Religious belonging and religious demography
Religion among semi-secular Swedes - simultaneously secular and religious
In a recently published study Ann af Burén, Södertörn University, contributed to a critical discussion on the supposedly far-reaching secularity of Sweden on the one hand, and on the (...)
In a recently published study Ann af Burén, Södertörn University, contributed to a critical discussion on the supposedly far-reaching secularity of Sweden on the one hand, and on the incongruence and inconsistency of lived religion on the other. At the centre of the study are people among the majority of Swedes, referred to as semi-secular Swedes – but often neglected in the study of religion. These people don’t go to church or get involved in any other kind of organized spiritual activities, although they are not actively opposed to religion, nor indifferent to it. Most of them describe the ways they are – or are not – religious as being in line with the majority patterns in Swedish society.
In a qualitative study 28 semi-secular Swedes have been interviewed. Their ways of speaking about, and relating to religion, referring to their everyday lives and experiences, has been analysed with special focus on incongruence.
For more information:
– Dissertation: Ann af Burén (2015) Living Simultaneity: On religion among semi-secular Swedes. Södertörn doctoral dissertations, 1652-7399; 106.
– For an introductory article by the author, see: "Blurring boundaries: patterns of religiosity in contemporary Sweden".
– For the 269 pages dissertation in full text, see: here.
D 8 June 2015 APer Pettersson
Religious belonging 2014
There is in Sweden no official state registration of the religion of individual citizens, since a special law prohibits the registration of peoples religious or philosophical conviction as well (...)
There is in Sweden no official state registration of the religion of individual citizens, since a special law prohibits the registration of peoples religious or philosophical conviction as well as race, ethnicity or political views (SFS 1998:204).
The figures available from open sources concerning religious belonging are collected below. They consist of The Church of Sweden’s membership figures (Church of Sweden statistics) and the figures that are the base for The state Authority for Support to Faith Communities, (other than The Church of Sweden), which include members as well as non-members that take part in the community’s activities. The data on Jehovas Witnesses and Mormons come from a survey made 2001, but are probably still accurate (Source: Margareta Skog, Antal medlemmar i valda samfund 1975-2001, in Bromander, Jonas, ed. Då, nu och sedan. Perspektiv på Svenska kyrkans statistik 2000. Tro & Tanke 2001:4. Svenska kyrkans forksningsråd: Uppsala 2001, pp 35-45).
A majority of 65% the Swedish population (2014) belongs to the Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Sweden , that was formerly the state church. This figure is however decreasing by about 1% each year, due to immigration of people of other religious belonging, reduced percentage of baptized new born children, switching to other faith communities, and exits out of any religious belonging. About one per cent of the Swedish population belongs to each of the equmenia Church (a united church of the Reformed, Baptist and Methodist churches), the Pentecostal Movement, the Roman Catholic Church. When added a number of different Orthodox Churches also form around 1% of the population as well as the sum of different Muslim communities. Other minor Christian denominations and communities of other faith make together 1,5% of the population. An estimation based on existing data tells that around 70 per cent of Swedish people belong to a faith community. This means that around 30 per cent do not belong to any religious community. When it comes to expressions of personal beliefs, organised atheists are however notably few.
Religious belonging, numbers and evolution 2012-2014
| Religious belonging in 2012-2014* | Number 2012 | Percent 2012 | Number 2014 | Percent 2014 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Church of Sweden | 6 292 264 | 65% | 6 664 000 | 67,5% |
| equmenia Church (Reformed united) | 134 391 | 1,4% | 127 378 | 1,3% |
| Pentecostal movement | 108 842 | 1,1% | 110 762 | 1,1% |
| Orthodox/Eastern churches | 124 651 | 1,3% | 133 811 | 1,4% |
| Muslim communities | 110 000 | 1,2% | 110 000 | 1,1% |
| Roman-Catholic Church | 103 804 | 1,1% | 109 967 | 1,1% |
| Evangelical Free Church | 49 447 | 0,5% | ||
| Evangelical National Foundation (EFS) | 43 188 | 0,4% | 42 423 | 0,4% |
| A number of minor Christian denominations | 57 099 | 0,6% | 49 861 | 0,5% |
| Buddhism | 4812 | 0,1% | 4812 | 0,05% |
| Jews | 8 442 | 0,1% | 8414 | 0,1% |
| Jehova’s Witnesses (2001) | 23 500 | 0,2% | ||
| Mormons (2001) | 8000 | 0,1% | ||
| Mandeism (Mandeiska Sabeiska Samfundet | 7 606 | 0,1% | ||
| Alevi national association | 3 556 | 0,05% |
* Swedish population: 9,7 million in 2014
D 9 March 2016 APer Pettersson
