Christianity is the most widely professedreligion in Croatia, representing 87.34% of the total population. A large majority of theCroats declare themselves to be members of theCatholic Church.
Croatia has no official religion andfreedom of religion is a right defined by thecountry's Constitution, which also defines allreligious communities as equal before the law andseparate from the state.[2]
In the 16th century,Protestantism reached Croatia, but was mostly eradicated due to theCounter-Reformation implemented by theHabsburgs.
There is also significant history of the Jews in Croatia through the Holocaust. Thehistory of the Jews in Croatia dates back to at least the 3rd century, although little is known of the community until the 10th and 15th centuries[when?].[citation needed] By the outbreak ofWorld War II, the community numbered approximately 20,000[3] members, most of whom were murdered during theHolocaust that took place on the territory of theNazi puppet state calledIndependent State of Croatia. After World War II, half of the survivors chose to settle inIsrael, while an estimated 2,500 members continued to live in Croatia.[4] According to the 2011 census, there were 509 Jews living in Croatia, but that number is believed to exclude those born of mixed marriages or those married to non-Jews.[citation needed] More than 80 percent of the Zagreb Jewish community were thought to fall in those two categories.[citation needed]
According to the 2021 census 83.04% ofresidents residing in Croatia areCatholics, whileOrthodox Christians make up 3.35% of the population,Muslims 1.32%, andProtestants 0.26% of the population. 6.39% of Croatians are not religious, atheists or agnostics and 3.86% are undeclared.
| Religion | 2011[5] | 2021[6] | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | % | Number | % | |
| Christianity | 3,914,900 | 91.34 | 3,383,046 | 87.38 |
| —Catholicism | 3,697,143 | 86.26 | 3,215,177 | 83.04 |
| —Orthodox | 190,143 | 4.44 | 129,820 | 3.35 |
| —Protestantism | 14,653 | 0.34 | 9,956 | 0.26 |
| — Other Christians | 12,961 | 0.30 | 28,063 | 0.73 |
| Islam | 62,977 | 1.47 | 50,981 | 1.32 |
| Judaism | 536 | 0.01 | 573 | 0.02 |
| Eastern religions | 2,550 | 0.06 | 3,392 | 0.09 |
| Other religions | 2,555 | 0.06 | 37,066 | 0.96 |
| No religion | 195,893 | 4.57 | 247,149 | 6.39 |
| Undeclared/Unknown | 105,478 | 2.46 | 149,626 | 3.86 |
| Total | 4,284,889 | 100.00% | 3,871,833 | 100.00% |
Public schools allow religious teaching in cooperation with religious communities having agreements with the state, but attendance is not mandated. Religion classes (Croatian:vjeronauk) are organized widely in public elementary and secondary schools, most commonly coordinated with the Catholic Church.
Thepublic holidays in Croatia also include thereligious festivals (Croatian:blagdan) of Epiphany, Easter Monday, Corpus Christi Day, Assumption Day, All Saints' Day, Christmas, and St. Stephen's or Boxing Day. The primary holidays are based on the Catholicliturgical year, but other believers are legally allowed to celebrate other major religious holidays.
Marriages conducted by the religious communities having agreements with the state are officially recognized, eliminating the need to register the marriages in the civil registry office. TheCatholic Church in Croatia receives state financial support and other benefits established inconcordats between the Government and theVatican. The concordats and other government agreements with non-Catholic religious communities allow state financing for some salaries and pensions for religious officials through government-managed pension and health funds.[7]
The concordats and agreements also regulate public schoolcatechisms andmilitary chaplains.[7]
In line with the concordats signed with the Roman Catholic Church and in an effort to further define their rights and privileges within a legal framework, the government has additional agreements with the following 14 religious and Faith communities:[7][8]
The 2002 Law on the Legal Position of Religious Communities broadly defines religious and Faith communities' legal positions and covers such matters as government funding, tax benefits, and religious education in schools. Matters such as pensions for clergy; religious service in the military, penitentiaries, and police; and recognition of religious and Faith marriages are left to each religious and Faith community to negotiate separately with the Government.[7]
Registration of religious groups is not obligatory; however, registered groups are granted "legal person" status and enjoy tax and other benefits. The law stipulates that to be eligible for registration, a religious group must have at least 500 believers and be registered as an association for 5 years. All religious and Faith groups in the country prior to passage of the law in 2002 were registered without having to meet these conditions; religious and Faith groups new to the country after passage of the law must fulfill the requirements for the minimum number of believers and time as an association. Religious and Faith groups based abroad must submit written permission for registration from their country of origin.[7] Minister of Public Administration runs a Registry of religious organizations in Republic of Croatia, currently recognizing 62 religious communities (as of 2013[update]).[9]
