Roman Catholicism in Poland

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Ever since Poland officially adopted Latin Christianity in 966, the Catholic Church has played an important religious, cultural and political role in the country.

For centuries, Poland has been a predominantly Catholic country, and for most Poles being Catholic is part of the Polish identity. It has historically been part of what separates Polish culture from neighboring Germany, which is Lutheran, and the countries to the east which are Orthodox. During the times of foreign oppression, the Catholic Church remained for many Poles a cultural bulwark in the fight for independence and national survival. For instance, the Polish abbey in Częstochowa, which successfully resisted a siege in the Swedish invasion of Poland in the 17th century, became a symbol of national resistance to occupation. The establishment of a communist regime controlled by Soviet Russia following World War II allowed the church to continue fulfilling this role. The 1978 election of Polish Cardinal Karol Wojtyła as Pope John Paul II strengthened this it even further, and the Polish Pope's visits to his mother country became rallying points for both the faithful and for opposition to the regime.

Today, the Roman Catholic Church estimates that about 45.8% of Poles attend Mass weekly [1], with roughly 30-40 percent church attendance in urban areas and 70-80 percent in rural areas. This is a slight increase since 2005, after a few years of slight drops. Church attendance in Poland reached a record low in 1993, and since has increased and been stable or oscillated [2]. Tarnow is the most religious city in Poland, and Lodz is the least. Generally, the southern and eastern parts of Poland are more religious than those of the West and North. Nonetheless, the overwhelming majority of Poles continue to declare themselves Catholic,[3] and Poland remains one of the few nations in the European Union in which abortion is illegal and same-sex marriage does not exist.

Contents

[edit] Hierarchy

  • Archdiocese
    • Diocese        


Latin names of dioceses in italics.

Map of Poland with dioceses

[edit] Exteritorial units

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ [1]
  2. ^ [2]
  3. ^ G³ogów OnLine - Liczenie wiernych w ko¶cio³ach
  • Frucht, Richard. Eastern Europe: An Introduction to the People, Lands, and Culture. Volume 1. ABD-CLIO inc. Santa Barbara, Ca.

[edit] Further reading

  • Pease, Neal (Autumn 1991). "Poland and the Holy See, 1918-1939". Slavic Review 50 (3): 521-530. 

[edit] External links

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Principal religions of Poland
State-recognised
Roman Catholic Church (Ukrainian Catholic Archdiocese, Byzantine-Slavonic Rite Church, Armenian Catholic Church) · Polish Orthodox Church · Polish Reformed Church · Evangelical-Augsburg Church · Evangelical Methodist Church · Catholic Mariavite Church · Old Catholic Mariavite Church · Eastern Old-Believer Church · Polish Catholic Church · Seventh-day Adventist Church · Baptist Union of Poland · Pentecostal Church in Poland · Judaism · Islam · Karaites
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