Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

is a prevalent religion in

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

; in January 2023, 72.1% of the population of Denmark were members of the

Church of Denmark The Evangelical-Lutheran Church in Denmark or National Church ( , or unofficially ; ), sometimes called the Church of Denmark, is the established, state-supported church in Denmark. The supreme secular authority of the church is composed of ...

. According to a survey based on a sample 1,114, 25% of Danes believe

Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

is the

son of God Historically, many rulers have assumed titles such as the son of God, the son of a god or the son of heaven. The term "Son of God" is used in the Hebrew Bible as another way to refer to humans who have a special relationship with God. In Exo ...

, and 18% believe he is the saviour of the world. Aside from Lutheranism, there is a small

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

minority, as well as small Protestant denominations such as the Baptist Union of Denmark and the Reformed Synod of Denmark. Denmark has Lutheranism as the state religion, as such its culture is heavily influenced by Christianity.

Protestantism

Church of Denmark (Lutheranism)

According to official statistics from January 2023, 72,1% of the population of Denmark are members of the

Evangelical Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

(), the country's state church since the

Reformation in Denmark–Norway and Holstein During the Reformation, the territories ruled by the Danish-based House of Oldenburg converted from Catholicism to Lutheranism. After the break-up of the Kalmar Union in 1521/1523, these realms included the kingdoms of Denmark (with the former ...

, and designated "the Danish people's church" by the 1848

Constitution of Denmark The Constitutional Act of the Realm of Denmark (), also known as the Constitutional Act of the Kingdom of Denmark, or simply the Constitution (, , ), is the constitution of the Kingdom of Denmark, applying equally in the Realm of Denmark: Denma ...

. This proportion is down by 1.1% as compared to the preceding year and 1.7% down compared to two years earlier. However, in similar fashion to the rest of Scandinavia, and also Britain, only a small minority (less than 5% of the total population) attends churches for Sunday services. In addition, the number of people leaving the Church has been on the rise: in 2012, 21,118 Danes left the Church, an increase of 55% in comparison to 2011. Individuals automatically become members when baptized, as most people born in Denmark are at birth, and cannot leave of their own accord until they are 18 years old. Members are not informed of their membership or their ability to leave. Further, there are no standard formulas for leaving the church; one must personally contact the priest or office of one's parish.

Other Protestant denominations

A small

Baptist Baptists are a Christian denomination, denomination within Protestant Christianity distinguished by baptizing only professing Christian believers (believer's baptism) and doing so by complete Immersion baptism, immersion. Baptist churches ge ...

community has existed since the 1840s and is represented by the Baptist Union of Denmark. The Union claimed 55 churches and 5,412 congregants in 2011.

Reformed Protestantism Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, is a major branch of Protestantism that began during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. In the modern day, it is largely represented by the Continental Reformed Protestantism, Continenta ...

is represented by four churches united in the Reformed Synod of Denmark. These are mainly ethnic congregations, including two Huguenot churches and a German Reformed church, founded in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries,Deutsch-Reformierte Kirche zu Kopenhagen
/ref> as well as the Korean Reformed Church founded in 1989. The German Reformed church also includes some Dutch, Swiss, Hungarian and American members, as well as Danes. There is an Anglican church and fellowship in Copenhagen and smaller congregations of Anglicans and Episcopalians in many Danish cities. A 2015 study estimates some 4,000 Christian believers from a Muslim background in the country, most of them belonging to some form of Protestantism.

Catholicism

After the separation of the Church of Denmark from the Catholic Church in 1536, the Catholic Church remained illegal in the country for over three centuries. The Church was able to reestablish itself after the Constitution of 1849 granted religious freedom to the Kingdom. Currently the country is covered by the

Diocese of Copenhagen The Diocese of Copenhagen (Danish: ''Københavns Stift'') is a diocese within the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Denmark. The Bishop of Copenhagen is currently Peter Skov-Jakobsen, who replaced Erik Normann Svendsen in 2009. The main cathedral of ...

with 48 parishes in Denmark proper and two more in the Faeroe Islands and Greenland. There are nearly 40,000 Catholics in Denmark, though nearly a third are foreign born and others are born of foreign parents (for example, Denmark's Polish community, of which the current bishop of the Roman-Catholic Diocese of Copenhagen, Czeslaw Kozon, is a member). Nevertheless, ethnic Danes are still the largest group among the Church's congregants.

Orthodoxy

Eastern Orthodoxy

Adherents of

Eastern Orthodox Christianity Eastern Orthodoxy, otherwise known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity or Byzantine Christianity, is one of the three main Branches of Christianity, branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholic Church, Catholicism and Protestantism ...

in Denmark are traditionally organized in accordance with patrimonial ecclesiastical jurisdictions. Eastern Orthodox Danes of Greek origin belong to the Metropolis of Sweden and Scandinavia, under the

Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople (, ; ; , "Roman Orthodox Patriarchate, Ecumenical Patriarchate of Istanbul") is one of the fifteen to seventeen autocephalous churches that together compose the Eastern Orthodox Church. It is heade ...

. Those of Russian origin are directly under the Patriarch of the

Russian Orthodox Church The Russian Orthodox Church (ROC; ;), also officially known as the Moscow Patriarchate (), is an autocephaly, autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodox Christian church. It has 194 dioceses inside Russia. The Primate (bishop), p ...

. Those of Serbian origin belong to the

Serbian Orthodox Eparchy of Britain and Scandinavia The Serbian Orthodox Eparchy of Britain and Scandinavia or Serbian Orthodox Diocese of Britain and Scandinavia () was a Serbian Orthodox Church diocese in Western Europe. It was headquartered at Enskede gård, Stockholm, Sweden. It operated chu ...

. Those of Romanian origin belong to the Diocese of Northern Europe, of the

Romanian Orthodox Church The Romanian Orthodox Church (ROC; , ), or Romanian Patriarchate, is an autocephalous Eastern Orthodox church in full communion with other Eastern Orthodox Christian denomination, Christian churches, and one of the nine patriarchates in the East ...

Oriental Orthodoxy

Adherents of

Oriental Orthodox Christianity The Oriental Orthodox Churches are Eastern Christian churches adhering to Miaphysite Christology, with approximately 50 million members worldwide. The Oriental Orthodox Churches adhere to the Nicene Christian tradition. Oriental Orthodoxy is ...

in Denmark are also traditionally organized in accordance with their patrimonial ecclesiastical jurisdictions, each community having its own parishes and priests. Oriental Orthodox Danes of

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...

origin belong to the

Armenian Apostolic Church The Armenian Apostolic Church () is the Autocephaly, autocephalous national church of Armenia. Part of Oriental Orthodoxy, it is one of the most ancient Christianity, Christian churches. The Armenian Apostolic Church, like the Armenian Catholic ...

. Those of Coptic origin belong to the Coptic Orthodox Diocese of Stockholm and Scandinavia.

Restorationism

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...

has been sending missionaries to Denmark since 14 June 1850. Most of the early converts emigrated to the United States. There are currently over 4,500 members of the church in Denmark. There is a

Temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a place of worship, a building used for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. By convention, the specially built places of worship of some religions are commonly called "temples" in Engli ...

in Copenhagen, known as the Copenhagen Denmark Temple.

History

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Christianity in Denmark Culture of Denmark Society of Denmark Religion in Denmark