Title: State religion Content: A state religion (also called an official religion, established church or state church) is a religious group or creed officially accepted by the state. The term state church is used in context with Christianity, and is sometimes used for a specific national branch of Christianity. == Christian countries == The following states recognize some form of Christianity as their state or official religion (by denomination): === Roman Catholic === Jurisdictions which recognize Roman Catholicism as their state or official religion: * Costa Rica * Malta * Monaco * El Salvador * Liechtenstein * Vatican City (Theocracy) * Some cantons of Switzerland (state religion): ** Appenzell Innerrhoden (declared "religion of the people of Appenzell Innerrhoden") ** Aargau ** Basel-Country ** Bern ** Glarus ** Graubünden ** Nidwalden ** Schwyz ** Thurgau ** Uri ==== Old Catholic ==== Jurisdictions which recognize an Old Catholic church as their state religion: * Some cantons of Switzerland (Christian Catholic Church): ** Aargau ** Basel-Country ** Bern === Eastern Orthodox === Jurisdictions which recognize one of the Eastern Orthodox Churches as their state religion: * Greece (Greek Orthodox Church) === Protestant === ==== Anglican ==== * England (Church of England) established by law; plus, unestablished, the world-wide Anglican Communion ==== Lutheran ==== * Denmark (Church of Denmark) * Iceland (Church of Iceland) * Finland (Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland) ==== Presbyterian ==== * Scotland (Church of Scotland) established by law * Scotland assorted Free Presbyterian churches, unestablished. ==== Reformed ==== Jurisdictions which recognize a Reformed church as their state religion: * Some cantons of Switzerland (Swiss Reformed Church): ** Aargau ** Basel-Country ** Bern ** Glarus ** Graubünden ** Schwyz ** Thurgau ** Uri ** Zürich === Other Christian === * Zambia * Samoa * Solomon Islands == Islamic countries == Countries which recognize Islam as their official religion: * Afghanistan (State religion) * Algeria (State religion) * Bahrain (State religion) * Bangladesh (State religion) * Brunei (State religion) * Egypt (State religion) * Iran (State religion) * Iraq (State religion) * Jordan (State religion) * Kuwait (State religion) * Libya (State religion) * Malaysia (State religion) * Maldives (State religion) * Mauritania (State religion) * Morocco * Oman (State religion) * Pakistan (State religion) * Qatar (State religion) * Saudi Arabia (Religion of the Kingdom) * Somalia * Tunisia * United Arab Emirates (Religion of the Emirates) * Yemen === Sunni Islam === * Algeria * Malaysia * Maldives (as state religion) * Pakistan (as national-sanctioned religion) * Saudi Arabia (as state-sanctioned religion) * Somalia (as State Religion) *Bangladesh (as state religion) === Shi'a Islam === * Iran (Theocracy) == Buddhist countries == Governments which recognize Buddhism as their official religion: * Bhutan (Drukpa Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism) * Cambodia (Theravada Buddhism) * Laos (Theravada Buddhism) * Kalmykia, a republic within the Russian Federation (Tibetan Buddhism - sole Buddhist entity in Europe) * Thailand (Theravada Buddhism) * Tibet Government in Exile (Gelugpa school of Tibetan Buddhism) * Myanmar - written in the 1974 constitution * Sri Lanka (Theravada Buddhism) == Hindu countries == There are no Hindu countries presently, all Hindu majority countries are secular, with Hinduism not listed as the state religion. Nepal was the world's only kingdom state with Hindu monarch, but the Constitution of Nepal 2015 constitution clearly states it is a secular country. Nepal also declared cow as national animal with advanced animal protection rights such as cats and dogs, cow slaughter is also forbidden. == Others == * Israel is defined in several of its laws as a Democratic Jewish state, but has no state or official religion, "Jewish" being treated as a nationality. In other countries the term "Jewish" means either adhering to the Jewish religion (Judaism), or a Jew by descent (inheritance) or both. == Ancient state religions == === Egypt and Sumer === The concept of state religions was known as long ago as the empires of Egypt and Sumer, when every city state or people had its own god or gods. === Persian empire === Zoroastrianism was the state religion of the Sassanid dynasty which lasted from from 226 until 651. === Greek city-states === Many of the Greek city-states also had a 'god' or 'goddess' associated with that city. === Roman Religion and Christianity === When in Rome, the office of Pontifex Maximus was reserved for the emperor, failure to worship him as a god was sometimes punished by death, as the Roman government sought to link emperor worship with loyalty to the Empire. Many Christians and Jews were persecuted, because it was against their beliefs to worship the emperor. Catholic Christianity, as opposed to Arianism and other heretical and schismatic groups, was declared to be the state religion of the Roman Empire on February 27, 380 by the decree De Fide Catolica of Emperor Theodosius I. === Han Dynasty Confucianism and Sui Dynasty Buddhism === In China, the Han Dynasty (206 BC -- 220 AD) advocated Confucianism as the de facto state religion, establishing tests based on Confucian texts as an entrance requirement into government service. == States without any state religion == These states do not profess any state religion. Countries which officially decline to establish any religion include: * Armenia * Australia * Azerbaijan * Canada * Chile * People's Republic of China (China) * Colombia * Czech Republic * East Timor * France * India * Ireland * Japan * Kenya * Lithuania * Mexico * Nepal * Netherlands * New Zealand * Nigeria * Philippines * Portugal * Republic of China (Taiwan) * Romania * Singapore * South Africa * South Korea * Switzerland * Turkey * United States of America == Established churches and former state churches in Europe ==  In several colonies, the establishment ceased to exist in practice at the Revolution, about 1776; this is the date of legal abolition. in 1789 the Georgia Constitution was amended as follows: "Article IV. Section 10. No person within this state shall, upon any pretense, be deprived of the inestimable privilege of worshipping God in any manner agreeable to his own conscience, nor be compelled to attend any place of worship contrary to his own faith and judgment; nor shall he ever be obliged to pay tithes, taxes, or any other rate, for the building or repairing any place of worship, or for the maintenance of any minister or ministry, contrary to what he believes to be right, or hath voluntarily engaged. To do. No one religious society shall ever be established in this state, in preference to another; nor shall any person be denied the enjoyment of any civil right merely on account of his religious principles." From 1780 Massachusetts had a system which required every man to belong to a church, and permitted each church to tax its members, and did not require that it be a Congregational church. This was objected to, as in practice establishing the Congregational Church, and was abolished in 1833. Until 1877 the New Hampshire Constitution required members of the State legislature to be of the Protestant religion. The North Carolina Constitution of 1776 disestablished the Anglican church, but until 1835 the NC Constitution allowed only Protestants to hold public office. From 1835-1876 it allowed allowed only Christians (including Catholics) to hold public office. Article VI, Section 8 of the current NC Constitution forbids only atheists from holding public office. Such clauses were held by the United States Supreme Court to be unenforceable in the 1961 case of Torcaso v. Watkins, when the court ruled unanimously that such clauses constituted a religious test incompatible with First and Fourteenth Amendment protections. Religious Tolerance for Catholics with an Established Church of England were policy in the former Spanish Colonies of East and West Florida while under British rule. East Florida was lost to Spain in 1781. Religious tolerance for Catholics with an established Church of England were policy in the former Spanish Colonies of East and West Florida while under British rule. East Florida was returned to Spain in 1783. == State of Deseret == The State of Deseret was a provisional state of the United States, proposed in 1849 by Mormon settlers in Salt Lake City. The provisional state existed for slightly over two years.Struggle For Statehood Edward Leo Lyman, Utah History Encyclopedia ==Related pages== * Secular state * Theocracy * Freedom of religion