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Christianity in Uzbekistan is a minority religion.
Christianity accounted for 2.3% of the population or 630,000 according to a 2010 study by Pew Research Center. [1] Government figures in 2020 suggested this had changed to 2.2%-3.7%. [2]
Historically, Uzbekistan had communities of Eastern Christians, including Nestorians and Jacobites (historically associated with miaphysitism). Around the 14th century, Christianity began rapidly declining. Factors to the decline included a plague that spread into the region which killed off much of the Christian communities living there. Remaining Christians probably converted to Islam due to economic reasons. Under the Timurids, the political situation likely exacerbated the already struggling community. [3]
The last Christians in Samarkand and Central Asia were reportedly persecuted by his grandson, Ulugh Beg. [3] However, due to a lack of reliable records, the details surrounding the decline of the Syriac Christians of the area remains obscure. [3]
Christianity returned to the region after the Russian conquest in 1867, when Orthodox churches were built in large cities, to serve Russian and European settlers and officers.
According to a 2010 study by Pew Research Center 2.5% of the population of Uzbekistan are Orthodox Christians. [1] Goverment figures in 2020 suggested that 2.2% of the population of Uzbekistan are Orthodox Christians, most of whom are ethnic Russians. [2] There are about 4,000 Roman Catholics in Uzbekistan. [4]
A 2015 study estimates some 10,000 believers in Christ from a Muslim background in the country, most of them belonging to some sort of evangelical or charismatic Protestant community. [5]
There is strong pressure on Christians from a Muslim background in remote areas. [2]
Protestants made up about 0.15% of the population in 2020. [6] The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Uzbekistan has seven parishes. The seat of the bishop is Tashkent. The president of the synod is Gilda Razpopova.
Jehovah’s Witnesses were present in Uzbekistan for decades before the country became an independent nation in 1991. Since 1992 Uzbekistan authorities continue to deny legal registration to all congregations of Jehovah’s Witnesses except for one in Chirchik. [7] [8] [9] There are estimated to be 500 followers of the religious organization just in Chirchik alone. Under Uzbek law, Jehovah's Witnesses have a right to hold meetings only in the Kingdom Hall, while any religious propaganda is prohibited. [10]
A Christian denomination is a distinct religious body within Christianity that comprises all church congregations of the same kind, identifiable by traits such as a name, particular history, organization, leadership, theological doctrine, worship style and, sometimes, a founder. It is a secular and neutral term, generally used to denote any established Christian church. Unlike a cult or sect, a denomination is usually seen as part of the Christian religious mainstream. Most Christian denominations refer to themselves as churches, whereas some newer ones tend to interchangeably use the terms churches, assemblies, fellowships, etc. Divisions between one group and another are defined by authority and doctrine; issues such as the nature of Jesus, the authority of apostolic succession, biblical hermeneutics, theology, ecclesiology, eschatology, and papal primacy may separate one denomination from another. Groups of denominations—often sharing broadly similar beliefs, practices, and historical ties—are sometimes known as "branches of Christianity". These branches differ in many ways, especially through differences in practices and belief.
Religion in Russia is diverse, with Christianity, especially Russian Orthodoxy, being the most widely professed faith, but with significant minorities of non-religious people and adherents of other faiths. A 1997 law on religion recognises the right to freedom of conscience and creed to all the citizenry, the spiritual contribution of Orthodox Christianity to the history of Russia, and respect to "Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Judaism and other religions and creeds which constitute an inseparable part of the historical heritage of Russia's peoples", including ethnic religions or paganism, either preserved, or revived. According to the law, any religious organisation may be recognised as "traditional", if it was already in existence before 1982, and each newly founded religious group has to provide its credentials and re-register yearly for fifteen years, and, in the meantime until eventual recognition, stay without rights.
Religion in Europe has been a major influence on today's society, art, culture, philosophy and law. The largest religion in Europe is Christianity, but irreligion and practical secularisation are strong. Three countries in Southeastern Europe have Muslim majorities. Ancient European religions included veneration for deities such as Zeus. Modern revival movements of these religions include Heathenism, Rodnovery, Romuva, Druidry, Wicca, and others. Smaller religions include Indian religions, Judaism, and some East Asian religions, which are found in their largest groups in Britain, France, and Kalmykia.
Conversion to Christianity is the religious conversion of a previously non-Christian person to Christianity. Different Christian denominations may perform various different kinds of rituals or ceremonies of initiation into their community of believers. The most commonly accepted ritual of conversion in Christianity is through baptism, but this is not universally accepted among them all. A period of instruction and study almost always ensues before a person is formally converted into Christianity and becomes a church member, but the length of this period varies, sometimes as short as a few weeks and possibly less, and other times, up to as long as a year or possibly more.
Christianity in Kazakhstan is the second most practiced religion after Islam.
Christianity is the predominant religion in Ukraine, with 85% of the population identifying as Christian according to A 2022 survey conducted by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS). Seventy-two percent of the population avowed fidelity to an Eastern Orthodox Church: 54% of Ukrainians proclaimed adherence to the autocephalous Orthodox Church of Ukraine; 14% identified as Orthodox Christian without specifying a church affiliation; 4% associated with the Moscow Patriarchate. Another 9% of Ukrainians professed devotion to the Catholic Church in Ukraine: 8% Ukrainian Greek Catholics and 1% Latin Catholics. Two percent of the population declared affiliation to a mainstream Protestant Church, and a further 2% identified with some alternative sect of Christianity.
Religion in Sweden has, over the years, become increasingly diverse. Christianity was the religion of virtually all of the Swedish population from the 12th to the early 20th century, but it has rapidly declined throughout the late 20th and early 21st century.
Christianity is a minority religion in Tajikistan.
Christianity is the most prevalent religion in the United States. Estimates from 2021 suggest that of the entire U.S. population about 63% is Christian. The majority of Christian Americans are Protestant Christians, though there are also significant numbers of American Roman Catholics and other Christian denominations such as Latter-day Saints, Orthodox Christians and Oriental Orthodox Christians, and Jehovah's Witnesses. The United States has the largest Christian population in the world and, more specifically, the largest Protestant population in the world, with nearly 210 million Christians and, as of 2021, over 140 million people affiliated with Protestant churches, although other countries have higher percentages of Christians among their populations. The Public Religion Research Institute's "2020 Census of American Religion", carried out between 2014 and 2020, showed that 70% of Americans identified as Christian during this seven-year interval. In a 2020 survey by the Pew Research Center, 65% of adults in the United States identified themselves as Christians. They were 75% in 2015, 70.6% in 2014, 78% in 2012, 81.6% in 2001, and 85% in 1990. About 62% of those polled claim to be members of a church congregation.
Christianity in Russia is the most widely professed religion in the country. The largest tradition is the Russian Orthodox Church. According to official sources, there are 170 eparchies of the Russian Orthodox Church, 145 of which are grouped in metropolitanates. There are from 500,000 to one million Old Believers, who represents an older form of Russian Orthodox Christianity, and who separated from the Orthodox Church in the 17th century as a protest against Patriarch Nikon's church reforms.
The predominant religion in Kenya is Christianity, which is adhered to by an estimated 85.5% of the total population. Islam is the second largest religion in Kenya, practised by 10.9 percent of Kenyans. Other faiths practised in Kenya are Baháʼí, Buddhism, Hinduism and traditional religions.
According to various polls, the majority of Kazakhstan's citizens, primarily ethnic Kazakhs, identify as Sunni Muslims. In 2020, Shia Muslims made up 0.55% of the population.
Christianity is the most widely professed religion in Tanzania.
Estonia, historically a Lutheran Christian nation, is today one of the "least religious" countries in the world in terms of declared attitudes, with only 14 percent of the population declaring religion to be an important part of their daily life. This is thought to largely be a result of the Soviet occupation of Estonia in 1940, prior to which Estonia had a large Christian majority.
The main religion traditionally practiced in Latvia is Christianity. As of 2019, it is the largest religion (68.84%), though only about 7% of the population attends religious services regularly.
Islam is the predominant religion in Uzbekistan.
A 2020 Pew Forum survey estimates that approximately 63% of the population of Tanzania identifies as Christian, 34% as Muslim, and 5% practitioners of other religions. Most Christians are Catholics and Lutherans, although there are also Anglicans, Pentecostals and other groups.
Christianity is a prevalent religion in Denmark; in January 2020, 74.3% of the population of Denmark were members of the Church of Denmark. According to a survey based on a sample 1,114, 25% of Danes believe Jesus is the son of God, and 18% believe he is the saviour of the world. Aside from Lutheranism, there is a small Catholic minority, as well as small Protestant denominations such as the Baptist Union of Denmark and the Reformed Synod of Denmark.
