In many European countries, secularization has greatly increased
over the last few decades. However, the new European Union is made
up of an incredibly diverse group of countries with vastly
different histories and cultural norms. Trust in religious
institutions among the 25 member countries varies widely, according
to the latest Eurobarometer survey* of the 25 member nations of the
EU.
In order to belong to an institution, one needs to trust it, and
a basic characteristic of secularization is the loss of trust in
institutionalized forms of religious life. Furthermore, the level
of trust in religious institutions, as measured by the
Eurobarometer, gives a general indication of the extent to which
people in various parts of Europe are open to identifying with an
organized religious community.
Divergent Views on Religious Institutions
There are no simple explanations for the amazingly diverse views
toward religious institutions among the countries in Europe.
Consider the opposing views of people in two neighboring countries
-- Sweden and Denmark. Both are among the most developed,
economically prosperous countries of Europe, and in both countries
the dominant religious institution is a Protestant (Lutheran)
church. When asked if they tend to trust religious institutions, a
scant 21% of Swedes said yes (the lowest of all countries
measured), compared with 74% of Danes (the highest percentage
measured in any country).
Trust in religious institutions is also high in
Finland -- another prosperous Nordic Protestant country -- where
71% of residents trust in religious institutions. The rest of the
countries in which more than 60% of the population expresses trust
in religious institutions are in southern Europe -- Malta, Cyprus,
Portugal, and Greece. With the exception of Greek Orthodox Cyprus
and Greece, they are all predominantly Roman Catholic countries.
Religious institutions also enjoy the trust of the majority of
Poles (51%) and Italians (55%) as well.
Divisions Within Countries
This religious divide exists not only between various European
societies, but within some societies as well.
In formerly West Germany, 40% express trust in religious
institutions, while formerly East Germany -- which was behind the
Iron Curtain for many years -- has one of the lowest proportions at
24%. Similarly divergent opinions, no doubt owing to historical
divides, exist in the British Isles: 38% of people in Ireland
trust religious institutions, as do 37% of those in Great Britain.
However, a clear majority of those in Northern Ireland -- 59% --
trust religious institutions.
Old Europe vs. New Europe
There are no easy generalizations when looking at differences
between the old and new member countries, either. In the Czech
Republic, Slovenia, Estonia, and Hungary -- all former communist
countries -- less than 40% of respondents trust religious
institutions, comparable to similarly low trust levels in the
western European countries of France, Belgium, Spain, Great
Britain, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Ireland. But three other
post-communist new member countries -- Poland, Lithuania, and
Latvia -- show somewhat higher levels of trust than the other
post-communist countries, at 51%, 46%, and 44%, respectively.
Perhaps not surprisingly, the two new member countries that never
experienced communism, Cyprus and Malta, have some of the highest
trust levels in Europe (65% and 74%, respectively).
A future release will look at religious attendance and
religious self-identification in Europe.
*The standard Eurobarometer was established in 1970 as a
tool to track the evolution of the citizen opinion of the European
integration. Each survey consists of approximately 1,000
face-to-face interviews per Member State (except Germany: 2,000,
Luxembourg: 600, United Kingdom 1,300 including 300 in Northern
Ireland). Conducted between 2 and 5 times per year, with reports
published twice yearly. The fieldwork is coordinated by EORG.
First wave of Candidate Countries Eurobarometer
was carried out in October 2001 in all the 13 countries
applying for membership. One thousand face-to-face interviews are
conducted in each country, except for Cyprus and Malta, where
the number of interviews conducted are 500 each. The fieldwork is
coordinated by Gallup Hungary, and the reports and analysis are
written by Gallup based on a contract with the
European Commission. The fieldwork for the last wave reported
here was conducted in March-April of 2004 and the detailed
reports can be found at the European Commission's Web
site.
