Catholic Church in Spain | |
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Spanish: Iglesia Católica en España | |
Type | National polity |
Classification | Catholic |
Orientation | Latin |
Scripture | Bible |
Theology | Catholic theology |
Polity | Episcopal |
Governance | CEE |
Pope | Francis |
Primate | Francisco Cerro Chaves |
Region | Spain |
Language | Spanish, Latin |
Headquarters | Calle Añastro, 1. 28033 Madrid |
Founder | Apostles James and Paul |
Origin | 1st century Hispania, Roman Empire |
Separations | Protestantism in Spain Palmarian Catholic Church |
Members | 32,364,000 [1] |
Official website | CEE |
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The Spanish Catholic Church, or Catholic Church in Spain, is part of the Catholic Church under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome, and the Spanish Episcopal Conference.
The Spanish Constitution of 1978 establishes the non-denominationality of the State, providing that the public authorities take into account the religious beliefs of society, maintaining cooperative relations with the Catholic Church and other confessions. Thus, the relations between the Spanish State and the Holy See are regulated by the 1976 agreement and the three 1979 agreements, which modified and replaced the previous 1953 concordat. [2] [3]
According to Romans 15:28, Christianity could have been present in Spain from a very early period. St. Paul intend to go to Hispania to preach the gospel there after visiting the Romans along the way. But there is no clear evidence if he ever made it. [4] After 410 AD, Spain was taken over by the Visigoths who had been converted to Arianism around 360. From the 5th to the 7th century, about thirty synods, were held at Toledo to regulate and standardise matters of discipline, decreed uniformity of liturgy throughout the kingdom. Medieval Spain was the scene of almost constant warfare between Islamic and Christian kingdoms. Islamic and Christian people generally lived in peaceful co-existence under Islamic rule such as in Al-Andalus with many instances of inter-religious marriage. However, there was tension from the Pope and the Catholic Church to oppose Islamic rule in Spain and to "reclaim" Europe. This was the period of the so-called "Golden age of Jewish culture in Spain". The Almohads, who had taken control of the Almoravids' Maghrebi and Andalusian territories by 1147, far surpassed the Almoravids in Islamic fundamentalism, and they notably treated the non-Islamic dhimmis harshly. Faced with the choice of death, conversion, or emigration, many Jews fled to North Africa and Egypt. [5]
The Reconquista was the long process by which the Catholics reconquered Spain from Islamic rule by 1492. The Spanish Inquisition was established in 1478 to complete the religious purification of the Iberian Peninsula. In the centuries that followed, Spain saw itself as the bulwark of Catholicism and doctrinal purity.
Spanish missionaries carried Catholicism to the Americas and the Philippines, establishing various missions in the newly colonized lands. The missions served as a base for both administering colonies as well as spreading Christianity.
According to Juan Avilés Farré, Catholicism constituted the "doctrinal basis of the most significant organizations of the anti-democratic and anti-liberal right-wing" in Spain developed in the period going from the demise of right-wing liberal conservatism led by Cánovas del Castillo to the installment of the Francoist dictatorship, including maurism, Patriotic Union, the group around Acción Española and Falange Española. [6]
The Catholic Church in Spain supported Francisco Franco in the Spanish Civil War and afterwards established a close relationship with the Spanish state, with many Catholic priests serving in the government. After Vatican II, the church suddenly reversed its position, withdrew its support for the Franco regime, and supported the separation of church and state. [7]
The Spanish Church oversees one of the greatest repositories of religious architecture (and art) in the world, among them the outstanding cathedrals of Cordoba (originally built as a church and then replaced by a mosque during Moorish rule, to be subsequently reconsecrated as a Church), Santiago de Compostela, Burgos, León, Seville, Toledo and the Cathedral-Basilica of Our Lady of the Pillar in Zaragoza. There are also magnificent monasteries like San Millán and Silos in La Rioja, Monstserrat and Poblet in Catalonia, El Escorial and El Paular in Madrid, San Juan de los Reyes in Castile-La Mancha, the Abbey of Santa María la Real de Las Huelgas in Castile and Leon, or churches like Sagrada Familia in Barcelona by Antoni Gaudí.
Holy Week (Spanish : Semana Santa) in Spain attracts thousands of pilgrims and tourists alike. For centuries Holy Week has had a special significance in the church calendar in Spain, where early on Good Friday the darkened streets of dawn become the stage for solemn processions and celebrations that lead up to festivities of Easter Sunday. Fifty-eight processions (according to a 2008 guide) parallel the health and wealth of the city from the 16th and 17th centuries of its golden age to the French Invasion in the 18th century and finally to its rebirth today in the twentieth century. Despite church attendances falling, in common with the rest of Europe, the Easter processions are expanding, as many newly formed brotherhoods have asked for permission from bishops and other authorities to process during Holy Week. [8]
For over a thousand years, Europeans living north of the Alps have made their way to the closest place in Europe "where they could access the spiritual authority of an Apostle: Santiago de Compostela.". [9] In 2007, for example, over 100,000 people walked to Santiago de Compostela alone. [10]
There are over 42 million baptized, covering about 92% of the total population. There are 70 dioceses and archdioceses. Some studies indicate that the percentage of the population that identifies as Catholic is closer to 60%. [11]
In spite of strong traditions, most Spaniards do not participate regularly in religious services. A study conducted in October 2006 by the Spanish Centre of Sociological Research [12] shows that of the Spaniards who identify themselves as religious, 54% hardly ever or never go to church (except for wedding and funerals), 15% go to church some times a year, 10% some time per month and 19% every Sunday or multiple times per week. A huge majority of young Spaniards, including those who self-identify as Catholic, ignore the Church's stance on issues such as pre-marital sex, sexual orientation or contraception. [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] 75% of Spanish Catholics support same-sex marriage and 13% oppose it. 91% of Spanish Catholics believe society should accept gay people while 8% believe society should not accept gays. [18]
The total number of parish priests has shrunk from 24,300 in 1975 to 19,307 in 2005. Nuns also dropped 6.9% to 54,160 in the period 2000–2005. [19]
According to the Eurobarometer 69 (2008), another independent source, only 3% of Spaniards consider religion as one of their three most important values, while the European mean is 7%. [20]
As of 1 January 2020, Spain had a total population of 47,431,256, which represents a 0.9% increase since 2019. The modern Kingdom of Spain arose from the accretion of several independent Iberian realms, including the Kingdoms of León, Castile, Navarre, the Crown of Aragon and Granada, all of which, together with the modern state of Portugal, were successor states to the late antique Christian Visigothic Kingdom after the Reconquista.
Christianity is the largest religion in Belgium, with the Catholic Church representing the largest community, though it has experienced a significant decline since the 1950s. Belgium's policy separates the state from the churches, and freedom of religion of the citizens is guaranteed by the country's constitution.
The Camino de Santiago, or in English the Way of St. James, is a network of pilgrims' ways or pilgrimages leading to the shrine of the apostle James in the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia in northwestern Spain, where tradition holds that the remains of the apostle are buried.
The Catholic Church is "the Catholic Communion of Churches, both Roman and Eastern, or Oriental, that are in full communion with the Bishop of Rome ." The church is also known by members as the People of God, the Body of Christ, the "Temple of the Holy Spirit", among other names. According to Vatican II's Gaudium et spes, the "church has but one sole purpose–that the kingdom of God may come and the salvation of the human race may be accomplished."
The Catholic branch of Christianity is the most widely professed religion in Spain, with high levels of secularization as of 2022. Freedom of religion is guaranteed by the Spanish Constitution.
The majority of the religious population in France identifies as Christian. Catholicism is the most prominent denomination in France, but has long lost the state religion status it held prior to the 1789 French Revolution and during various non-republican regimes of the 19th century, including the Restoration, the July Monarchy and the Second French Empire.
Religion has been a major influence on the societies, cultures, traditions, philosophies, artistic expressions and laws within present-day Europe. The largest religion in Europe is Christianity. However, irreligion and practical secularisation are also prominent in some countries. In Southeastern Europe, three countries have Muslim majorities, with Christianity being the second-largest religion in those countries. Ancient European religions included veneration for deities such as Zeus. Modern revival movements of these religions include Heathenism, Rodnovery, Romuva, Druidry, Wicca, and others. Smaller religions include Indian religions, Judaism, and some East Asian religions, which are found in their largest groups in Britain, France, and Kalmykia.
Spain is a Christian majority country, with Islam being a minority religion, practised mostly by immigrants from Muslim majority countries, and their descendants. As of 2019, 4.45% of the Spanish population are Muslims.
The Catholic Church in Europe is part of the worldwide Catholic Church in full communion with the Holy See in Rome, including represented Eastern Catholic missions. Demographically, Catholics are the largest religious group in Europe.
Christians in Morocco constitute less than 1% of the country's population of 33,600,000. Most of the Christian adherents are Catholic and Protestants.
Christianity is the most widely professed religion in Peru, with Catholicism being its largest denomination.
The Falange Española Tradicionalista y de las Juntas de Ofensiva Nacional Sindicalista, frequently shortened to just "FET", was the sole legal party of the Francoist regime in Spain. It was created by General Francisco Franco in 1937 as a merger of the fascist Falange Española de las JONS with the monarchist neo-absolutist and integralist Catholic Traditionalist Communion belonging to the Carlist movement. In addition to the resemblance of names, the party formally retained most of the platform of FE de las JONS and a similar inner structure. In force until April 1977, it was rebranded as the Movimiento Nacional in 1958.
The dominant religion in Slovenia is Christianity, primarily the Catholic Church, which is the largest Christian denomination in the country. Other Christian groups having significant followings in the country include Eastern Orthodoxy and Protestantism (Lutheranism). Islam, Judaism and Hinduism are small minorities in Slovenia. About 18% of the population are either agnostic or atheist.
Christianity has a strong tradition of pilgrimages, both to sites relevant to the New Testament narrative and to sites associated with later saints or miracles.
The Catholic Church in Spain has a long history, starting in the 1st century. It is the largest religion in Spain, with 58.6% of Spaniards identifying as Catholic.
Saint James the Moor-slayer is the name given to the representation of the apostle James the Great, as a legendary, miraculous figure who appeared at the also legendary Battle of Clavijo, helping the Christians conquer the Muslim Moors.
The Nationalist faction was a major faction in the Spanish Civil War of 1936 to 1939. It was composed of a variety of right-leaning political groups that supported the Spanish Coup of July 1936 against the Second Spanish Republic and Republican faction and sought to depose Manuel Azaña, including the Falange, the CEDA, and two rival monarchist claimants: the Alfonsist Renovación Española and the Carlist Traditionalist Communion. In 1937, all the groups were merged into the FET y de las JONS. After the death of the faction's early leaders, General Francisco Franco, one of the members of the 1936 coup, headed the Nationalists throughout most of the war, and emerged as the dictator of Spain until his death in 1975.
Irreligion in Spain is a phenomenon that has existed since at least the 17th century. Secularism became relatively popular among rich people in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, often associated with anti-clericalism and progressive, republican, anarchist or socialist movements.
Antisemitism in Spain is the expression through words or actions of an ideology of hatred towards Jews on Spanish soil.
The history of the far-right in Spain dates back to at least the 1800s and refers to any manifestation of far-right politics in Spain. Individuals and organizations associated with the far-right in Spain often employ reactionary traditionalism, religious fundamentalism, corporate Catholicism, and fascism in their ideological practice. In the case of Spain, according to historian Pedro Carlos González Cuevas, the predominance of Catholicism played an essential role in the suppression of external political innovations such as Social Darwinism, positivism, and vitalism in Spanish far-right politics.