Placed on: 2006-11-09 17:13 Updated on: 2007-11-06 10:09
Religion in Lithuania
2006-11-09 17:11
Freedom of thought, conscience, and religion shall not be restricted. Every person shall have the right to freely choose any religion or faith and, either individually or with others, in public or in private, to manifest his or her religion or faith in worship, observance, practice or teaching. No person may coerce another person or be subject to coercion to adopt or profess any religion or faith.
The State shall recognise traditional Lithuanian churches and religious organisations, as well as other churches and religious organisations provided that they have a basis in society and their teaching and rituals do not contradict morality or the law. Churches and religious organisations recognised by the State shall have the rights of legal persons. Churches and religious organisations shall freely proclaim the teaching of their faith, perform the rituals of their belief, and have houses of prayer, charity institutions, and educational institutions for the training of priests of their faith. Churches and religious organisations shall function freely according to their canons and statutes. The status of churches and other religious organisations in the State shall be established by agreement or by law. The teachings proclaimed by churches and other religious organisations, other religious activities, and houses of prayer may not be used for purposes which contradict the Constitution and the law. There shall not be a State religion in Lithuania.
People of different faiths live in Lithuania, though the majority of all residents are Roman Catholics. According to data of the population census of 2001, 79% of all residents ascribe themselves to the Catholic Church. Catholic missionaries worked in Lithuania already since the beginning of the second millennium, however, Christianity was accepted as official religion only in 1387 - under the rule of Jogaila and Vytautas. Paganism, which was practised by Lithuanians before the acceptance of Christianity, remained as a folk religion for several hundreds of years after the acceptance of Christianity.
Other Christian confessions that function in Lithuania from ancient times - Orthodoxies (Lithuanian rulers mastered large territories in the east populated by Orthodoxies from the 13th through the 16th centuries), Evangelic-Reformats, and Lutherans, which quickly spread in Lithuania in the 16th century, when Europe was obsessed by the wave of protestant reformation. In the 15th century, groups of Karaites and Tartars were brought to Lithuania as personal security of dukes. The groups have maintained their cultural and religious identity in Lithuania until nowadays. Jewish, who were persecuted in medieval Europe, found shelter also in Lithuania. They found here good conditions for fostering their culture and faith. During the period of tsarist Russian occupation a lot of old-beliers came to Lithuania willing to escape from persecutions. These religious communities were legally named traditional in 1995, after their historical contribution to the Lithuanian cultural and spiritual heritage had been evaluated.
In Lithuania there are many other confessions and religious movements. They include such Christian deviations as Baptists, New Church of apostles, seventh day Adventists, Pentecostalists, Methodists, and all gospel churches; and various groups of oriental origin - communities of Buddhists and Krishna; consciousness movement as well as some other new religious movements. Some of the mentioned groups function in Lithuania already for more than one hundred years (e.g. Baptists), whereas others formed only when Lithuania was re-establishing its independence from the Soviet Union. A religious community of Baltic faith also functions in Lithuania. It aims at reviving the faith of ancient Lithuanians.
Religious freedom, as one of the most important values of open society, is confirmed in the Constitution. According to it, every man in Lithuania has a right to freely choose any religion or faith and to profess it alone or with others, privately or publicly, to perform religious rituals, to practise and promulgate the faith.
The State shall recognise traditional Lithuanian churches and religious organisations, as well as other churches and religious organisations provided that they have a basis in society and their teaching and rituals do not contradict morality or the law. Churches and religious organisations recognised by the State shall have the rights of legal persons. Churches and religious organisations shall freely proclaim the teaching of their faith, perform the rituals of their belief, and have houses of prayer, charity institutions, and educational institutions for the training of priests of their faith. Churches and religious organisations shall function freely according to their canons and statutes. The status of churches and other religious organisations in the State shall be established by agreement or by law. The teachings proclaimed by churches and other religious organisations, other religious activities, and houses of prayer may not be used for purposes which contradict the Constitution and the law. There shall not be a State religion in Lithuania.
People of different faiths live in Lithuania, though the majority of all residents are Roman Catholics. According to data of the population census of 2001, 79% of all residents ascribe themselves to the Catholic Church. Catholic missionaries worked in Lithuania already since the beginning of the second millennium, however, Christianity was accepted as official religion only in 1387 - under the rule of Jogaila and Vytautas. Paganism, which was practised by Lithuanians before the acceptance of Christianity, remained as a folk religion for several hundreds of years after the acceptance of Christianity.
Other Christian confessions that function in Lithuania from ancient times - Orthodoxies (Lithuanian rulers mastered large territories in the east populated by Orthodoxies from the 13th through the 16th centuries), Evangelic-Reformats, and Lutherans, which quickly spread in Lithuania in the 16th century, when Europe was obsessed by the wave of protestant reformation. In the 15th century, groups of Karaites and Tartars were brought to Lithuania as personal security of dukes. The groups have maintained their cultural and religious identity in Lithuania until nowadays. Jewish, who were persecuted in medieval Europe, found shelter also in Lithuania. They found here good conditions for fostering their culture and faith. During the period of tsarist Russian occupation a lot of old-beliers came to Lithuania willing to escape from persecutions. These religious communities were legally named traditional in 1995, after their historical contribution to the Lithuanian cultural and spiritual heritage had been evaluated.
In Lithuania there are many other confessions and religious movements. They include such Christian deviations as Baptists, New Church of apostles, seventh day Adventists, Pentecostalists, Methodists, and all gospel churches; and various groups of oriental origin - communities of Buddhists and Krishna; consciousness movement as well as some other new religious movements. Some of the mentioned groups function in Lithuania already for more than one hundred years (e.g. Baptists), whereas others formed only when Lithuania was re-establishing its independence from the Soviet Union. A religious community of Baltic faith also functions in Lithuania. It aims at reviving the faith of ancient Lithuanians.
Religious freedom, as one of the most important values of open society, is confirmed in the Constitution. According to it, every man in Lithuania has a right to freely choose any religion or faith and to profess it alone or with others, privately or publicly, to perform religious rituals, to practise and promulgate the faith.
