 Catholic Church in Poland | |
|---|---|
| Polish:Kościół katolicki w Polsce | |
 | |
| Type | National polity |
| Classification | Catholic |
| Orientation | Latin andEastern Catholic |
| Scripture | Bible |
| Theology | Catholic theology |
| Polity | Episcopal |
| Governance | Episcopal Conference of Poland |
| Pope | Leo XIV |
| Primate of Poland | Wojciech Polak |
| President | Tadeusz Wojda |
| Divisions | Archbishop |
| Divisions | Bishop |
| Region | Poland |
| Language | Polish,Latin |
| Headquarters | Warsaw,Poland |
| Founder | Mieszko I |
| Origin | 966 Civitas Schinesghe |
| Separations | Polish-Catholic Church of Republic of Poland Protestantism in Poland |
| Official website | KEP |
Polish members of theCatholic Church, like elsewhere in the world, are under the spiritual leadership of thePope inRome. TheLatin Church includes 41dioceses. There are three eparchies of theUkrainian Greek Catholic Church in the country, with members of theArmenian Catholic Church under theOrdinariate for Eastern Catholics in Poland.[1] Theordinaries of these jurisdictions comprise theEpiscopal Conference of Poland. Combined, these comprise about 10,000 parishes and religious orders. There are 40.55 million registered Catholics[2][3]: 4 (the data includes the number of infants baptized) in Poland.[4] The primate of the Church isWojciech Polak,Archbishop of Gniezno.
In the early 2000s, 99% of all children born in Poland were baptized Catholic.[5] In 2015, the church recorded that 97.7% of Poland's population was Catholic.[2] Other statistics suggested this proportion of adherents to Catholicism could be as low as 85%.[6][7] The rate of decline has been described as "devastating"[8] the former social prestige and political influence that the Catholic Church in Poland once enjoyed.[9] On the other hand, a 2023 survey of 36 countries with large Catholic populations using data from theWorld Values Survey revealed that 52% of Polish Catholics claimed to attend Mass weekly, the seventh highest of the nations surveyed and the highest among European countries.[10] Most Poles adhere to Latin Catholicism. About 71.3% of the population identified themselves as such in the2021 census, down from 88% in2011.[8]
Ever sincePoland officially adoptedChristianity in966, the Catholic Church has played an important religious, cultural and political role in the country post-schism. Identifying oneself as Catholic distinguished Polish culture and nationality from neighbouringGermany, especially eastern and northern Germany, which is mostlyLutheran, and the countries to the east which areEastern Orthodox. During times of foreign oppression, the Catholic Church was a cultural guard in the fight for independence and national survival. For instance, the Polish abbey inCzęstochowa, which successfully resisted a siege in theSwedish invasion of Poland in the 17th century, became a symbol of national resistance to the occupation. The establishment of a communist regime controlled by theSoviet Union followingWorld War II allowed the Church to continue fulfilling this role, although recent allegations suggest there was some minor collaboration between Polish clergy and the regime.[11]
The 1978 election of Polish Cardinal Karol Wojtyła asPope John Paul II strengthened the ties of identification. John Paul's visits to Poland became rallying points for the faithful and galvanized opposition to the Soviet regime.[citation needed] His beatification in 2011 and canonization 3 years later further instilled pride and joy in the Polish people.[citation needed] In 2013,Pope Francis, John Paul II's 2nd successor (and who was made a cardinal by the Polish pope), announced thatWorld Youth Day, the world's largest religious gathering of young people, would be held inKraków, Poland in 2016.
In 2013 a succession ofchild sex abuse scandals within the Church, and the poor response by the Church, became a matter of some public concern.[12] The church resisted demands to pay compensation to victims.[13]
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As of 2023, a majority of Poles, approximately 71%, identified themselves as Catholic, and 58% said they are active practicing Catholics, according to a survey by theCentre for Public Opinion Research.[14] According to theMinistry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland, 95% of Poles belong to the Catholic Church;[15] this survey bases the number of adherents on the number of infants baptized,[4] as provided by the Catholic Church. TheCIA Factbook gives a number of 87.2% belonging to the Catholic Church in 2012.[16]In the biggest part of Europe, the rates of religious observance have steadily decreased. However, Poland still remains one of the most devoutly religious countries in Europe. Polish Catholics participate in thesacraments more frequently than their counterparts in most Western European and North American countries. A 2023 study by the Church itself revealed that 98.5% of Poles go to confession at least once a year, while 97% of the respondents say they do so more often than once a year.[17] By contrast, a 2005 study byGeorgetown University's Center for Applied Research on the Apostolate revealed that only 14% ofAmerican Catholics take part in thesacrament of penance once a year, with a mere 2% doing so more frequently.[18]Tarnów is the most religious city in Poland, andŁódź is the least. The southern and eastern parts of Poland are more active in their religious practices than those of the West and North. The majority of Poles continue to declare themselves Catholic.[19] This is in stark contrast to the otherwise similar neighboringCzech Republic, which is one of theleast religious practicing areas on Earth, with only 35% declaring "they believe there is a God" of any kind.[20]
A 2014 report byL'Osservatore Romano found that the proportion of Polish Catholics attending Sunday Mass was approximately 39.1%.[12][21] At the same time, however, this partly results from the fact that since 2004 2.1 million Poles have emigrated to Western Europe.[21] Writing for the Catholic weeklyTygodnik Powszechny, Church sociologist Rev. Prof. Janusz Mariański has noted that these two million Polish emigrants are still listed in their parish records as members, so when Mass attendance is measured such emigres lower the official records.[22] The proportion of Mass attendees receivingHoly Communion is rising, while the number of Polish Catholic priests continues to rise as ordinations outpace deaths in Poland, though the number of nuns is decreasing.
TheCentre for Public Opinion Research regularly conducts surveys on religious practice in Poland. A 2012 document reported that for more than a quarter-century church attendance and declarations of religious faith have been stable, decreasing only minimally since 2005 when the grief related to the death ofPope John Paul II led to an increase in religious practice among Poles. In a 2012 study, 52% of Poles declared that they attend religious services at least once a week, 38% do so once or twice a month, and 11% do so never or almost never. Meanwhile, 94% of Poles consider themselves to be religious believers (9% of whom consider themselves "deeply religious"), while only 6% of Poles claim that they are non-believers.[23] According to the Church's own sources,[3]: 4 36.3% of Catholics required to attend the Sunday Mass, take part in it.
Easter continues to be an important holiday for Polish Catholics. According to a 2012 study by the CBOS (Centre for Public Opinion Research), 74% of Poles make an effort to participate in thesacrament of penance before Easter, 59% make an effort to attend theStations of the Cross orGorzkie żale (an increase of 6% since 2003), 57% want to improve themselves for the better (an increase of 7%), 49% want to help the needy (an increase of 8%), and 46% want to pray more .[24]
ACBOS opinion poll from April 2014 found the following:
| Lenten and Easter observances: Do you...? (CBOS 2014 poll)[25] | |
|---|---|
| Fast on Good Friday | 83% |
| Go to Easter Confession | 70% |
| Have ashes put on your head on Ash Wednesday | 64% |
| Take part in the Easter Triduum celebrations | 56% |
| Take part in an Easter retreat | 53% |
| Take part in the Way of The Cross | 52% |
| Celebrate the Resurrection | 48% |
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 | This section'sfactual accuracy isdisputed. Relevant discussion may be found on thetalk page. Please help to ensure that disputed statements arereliably sourced.(November 2020) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
During theOctober 2020 Polish protests, enquiries regarding the procedure forapostasy from the Polish Catholic Church became popular.Web search engine queries showed high frequencies for "apostasy" (Polish:apostazja) and "how to do apostasy" (Polish:jak dokonać apostazji), and aFacebook event titled "Quit the church atChristmas" wasfollowed by 5000 people.[27]
As of 2020[update], the formal apostasy procedure in the Polish Catholic Church is a procedure defined on 7 October 2015 by theEpiscopal Conference of Poland, which became effective as of 19 February 2016.[28][29] It can only be done in person, by delivering an application to a churchparish priest. The procedure cannot be done by email, post, or state administrative services.[30]
Latin names of dioceses in italics.
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