Lithuania

Lithuania, one of the Baltic states of northern Europe, has a religious life today marked by both a revival of traditional religious practices and increased secularization. At one time the last pagan country of Europe, Lithuania became an important center for Catholic and Jewish life in the region. Religiously motivated resistance to 20th-century Nazi and Soviet occupations helped galvanize Lithuanian national identity, even while that same foreign rule had devastating effects on Lithuania's religious life. The recent movement from Soviet rule to independence, and finally to incorporation into the European Union, has allowed Lithuanians to worship freely and at the same time has facilitated the marginalization of religion.

[Page 713]Religion has long played a significant role in Lithuanian cultural and national identity. The paganism of Lithuanians in the late Middle Ages was a uniting factor against the political advances of Christian Europe, and a 19th-century cultural rediscovery of Lithuania's pagan folklore was integral to the solidification of Lithuanian national identity. After Lithuania's incorporation into the Latin Church, Catholicism defined Lithuania against its Orthodox and Protestant neighbors and helped identify Lithuania with Poland and western Europe. In the 20th century, the Catholic Church was at the forefront of Lithuanian nationalism and the movement for independence from the Soviet Union.

The religious life of Lithuania since the mid 20th century has been marked by significant upheaval. Vilnius, Lithuania's political and cultural capital, was home to a vibrant Jewish community of more than 200,000 people, who were almost completely annihilated in the Holocaust. Furthermore, the Catholic Church was severely persecuted during Soviet rule, so that Lithuania's once vibrant Catholic culture moved underground and lost much of its influence. Independence from the Soviet Union brought new religious freedom, yet the religious infrastructure had to be revitalized and retooled for the challenges of independence.

In 2004, Lithuania entered the European Union, furthering its break with Russia and solidifying its Western orientation. Unlike much of Europe, however, Lithuania and Lithuanian religious life have been relatively unaffected by immigration. Nearly 80% of Lithuanians continue to identify as Roman Catholics, while the rest are Russian Orthodox, Protestant, or not affiliated with any religion. The Muslim population of Lithuania continues to be very small. Internal factors, however, point toward significant changes to Lithuania's religious life in the near future. Today's young Lithuanians never experienced the religious culture and religious persecution of their grandparents and parents, and so they tend not to associate religious practices with national identity. Furthermore, Soviet occupation left behind a very private and muted religious life, so that young people are less likely to be raised in communities centered on religious practices. As a result, there is good reason to think that Lithuania will see an increase in secularization in the coming years.