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Estonia, historically aLutheran Christian nation,[2][3][4] 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.[5]
The religious population is predominantlyChristian and includes followers of 90 affiliations. According to the Estonian Council of Churches data from December 2019, 13.8 percent of the population belong to theEstonian Evangelical Lutheran Church, while 13.1 percent belong to theEstonian Orthodox Church of Moscow Patriarchate (EOCMP), and 2.3 percent belong to theEstonian Apostolic Orthodox Church. The Union of Free Evangelical and Baptist Churches of Estonia and theCatholic Church in Estonia together comprise 1 percent of the population. Other Christian groups, including Jehovah’s Witnesses, Pentecostals, Methodists, Seventh-day Adventists, and Russian Old Believers, collectively constitute 1.1 percent of the population.[6]
According to Ringo Ringvee, "religion has never played an important role on the political or ideological battlefield" and the "tendencies that prevailed in the late 1930s for closer relations between the state and Lutheran church were ended with the Soviet occupation in 1940". He further states that "the chain of religious traditions was broken in most families" under the Soviet policy ofstate atheism.[3][7] Before theSecond World War, Estonia was approximately 80 percentProtestant and overwhelminglyLutheran, partly because of historicSwedish rule. Under Russian and Soviet rule, this predominance greatly decreased, whileEastern Orthodoxy increased due to immigration of Russians.
Between 2001 and 2011 census, Eastern Orthodoxy overtook Lutheranism to become the largestChristian denomination in the country due to increasing lack of affiliation and very few conversions among Estonians, as well as due to steady or even increased religious affiliation among the Russian-speaking minorities.Lutheranism still remains the most popular religious group among ethnicEstonians (11 percent of them are Lutherans while also 2 percent of them are Orthodox), while Eastern Orthodoxy is practised mainly by the mostly non-indigenousSlavic minorities (approximately 45 per cent of them are Orthodox). According to theUniversity of Tartu, irreligious Estonians are not necessarilyatheists; instead, the 2010s have witnessed a growth ofNeopagan,Buddhist andHindu beliefs among those who declare themselves to be "not religious".[8]
In the 13th century, theTeutonic Knights forcedChristianity in Estonia as part of theLivonian Crusade and during theProtestant Reformation, theEstonian Evangelical Lutheran Church became theestablished church.[9] Before theSecond World War, Estonia was approximately 80%Protestant; overwhelminglyLutheran, with individuals adhering toCalvinism, as well as other Protestant branches.Robert T. Francoeur and Raymond J. Noonan write that "In 1925, the church was separated from the state, butreligious instruction remained in the schools and clergymen were trained at the Faculty of Theology atTartu University. With the Soviet occupation and theimplementation of anti-Christian legislation, the church lost over two thirds of its clergy. Work with children, youth, publishing, and so on, was banned, church property was nationalized, and the Faculty of Theology was closed."[10] Aldis Purs, a professor of history at theUniversity of Toronto writes that in Estonia, as well as Latvia, some evangelical Christian clergy attempted to resist the Soviet policy ofstate atheism by engaging in anti-regime activities such asBible smuggling.[11] The text titledWorld and Its Peoples: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland, published by theMarshall Cavendish, states that in addition to theSoviet antireligious campaign in Estonia, which mandated the confiscation of church property and deportation of theologians toSiberia, many "churches were destroyed in the German occupation of Estonia, from 1941 through 1944, and in World War II (1939–1945)".[3] After thedissolution of the Soviet Union, this antireligious legislation was annulled.[12]
Modern Estonian Christiantheology often revolves aroundreligious rituals rather than trying to preach to or convertEstonians.[citation needed] Christian religious workers don't have a large social role in most towns.[13]
There were two Orthodox Christian Churches in Estonia – theEstonian Orthodox Church, which was part of theMoscow Patriarchate, and theEstonian Apostolic Orthodox Church underConstantinople.[14] The Estonian Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople is a small group which is barely heard of outside Estonia.[14] The membership of the Apostolic Orthodox was about 30,000 in 1996.[14] Since 1840 many Lutherans converted to Orthodox Christianity which resulted in the rise of the Orthodox in Estonia.[14] In 1920, the Apostolic Orthodox Church became autonomous from theRussian Patriarch Tikhon.[14] The reoccupation of Estonia by the Soviet Union ended the autonomy of the Estonian Apostolic Orthodox Church however, the autonomy was regained in 1996 after Estonia regained her independence from the Soviet Union.[14] The number of the Estonian Apostolic Orthodox Church during the Soviet era was about 200,000 out of which 80% were native Estonians.[14]
The division between the two Orthodox Christian churches in Estonia is relative. The Estonian Apostolic Orthodox is dominated by ethnic Estonians whereas the majority of the Estonian Orthodox Church are ethnic Russians.[14] The communication and cooperation between the believers of the two Orthodox communities in Estonia is a social practice and occurs at the individual level.[14] A research by Tom Esslemon in 2011[15] revealed that fewer than one in five Estonians claim that religion plays an important role in their lives. According to the 2000 Estonian census, 29% of the total population belonged to somereligion[16] An Eurobarometer poll in 2005 claimed only 16% of Estonians believe in God; however, 54% believed in some sort of spirit or life force.[16]
Religious revivals from the 1870s culminated inPentecostal movements in Estonia. Foreign missionaries from Sweden and Finland brought full fledged Pentecostalism to Estonia in the 1920s.[17] In 1873, the Swedish Evangelical society, the Evangelical Homeland Foundation sent missionaries to Estonia at the request of the Lutheran clergy of the Coastal Swedes.[17] These missionaries, Thure Emmanuel Thoren and Lars Osterblom started the revival among the coastal Swedes. The Revivalists broke from the Lutheran Church in 1880. The revival movement had spread to Western Estonia and they were called Ridala in 1879.[17] The revival brought morecharismatic activities such as jumping, clapping, dancing and speaking in tongues. In the later part of the 1960s, the activities of the Finnish missionaries brought charismatic Pentecostal revival in the evangelical Christian Churches and the Baptist in Tallinn.[17] The healing ministry in the 1970s has had a great impact on thecharismatic movement in the Soviet Union.
TheEstonian Christian Pentecostal Church is the biggest Pentecostal Church in Estonia. It was started in 1989.[17] There are also the Association of Estonian Evangelical Christian Pentecostal congregations, the Association of Estonian Christian Free Churches and many other independent churches. There seems to be little written history about the Pentecostal and charismatic Christianity in Estonia. Most of what is known about Pentecostal and charismatic Christianity comes from the memoirs of Evald Kiil (1997) who began his profession as a Pentecostal preacher in the 1930s.[17] It is estimated that in the 1930s there were about 200 to 2000 Pentecostals in Estonia.[17] The 1934 population census of Estonia indicates there were 191 people were Pentecostals, 459 were Free Gospel Churches and 306 were Revivalists.[17] The 2011 population census of Estonia puts the total number of people belonging to Charismatic and Pentecostal Churches to about 5,256.
In 1884, the German Baptist pastor Adam Schiewe performed the firstbaptism of faith in Estonia. The Baptist church became one of the fastest growing churches in the years that followed.[17] TheSeventh-Day Adventists started in 1897.[17] TheMethodist movement has been present in Estonia since 1907. Currently the Estonian Methodists operate as theEstonian Methodist Church. The arrival of the Moravian Movement in the first half of the 18th century laid the spiritual foundation for the revivals that followed.[17]
Less than a third of the population define themselves as believers; of those most are Eastern Orthodox, predominantly, but not exclusively, among theSlavic minorities, or Lutheran. There are also a number of smallerMuslim,Protestant,Jewish, andBuddhist groups. The organisationMaavalla Koda unites adherents of animist traditional religions (Estonian Neopaganism).[18][19] The RussianRodnover organisation "Vene Rahvausu Kogudus Eestis" is registered in Tartu.[20]
| Religion | 2000 | 2011 | 2021 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | |
| Christianity | 319,770 | 28.5% | 310,481 | 28.4% | 298,410 | 26.8% |
| —Orthodox Christians | 143,554 | 12.8% | 176,773 | 16.2% | 181,770 | 16.3% |
| —Lutherans | 152,237 | 13.6% | 108,513 | 9.9% | 86,030 | 7.7% |
| —Catholics | 5,745 | 0.5% | 4,501 | 0.4% | 8,690 | 0.8% |
| —Baptists | 6,009 | 0.5% | 4,507 | 0.4% | 5,190 | 0.5% |
| —Jehovah's Witnesses | 3,823 | 0.3% | 3,938 | 0.4% | 3,720 | 0.3% |
| —Pentecostals | 2,648 | 0.2% | 1,855 | 0.2% | 2,310 | 0.2% |
| —Old Believers | 2,515 | 0.2% | 2,644 | 0.2% | 2,290 | 0.2% |
| —Methodists | 1,455 | 0.1% | 1,098 | 0.1% | 1,390 | 0.1% |
| —Adventists | 1,561 | 0.1% | 1,194 | 0.1% | 950 | 0.1% |
| —Other Christians | 223 | 0.02% | 5,458 | 0.5% | 6,070 | 0.5% |
| Islam | 1,387 | 0.1% | 1,508 | 0.1% | 5,800 | 0.5% |
| Estonian Neopaganism | 1,058 | 0.1% | 2,972 | 0.3% | 5,630 | 0.5% |
| —Native Faith (Maausk) | – | – | 1,925 | 0.2% | 3,860 | 0.3% |
| —Taaraism | – | – | 1,047 | 0.1% | 1,770 | 0.2% |
| Buddhism | 622 | 0.1% | 1,145 | 0.1% | 1,880 | 0.2% |
| Other religions[b] | 4,995 | 0.4% | 4,727 | 0.4% | 9,630 | 0.9% |
| No religion | 450,458 | 40.2% | 592,588 | 54.1% | 650,900 | 58.4% |
| Not stated[c] | 343,292 | 30.6% | 181,104 | 16.5% | 141,780 | 12.7% |
| Total population[a] | 1,121,582 | 1,094,564 | 1,114,030 | |||
| ||||||
Census statistics 2000–2021:[1]
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| Ethnic group | Total population counted | Religious | Lutheran | Baptist | Other Protestant | Orthodox | Old Believer | Catholic | Jehovah's Witness | Estonian Neopagan | Muslim | Buddhist | Other religion | Not religious | Refused/ unknown | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N | % | N | % | N | % | N | % | N | % | N | % | N | % | N | % | N | % | N | % | N | % | N | % | |||||
| Estonians | 756,180 | 130,150 | 19.54 | 80,790 | 12,13 | 4,170 | 0.63 | 6,600 | 0.99 | 21,480 | 3.22 | 300 | 0.05 | 2,780 | 0.42 | 1,620 | 0.24 | 5,460 | 0.82 | 430 | 0.06 | 1,320 | 0.20 | 4,330 | 0.65 | 536,010 | 80.46 | 90,020 |
| Russians | 269,650 | 144,910 | 63.2 | 960 | 0.42 | 530 | 0.23 | 2,490 | 1.09 | 134,460 | 58.64 | 1,910 | 0.83 | 1,280 | 0.56 | 1,320 | 0.58 | 30 | 0.01 | 100 | 0.04 | 330 | 0.14 | 940 | 0.41 | 84,380 | 36.80 | 40,360 |
| Ukrainians | 24,960 | 14,050 | 65.62 | 150 | 0.70 | 170 | 0.79 | 680 | 3.18 | 11,900 | 55.58 | — | 280 | 1.31 | 360 | 1.68 | — | — | — | 460 | 2.15 | 7,360 | 34.38 | 3,550 | ||||
| Belarusians | 11,180 | 7,260 | 74.08 | — | 20 | 0.20 | 20 | 0.20 | 6,440 | 65.71 | — | 430 | 4.39 | 80 | 0.82 | — | — | — | — | 2,540 | 25.92 | 1,380 | ||||||
| Finns | 8,250 | 3,870 | 53.31 | 2,380 | 32.78 | 20 | 0.28 | 20 | 0.28 | 1,040 | 14.33 | — | — | 90 | 1.24 | — | — | — | 40 | 0.55 | 3,390 | 46,69 | 990 | |||||
| Latvians | 3,340 | 1,440 | 49.15 | 260 | 8.87 | 80 | 2.73 | — | 490 | 16.72 | — | 470 | 16.04 | — | — | — | — | — | 1,480 | 50.51 | 410 | |||||||
| Other | 40,480 | 19,660 | 55.52 | 1,400 | 3.95 | 200 | 0.56 | 700 | 1.98 | 5,970 | 16.86 | — | 3,320 | 9.38 | 220 | 0.62 | — | 5,230 | 14.77 | 90 | 0.25 | 2,240 | 6.33 | 15,740 | 44.45 | 5,070 | ||
In census are included people aged 15 and over. The percentage is calculated from the number of respondents (excluded refused/unknown numbers).[22]
Estonia is considered Protestant when classified by its historically predominant major religion (Norris and Inglehart 2011) and thus some authors (e.g., Davie 2003) claim Estonia belongs to Western (Lutheran) Europe, while others (e.g., Norris and Inglehart 2011) see Estonia as a Protestant ex-Communist society.
It is usually said that Estonia is a Protestant country; however, the overwhelming majority of Estonians, some 72 percent, are nonreligious. Estonia is the European Union (EU) country with the greatest percentage of people with no religious belief. This is in part, the result of Soviet actions and repression of religion. When the Soviet Union annexed Estonia in 1940, church property was confiscated, many theologians were deported to Siberia, most of the leadership of Evangelical Lutheran Church went into exile, and religious instruction was banned. Many churches were destroyed in the German occupation of Estonia, from 1941 through 1944, and in World War II (1939–1945), and religion was actively persecuted in Estonia under Soviet rule 1944 until 1989, when some measure of tolerance was introduced.
Protestantism has done much to inform the moral world view of the Estonians, particularly the process of distinguishing themselves from the Russians.
For this situation there are several reasons, starting from the distant past (the close connection of the churches with the Swedish or German ruling classes) up to the Soviet-period atheist policy when the chain of religious traditions was broken in most families. In Estonia, religion has never played an important role on the political or ideological battlefield. The institutional religious life was dominated by foreigners until the early 20th century. The tendencies that prevailed in the late 1930s for closer relations between the state and Lutheran church [...] ended with the Soviet occupation in 1940.
The dominant religion in Estonia is Evangelical Lutheranism. Estonians were Christianized by the Teutonic Knights in the 13th century. During the Reformation, Lutheranism spread, and the church was officially established in Estonia in 1686.
The Soviet union was an avowed atheist state that placed great restrictions on religious practice. Resistance to state-sponsored atheism came from established (although heavily restricted and monitored) religious clergy and from believers roughly following an evangelical Christianity. In Estonia and Latvia Bible-smuggling from the West was one of the more common methods of anti-regime activity.
It was not until 1998 that the state's religious policies became tolerant, and by 1990, repressive legislation was annulled.
