Argentina Article 2 of the
Constitution of Argentina explicitly states that "the Federal Government supports the Roman Catholic Apostolic Faith" and Article 14 guarantees
freedom of religion. Although it enforces neither an official nor a state faith, it gives
Catholic Christianity a preferential status. Before its
1994 amendment, the Constitution stated that the
President of the Republic must be a Roman Catholic.
Armenia In
Armenia,
Christianity is the most adhered religion, it has massive significance, but it is not the state religion. The
Armenian Apostolic Church is the
national church, it has long kept the Armenian identity alive under various Empires.
Armenia is the first country which recognised Christianity as a state religion.
Costa Rica The constitution of
Costa Rica states that "The Catholic and Apostolic Religion is the religion of the State". As such, Catholic Christian
holy days are recognized by the government and "public schools provide
religious education", although parents are able to opt-out their children if they choose to do so.
Denmark parish church in
Holte, with the
Dannebrog flying in its
kirkyard As early as the 11th century AD, "Denmark was considered to be a Christian state", with the
Church of Denmark, a member of the
Lutheran World Federation, being the state church. Prof. Wasif Shadid, of
Leiden University, writes that: Over 82% of the population of Denmark are members of the
Evangelical Lutheran Church of Denmark, which is "officially headed by the queen of Denmark". The
Act of Succession specifies that monarch "shall be a member of the Evangelical Church." Furthermore, clergy "in the Church of Denmark are civil servants employed by the Ministry of Ecclesiastical Affairs" and the "economic base of the Church of Denmark is state-collected church taxes combined with a direct state subsidiary (12%), which symbolically covers the expenses of the Church of Denmark to run the civil registration and the burial system for all citizens." As such, Christian
religious education is taught to children in primary and secondary schools in the United Kingdom.
English schools have a legal requirement for a daily act of collective worship "of a broadly Christian character" that is widely flouted.
Dominican Republic The
Dominican Republic is a Christian state, with Catholic Christianity being the official religion.
Georgia Georgia is one of the oldest Christian states. Article 8 of Georgian Constitution and
the Concordat of 2002 grants
the Georgian Orthodox Church special privileges, which include legal immunity to
the Patriarch of Georgia. The Orthodox Church is the most trusted institution in the country and its head, Patriarch
Ilia II, the most trusted person.
Greece Greece is a Christian state, with the
Church of Greece playing "a dominant role in the life of the country".
Mount Athos and most of the Athos peninsula are governed as an
autonomous region in Greece by the
monastic community of Mount Athos, which is ecclesiastically under the direct jurisdiction of the
Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople.
Greenland Being an autonomous
constituent country within the
Kingdom of Denmark, the
Church of Denmark is the
established church of
Greenland through the
Constitution of Denmark: This applies toof the Kingdom of Denmark, except for the
Faroe Islands, as the
Church of the Faroe Islands became independent in 2007.
Hungary The preamble to the
Hungarian Constitution of 2011 describes Hungary as "part of Christian Europe" and acknowledges "the role of Christianity in preserving nationhood", while Article VII provides that "the State shall cooperate with the Churches for community goals". However, the constitution also guarantees freedom of religion and separation of church and state. The
Encyclopedia of Protestantism states that: All public schools have mandatory education in
Christianity, although an exemption may be considered by the Minister of Education.
Liechtenstein Liechtenstein's constitution designates the
Catholic Church as being the state Church of that country. In public schools, per article 16 of the
Constitution of Liechtenstein, religious education is given by Church authorities. It holds that the "authorities of the Roman Catholic Apostolic Church have the duty to teach which principles are right and which are wrong" and that "religious teaching of the Roman Catholic Apostolic Faith shall be provided in all State schools as part of compulsory education".
Monaco Article 9 of the
Constitution of Monaco describes " [the catholic,
apostolic and Roman religion]" as the religion of the state.
Norway in the
Norwegian language Cole Durham and Tore Sam Lindholm, writing in 2013, stated that "For a period of one thousand years Norway has been a kingdom with a Christian
state church" and that a decree went out in 1739 ordering that "Elementary schooling for all Norwegian children became mandatory, so that all Norwegians should be able to read the Bible and the
Lutheran Catechism firsthand." The modern
Constitution of Norway stipulates that "
The Church of Norway, an Evangelical-Lutheran church, will remain the Established Church of Norway and will as such be supported by the State." As such, the "Norwegian constitution decrees that
Lutheranism is the official religion of the State and that the King is the supreme temporal head of the Church." The administration of the Church "is shared between the Ministry for Church, Education and Research centrally and municipal authorities locally", and the Church of Norway "depends on state and local taxes". The Church of Norway is responsible for the "maintenance of church buildings and cemeteries". In the mid-20th century, the vast majority of Norwegians participated in the Lutheran Church. According to a 1957 description, "[o]ver 90 percent of the population are married by state church clergymen, have their children
baptized and
confirmed, and finally are
buried with a church service." However, current membership in the Evangelical Lutheran
Church of Norway is lower, standing at 65% of the population in 2021. In 2017, the Church of Norway was made self-governing, with the identity of the denomination shifting from a state church to a
national church. The Church of Norway continues to be supported by public funding. Those who marry into the royal family of Norway are expected to be or become Evangelical Lutherans.
Serbia Serbia as a territory became a Christian state during the time of
Constantine the Great in
Christianization of
Eastern Roman Empire, according to the research and discoveries of artifacts left by the
Illyrians,
Triballi and other kindred tribes. More research has since been made that perhaps prove the existence of
Serbs living in the Balkans during Roman times in
Ilyria. In the centuries that followed from the 4th to the 12th century, when
Catholic Church was in a battleground between Serbia due the
Eastern Orthodox Church, Serbia prevailed as
Orthodox Christian state under his
jurisdiction through
Saint Sava. Serbia as modern state, defines in its
constitution as a
secular state with guaranteed
religious freedom. However, Orthodox Christians with 6,079,396 adherents comprise 84.5% of the country's population. The
Serbian Orthodox Church is the largest traditional church of the country, adherents of which are overwhelmingly
Serbs. The SOC directly or indirectly has
cultural influence on both the
decisions and positions of the state.
Sweden the
host during the offering of the
Mass at
Alsike Church, Sweden Under the reign of
Gustav Vasa, Sweden became an
Evangelical-Lutheran Christian country. Laurentius Petri was consecrated in the
apostolic succession that, according to the
Swedish Church Ordinance 1571 "must remain in the future, so long as the world lasts." The
Swedish Act of Succession requires monarchs to "profess the pure evangelical faith".
Tonga Tonga became a Christian state under
George Tupou I in the 19th century, with the
Free Wesleyan Church, a member of the
World Methodist Council, being established as the country's state Church. Under the rule of George Tupou I, there was established a "rigorous constitutional clause regulating observation of the
Sabbath". The
Constitution of Tuvalu identifies Tuvalu as "an independent State based on Christian principles".
Vatican City , Vatican City
Vatican City is a Christian state, in which the "
Pope is
ex officio simultaneously leader of the
Catholic Church as well as Head of State and Head of the Government of the State of the Vatican City; he also possesses () absolute authority over the legislative, executive and judicial branches."
Zambia Jeroen Temperman, a professor of international law at
Erasmus University Rotterdam writes that: After "Zambia declared itself a Christian nation in 1991", "the nation's vice president urged citizens to 'have a
Christian orientation in all fields, at all levels'." ==Established churches and former state churches==