingsten, Ingemar Hedenius, and Gunnar Heckscher were notable irreligious voices at the time.[4] Humanists Sweden was founded in 1979 and is currently the largest humanist organization in Sweden.[5]
The Swedish government has passed several secular reforms over the years: a legal opt-out of the previously mandatory membership of the Swedish church was allowed in 1951; automatic membership by birth with at least one parent member in the Church of Sweden ─ the organization's enrollment practice since the 1850s ─ ended in 1996; and the Church of Sweden was formally separated from the state on 1 January 2000, leaving Sweden as, at the time, "the only Nordic country without a state church".[6][7][8]
Demographics
[edit]Sweden is considered one of the world's most secular nations, with a high proportion of irreligious people.[9] Phil Zuckerman, an associate professor of Sociology at Pitzer College,[10] writes that several academic sources have in recent years placed atheism rates in Sweden between 46% and 85%, with one source reporting that only 17% of respondents self-identified as "atheist".[11] Gallup Poll found in 2016 that 18% of Swedes self-report as atheist and 55% as non-religious.[12]
Sweden's official website says that just three out of 10 Swedes state that they have confidence in the church. According to the site, only one in ten Swedes thinks religion is important in daily life or has trust in a religious leader.[13] The Church of Sweden states that under 5 out of 10 children are christened in the church, around 1 out of 3 weddings take place in church, and around three out of four Swedes have Christian burials.[14]
Of the 70% of the population who are members of the Church of Sweden, about 6% "are active churchgoers attending services at least once a month". Many of the Swedes that attend church do it due to traditional or cultural reasons, but are otherwise not practicing Christians: according to a 2010 membership survey, 15 percent of Church of Sweden members say they are atheists, while a quarter identify themselves as agnostic.[15] The younger the members, the more likely they are to be atheists or agnostics.[15] Also, the same poll found that 90 percent of church members have a weak relationship with the Swedish Church and that only 15% of them believe in Jesus.[15]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Statistik 2019 - Myndigheten för stöd till trossamfund" (in Swedish). Swedish Agency for Support to Faith Communities. 2019. Archived from the original on 19 October 2023. Retrieved 7 August 2021.
- ^ "Svenska kyrkan i siffror" [The Church of Sweden in numbers]. svenskakyrkan.se (in Swedish). Church of Sweden. 12 June 2023.
- ^ "Death of V. E. Lennstrand" (17 November 1895). The Freethinker, Vol. XV (No. 36). p. 732.
- ^ Tomasson, Richard F. (2002). "How Sweden became so secular". Scandinavian Studies. 74 (1): 61–88.
- ^ "In English | Humanisterna" (in Swedish). Retrieved 2020-09-08.
- ^ "Swedes End Long Union Of Church And State". The New York Times. Associated Press. 1995-12-31. Retrieved 2016-01-27.
- ^ "Sweden 'least religious' nation in Western world". The Local. 2015-04-13. Retrieved 2016-01-27.
- ^ Scott Sutherland (2015-08-28). "10 fundamentals of religion in Sweden". Swedish Institute. Retrieved 2016-01-27.
- ^ Phil Zuckerman. "Atheism, Secularity, and Well-Being: How the Findings of Social Science Counter Negative Stereotypes and Assumptions" (PDF). Oitzer.edu. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-12-28. Retrieved 2014-02-02.; "Evolutionary Psychology: Original Article/Essay" (PDF). Epjournal.net. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-07-20. Retrieved 2013-08-16.; "Beliefs about God across Time and Countries" (PDF). -Norc.org. Retrieved 2013-08-16.; Zuckerman, Phil (2009-12-21). Atheism and Secularity - Google Books. ISBN 9780313351822. Retrieved 2013-08-16.; "Atheism: Contemporary Rates and Patterns" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-06-12. Retrieved 2012-07-04.; "Beliefs about God across Time and Countries" (PDF). Retrieved 2012-07-04.
- ^ "Phil Zuckerman, Professor of Sociology - Faculty Profiles - Pitzer College". Pitzer.edu. Archived from the original on 2009-11-28. Retrieved 2014-02-02.
- ^ Zuckerman, Phil (2006). "Atheism—Contemporary numbers and Practices". In Michael Martin (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Atheism. Cambridge University Press. pp. 47–50. ISBN 0-521-84270-0. Retrieved 2007-11-15.
- ^ "Global report on religion: end of year 2016" (PDF). Gallup Poll. 2017-04-12.
- ^ "Only one in ten Swedes trusts religious leaders". The Local. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
- ^ "Svenska kyrkan i siffror" (in Swedish). Church of Sweden. 12 June 2023.
- ^ a b c "Swedish Church members 'don't believe in Jesus'". The Local. 15 June 2011. Retrieved 1 December 2024.