Map of Orthodoxy in the world. In which countries of the world is Orthodoxy the official religion?

CHRISTIANITY, the largest world religion in terms of number of followers.

It arose in Palestine around the person of Jesus Christ, as a result of His activities, as well as the activities of His closest followers.

The origin of Christianity is usually attributed to 33 AD. e. - the year of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ on the cross, however, the name “Christians” was not immediately assigned to supporters of the new religion and began to be used for the first time in Antioch in 40-44.

The date of birth of Jesus Christ was used as the basis for a new calendar by the highly educated monk Dionysius the Small (d. about 526), who was a Scythian by origin, but from the end of the 5th century. lived in Rome. However, many religious scholars believe that Dionysius was mistaken in his calculations and claim that the birth of Christ occurred 4 or 6 years earlier.

Jesus Christ was born in the small Palestinian town of Bethlehem into the family of a poor elderly carpenter Joseph and his wife Mary. Christians believe that the birth of Christ by his mother was accomplished miraculously as a result of immaculate conception by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Little is known about most of the life of Jesus Christ - his childhood, adolescence and youth until the age of 30. ABOUT recent years the life of Christ, when he began to preach the new faith, is reported in great detail in holy book Christians - the Bible (in its second part - the New Testament).

Christianity quickly became widespread. Already in the year of Christ's crucifixion, the first Christians appeared in the modern territory of Palestine, Israel, Egypt, Lebanon (then Phenicia), Jordan, Libya, Syria, Italy. In the 1st century adherents of Christianity also appear in modern Turkey (Asia Minor), Armenia, Sudan (Nubia), Ethiopia, Greece, Cyprus, Iran (Persia), Iraq (in ancient Media and other areas), India, Malta, Croatia (Dalmatia), Yugoslavia (Illyria), Britain, Spain, Macedonia, Albania (then part of Macedonia), Tunisia, France (Gaul), Germany, Algeria, Romania (Dacia), Sri Lanka (Ceylon), as well as on the Arabian Peninsula. In the 1st century Apostle Andrew the First-Called, according to the legend reflected in the Russian chronicle, preached on the modern territory of Russia and Ukraine. In the II century. Christians appear in the modern territory of Morocco, Bulgaria (Moesia and Thrace), Portugal (Lusitania), Austria, Switzerland (Recia), Belgium, in the 3rd century. - on the territory of Hungary (Pannonia), Georgia, in the 4th century. - in Ireland, in the 7th century. - on the modern territory of the Netherlands, in the 8th century. - in Iceland, in the 9th century. - in Denmark, Czech Republic, Sweden, Norway, in the 10th century. - in Poland, in the 11th century. - in Finland . From the end of the 15th century. The Christianization of America began in the 16th century. Most of the Philippine population was converted to Christianity. In the XV-XVIII centuries. Christian missionaries tried to carry out proselytizing work in sub-Saharan Africa, but were not successful. Only from the middle of the 19th century. missionary work began to bring tangible results, and by now a significant part of the population of sub-Saharan Africa has been Christianized. Proselytizing work on some islands of Oceania began in the 17th century, but the bulk of the population of Oceania was converted to Christianity only in the 19th-20th centuries.

The spread of Christianity, especially in the first 5 centuries AD. e., went at a very fast pace. If in 100 Christians constituted, according to rough estimates given by the famous English expert on religious statistics D. B. Barrett, only 0.6% of the world population, then in 200 - 3.5%, 300 - 10.4%, 400 - 18 .6%. Subsequently, growth slowed down, and in certain periods the share of followers of Christianity in the world population even decreased.

The triumphant march of Christianity across our planet was associated with a number of features of this religion. First of all, it should be noted that people were attracted to Christianity by its very high humanistic principles, its appeal to all racial, ethnic and social groups. The missionary orientation proclaimed by Jesus Christ himself also played a certain role. new faith. Later, the fact that it was Christian countries that in most cases achieved the most striking successes in their economic, social and cultural development served as a kind of propaganda for Christianity.

Give general characteristics the doctrinal positions, cult and organization of Christianity is very difficult, since at present it does not represent a single whole. However, despite a long period divisions into separate branches and differences that arose at this time, a number of features inherent in most areas of Christianity were still preserved. As for dogmatics, the majority of Christians worship Jesus Christ as the second person of the Divine Trinity, which represents one Deity in three persons: God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Almost all supporters of Christianity (with the exception of adherents of a small number of marginal quasi-Christian groups) recognize the Old and New Testament s.

However, the Holy Scriptures are accepted by different denominations of Christians in unequal amounts. As indicated, it consists of two parts: the Old Testament, which is recognized by Jews under the name Tanakh (see), and the New Testament. Old Testament, codified by the Jewish keepers of tradition - the Masoretes, consists of 39 books (the names of the books are given in their Christian version): Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, the Book of Joshua, the Book of Judges of Israel, the Book of Ruth, First, Second, Third and Fourth the books of Kings (for Catholics, respectively, the First and Second Books of Samuel, the First and Second Books of Kings), the First and Second Books of Chronicles (for Catholics, the First and Second Books of Chronicles), the First Book of Ezra, the Book of Nehemiah (for Catholics, the Second Book of Ezra) , Book of Esther, Book of Job, Psalter, Proverbs of Solomon, Book of Ecclesiastes, or Preacher, Song of Solomon, Book of the Prophet Isaiah, Book of the Prophet Jeremiah, Lamentations of Jeremiah, Book of the Prophet Ezekiel, Book of the Prophet Daniel, books of the 12 so-called minor prophets (Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi).

However, when in the III-II centuries. BC e. The Old Testament (Tanakh) was translated into Greek due to the massive transition of Diaspora Jews to it; in the Septuagint (the translation was so called because it was carried out by 70 interpreters) there were 10 more books (apparently, the latter was due to the fact that that the translators worked with some other texts, different from the “Masoretic” manuscripts). These 10 books were the Second Book of Ezra (for Catholics - the Third Book of Ezra), the Book of Tobit, the Book of Judith, the Book of the Wisdom of Solomon, the Book of the Wisdom of Jesus son of Sirach, the Epistle of Jeremiah, the Book of the Prophet Baruch, the First, Second and Third Books of Maccabees. Made at the end of the 4th - beginning of the 5th centuries. translation of the Bible into Latin language there is also the Third Book of Ezra (for Catholics it is divided into 2 parts - the Fourth and Fifth Book of Ezra), which is not in either Hebrew or Greek languages. Different directions of Christianity treated the books listed differently. If the followers of the Roman Catholic Church completely trusted them and introduced them into the canon, then Orthodox Christians, although they included them in the Bible, especially singled them out as non-canonical (spiritually beneficial, but not inspired) books, and adherents of Protestantism generally refused to recognize them by including them in the Bible only “Masoretic” texts.

As for the New Testament, it is accepted without any reservations by the vast majority of Christians (with the exception of only a few marginal quasi-Christian groups). This part of the Bible was written much later than the Old Testament in the 1st century. Christian era by the disciples of Jesus Christ - the apostles after his martyrdom on the cross. The total number of books in the New Testament is 27. These are the four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John), the book of the Acts of the Apostles, 21 epistles of the apostles (Epistle of James, First and Second Epistles of Peter, First, Second and Third Epistles of John, Epistle Jude, 14 epistles of the Apostle Paul: Romans, First and Second Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, First and Second Thessalonians, First and Second Timothy, Titus, Philemon, Hebrews), Revelation of the Apostle John the Theologian (Apocalypse).

IN short form The basic tenets of Christianity are set out in three historical creeds (confessions) of faith: the Apostolic, Nicene (or Nicene-Constantinople) and Athanasian. Some Christian denominations recognize all 3 symbols equally, others give preference to one of them. Some Protestant denominations do not attach special significance to any of the symbols.

The oldest of the symbols is the Apostolic, first formulated earlier than the middle of the 2nd century, in its original form it read like this: “I believe in God, the Father Almighty; and in Christ Jesus, His only begotten Son, our Lord, born of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, crucified under Pontius Pilate and buried, on the third day rose from the dead, ascended into heaven, sitting at the right hand (right hand) of the Father, from where he comes judge the living and the dead; and into the Holy Spirit, into the holy Church, into the remission of sins, into the resurrection of the flesh. Amen". In some more later forms a number of additions were made to it. For example, after the word “buried” the expression “descended into the underworld” was inserted, after the word “Church” - the phrase “into the communion of saints”, etc. This symbol enjoys great authority in many Christian, especially Protestant, denominations. In Orthodoxy, the Apostolic symbol is actually supplanted by the Nicene-Constantinopolitan symbol, which is close to the first, but more clearly reflects the essence of Christian doctrine. It was adopted at the first two Ecumenical Councils - the First Nicene Council (325) and the First Constantinople Council (381) and in Russian it reads like this: “I believe in one God the Father, Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the only begotten, who was born of the Father before all ages, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, uncreated, consubstantial with the Father, through whom all things came into being. For our sake, man and for our salvation came down from heaven and became incarnate from the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary and became man. Crucified for us under Pontius Pilate, and suffered, and was buried. And he rose again on the third day according to the scriptures, and ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of the Father. And again he will come with glory to judge the living and the dead, whose kingdom will have no end. And in the Holy Spirit, the life-giving Lord, who proceeds from the Father, whom we worship and whom we glorify together with the Father and the Son, who spoke through the prophets. Into one holy catholic and apostolic Church. I confess one baptism for the remission of sins. I'm waiting for the resurrection of the dead. And the life of the next century. Amen".

The third historical creed - Afanasyevsky - was so named because it was attributed to the Alexandrian bishop St. Athanasius the Great (c. 295-373), but it is now believed that it was compiled when Athanasius was no longer alive - in the 5th or 6th centuries. Afanasyevsky differs from the other two creeds in his strict dogmatism and conciseness. The symbol provides a brief formulation of the two most important doctrines of Christianity: the doctrines of the Holy Trinity and the incarnation of Jesus Christ. The first part talks about the 3 persons of the Godhead with the unity of the being, the second - about the 2 natures of Jesus Christ with the unity of the person.

It is these 2 most important dogmatic provisions of Christianity that are recognized by the overwhelming majority of Christians. The first doctrine is not recognized only by groups adhering to Unitarianism, the second - by Monophysites and Nestorians.

The bulk of Christians also accept other cardinal Christian dogmas contained in the Nicene-Constantinople and Apostolic Creeds: they believe in the incarnation, the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross, who atoned for the sins of people with his martyrdom, the resurrection of Jesus Christ and His ascension to heaven, the coming second coming of Christ , future resurrection of the dead and eternal life after the resurrection.

Most Christians recognize the need to perform the sacraments - sacred acts designed to communicate God's grace to believers. However, on the question of the number of sacraments, their understanding, form and time of celebration, different directions of Christianity are far from unanimous. If Orthodox, Monophysites and Catholics recognize 7 sacraments: baptism, confirmation (for Catholics - confirmation), communion, repentance, blessing of oil, marriage, priesthood, Nestorians also 7 sacraments, but in a slightly different composition: baptism, confirmation, communion, repentance, priesthood , holy leaven, sign of the cross, then most Protestants have only 2: baptism and communion (the Lord's Supper). Moreover, many Protestants, when performing baptism and communion, consider them not as sacraments, but as simple rites. Finally, there are Protestant denominations (Quakers, Salvation Army) that reject not only the sacraments, but also any Christian rituals.

The liturgical practice of Christians of different directions is very heterogeneous. The highly solemn liturgy in the Orthodox and other Eastern, as well as Catholic (where it is called the Mass) churches is contrasted with the simplicity of liturgical practice in most Protestant churches (the Anglican churches occupy an intermediate position in this regard). General features There are not many different directions of Christianity in the cult. First of all, this is reading the Holy Scriptures. Fundraising is also very common.

In the church organization of different Christian denominations, there is a very wide range from extremely strict centralization (Roman Catholic Church, Protestant denominations of the Salvation Army and Seventh-day Adventists) to virtually complete independence of each individual church community (congregational churches, the so-called Churches of Christ, etc.) . However, most Christian denominations still recognize the need to create a church structure and train clergy.

Contrary to the provision of a single church contained in the Nicene-Constantinople Creed, Christianity now does not represent a single whole, but is divided into a large number of separate directions, movements, and denominations. The main directions are Orthodoxy, Catholicism [see. Roman Catholic Church], Protestantism, Monophysitism, Nestorianism. Of these, only the Roman Catholic Church and the Nestorian Church of the East are united (each individually) in religious and organizational terms (with regard to rituals, here Catholics allow certain differences). Orthodoxy and Monophysitism, representing (each of these two directions separately) a certain unity in doctrinal terms, are not united in organizational terms and are divided into a significant number of local churches. Moreover, if in individual Orthodox churches the differences in rituals are minimal, then in the Monophysite churches [in the Armenian apostolic church, Syriac Orthodox (Jacobite) Church, Coptic Orthodox Church, Ethiopian Orthodox Church] they are essential.

Protestantism does not represent a single whole, either doctrinally, cultically, or organizationally. It breaks up into a very large number of different movements (Anglicanism, Lutheranism, Calvinism, Mennoniteism, Methodism, Baptistism, Pentecostalism, etc.), which, in turn, are divided into separate denominations and churches.

In addition to the indicated directions of Christianity, there are also Christian denominations that are difficult to definitely attribute to any of these directions.

The total number of Christians, according to D. B. Barrett's calculations, was 1955 million people in 1996, about 34% of the total world population. Thus, every third inhabitant of the Earth is a Christian. In terms of the number of followers, Christianity is almost twice as large as the second most influential religion in the world - Islam.

Although Christianity was previously considered a predominantly European religion, it is now greatest number Christians are concentrated not in Europe, but in America - 711 million (which accounted for 36% of the total Christian population of the Earth in 1996). In Europe (including the Asian part of Russia) there are 556 million Christians (28% of the total), in Africa - 361 million (18%), in Asia - 303 million (16%), in Australia and Oceania - 24 million . (1%).

America also stands out for the highest proportion of Christians in its general population- 90%. In Europe, Christians make up 76% of the total population, in Australia and Oceania - 84%, in Africa - 48%, in Asia - only 9%.

America has the most large group There are 216 million Christians in the USA (data for all countries are given for 1990), which is 86.5% of the total population. There are also many Christians in Brazil (139 million, or 92%), Mexico (84 million, or 95%), Colombia (31 million, or 97.5%), Argentina (31 million, or 95.5% ), Canada (22 million, or 83.5%), Peru (22 million, or 97.5%), Venezuela (19 million, or 94.5%), Chile (12 million, or 89% ), Ecuador (11 million, or 98%), Guatemala (8.8 million, or 96%), Dominican Republic (7 million, or 98%), Haiti (6.4 million, or 98%) , Bolivia (5.5 million, or 76%), El Salvador (5.1 million, or 97.5%), Honduras (5 million, or 98%), Cuba (4.6 million, or 44%), in Paraguay (4.2 million, or 98%), Nicaragua (3.8 million, or 97%), Puerto Rico (3.6 million, or 98%), Costa Rica ( 2.8 million, or 93%), Panama (2.2 million, or 91%), Jamaica (2.2 million, or 86%), Uruguay (1.9 million, or 61% ). Christians also make up the majority of the population in Trinidad and Tobago (790 thousand, or 60% of the population), in Guyana (377 thousand, or 50%), in Guadeloupe (326 thousand, or 96%), Martinique (317 thousand, or 50%). or 96%), the Bahamas (245 thousand, or 94%), Barbados (234 thousand, or 90%), the Netherlands Antilles (173 thousand, or 94.5%), Belize (168 thousand, or 92%), in Saint Lucia (146 thousand, or 95%), in the US Virgin Islands (110 thousand, or 97%), Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (109 thousand, or 94%), in French Guiana (102 thousand, or 87%), Grenada (102 thousand, or 99%), Antigua and Barbuda (82 thousand, or 96%), Dominica (75 thousand, or 92%), Aruba ( 61 thousand, or 97%), in Greenland (55 thousand, or 98%), in Bermuda (52 thousand, or 89%), St. Christopher and Nevis (41 thousand, or 96.5%) , Cayman Islands (24 thousand, or 91%), Montserrat (12.5 thousand, or 96%), British Virgin Islands (12 thousand, or 95.5%), Turks and Caicos Islands (9.3 thousand ., or 99%), Anguilla (6.7 thousand, or 96%), Saint-Pierre and Miquelon (6.2 thousand, or 99%), Falkland Islands (1.7 thousand, or 87% of the population ). Only in Cuba, noted above, as well as in Suriname, do Christians not constitute an absolute majority of the population (in Suriname there are 183 thousand of them, or 45% of the total population), although in these countries adherents of Christianity form a relative majority.

In Europe, too, Christians predominate almost everywhere. They make up the absolute majority of the population in Germany (60 million, or 76% of the population), Italy (46 million, or 80%), France (40 million, or 71.5%), Great Britain and Northern Ireland (38 million). , or 66.5%), Poland (37.5 million, or 98%), Spain (31 million, or 79.5%), Romania (20 million, or 85%), the Netherlands (9.7 million, or 65%), Portugal (9.9 million, or 96%), Greece (9.8 million, or 98%), Hungary (9.1 million, or 87%), Belgium (8 .9 million, or 89%), Yugoslavia (7.7 million, or 74%), Czech Republic (7.6 million, or 74%), Austria (6.8 million, or 90%), Bulgaria (6.2 million, or 69%), Switzerland (6 million, or 92%), Sweden (5.3 million, or 64%), Denmark (4.7 million, or 91%), Finland (4.5 million, or 90%), Croatia (4.2 million, or 88%), Norway (4 million, or 95%), Slovakia (3.8 million, or 72%), Ireland (3.6 million, or 96%), Lithuania (3.2 million, or 86%), Slovenia (1.6 million, or 82.5%), Latvia (1.5 million, or 55 %), Macedonia (1.3 million, or 63%), Estonia (949 thousand, or 60%), Luxembourg (355 thousand, or 97%), Malta (349 thousand, or 99%), in Iceland (249 thousand, or 98%). Christians also make up the vast majority in Andorra (48 thousand, or 95%), Monaco (27 thousand, or 94%), Liechtenstein (27 thousand, or 95%), San Marino (22 thousand, or 95% ), the Vatican (0.8 thousand, or 100%), as well as in Gibraltar (26 thousand, or 87%). The European CIS countries are also predominantly Christian in terms of population composition: Russia (83 million, or 56% of the population), Ukraine (38 million, or 73%), Belarus (7.3 million, or 71%) and Moldova (3 .1 million, or 71% of the population). Only in two European countries adherents of Christianity do not form an absolute majority of the population: Bosnia and Herzegovina (1.8 million, or 42% of the population; at the same time, Christians are in the relative majority in this country) and Albania (584 thousand, or 18%).

Of the 57 countries in Africa (not counting the so-called British territory Indian Ocean, which has no permanent population, but includes Western Sahara) in 29 countries Christians form the majority of the population. These are: Nigeria (43 million, or 50% of the population),

How well do you know your faith, its traditions and saints, as well as the position of the Orthodox Church in modern world? Test yourself by reading the TOP 50 interesting facts about Orthodoxy!

We present to your attention the first part of our collection of interesting facts.

1. Why “Orthodoxy”?

Orthodoxy (Talka from Greek ὀρθοδοξία - orthodoxy. Literally “correct judgment”, “ correct teaching“or “correct glorification” is the true teaching about the knowledge of God, imparted to man by the grace of the Holy Spirit present in the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church.

2. What do Orthodox Christians believe?

Orthodox Christians believe in one God-Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, who has one essence, but at the same time three hypostases.

Orthodox Christians, professing faith in the Holy Trinity, base it on the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed without additions or distortions and on the dogmas of faith established by meetings of bishops at seven Ecumenical Councils.

“Orthodoxy is true knowledge of God and worship of God; Orthodoxy is the worship of God in Spirit and Truth; Orthodoxy is the glorification of God by true knowledge of Him and worship of Him; Orthodoxy is God’s glorification of man, a true servant of God, by bestowing upon him the grace of the All-Holy Spirit. The Spirit is the glory of Christians (John 7:39). Where there is no Spirit, there is no Orthodoxy,” wrote Saint Ignatius (Brianchaninov).

3. How is the Orthodox Church organized?

Today it is divided into 15 autocephalous (fully independent) Local Orthodox Churches, which have mutual Eucharistic communion with each other and constitute a single body of the Church founded by the Savior. At the same time, the founder and head of the Church is the Lord Jesus Christ.

4. When did Orthodoxy appear?

In the 1st century, on the day of Pentecost (the descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles) 33 years from the Nativity of Christ.

After the Catholics fell away from the fullness of Orthodoxy in 1054, in order to distinguish themselves from the Roman Patriarchate, which accepted some doctrinal distortions, the Eastern patriarchates adopted the name “Orthodox”.

5. Ecumenical Councils and Pan-Orthodox Council

A Pan-Orthodox Council is scheduled to take place at the end of June 2016. Some people mistakenly call it the Eighth Ecumenical Council, but this is not so. Ecumenical councils have always dealt with significant heresies that threatened the existence of the Church, which is not planned now.

In addition, the Eighth Ecumenical Council had already taken place - in Constantinople in 879 under Patriarch Photius. However, since the Ninth Ecumenical Council did not take place (and the previous Ecumenical Council is traditionally declared to be the subsequent Ecumenical Council), at the moment there are officially seven Ecumenical Councils.

6. Female clergy

In Orthodoxy it is impossible to imagine a woman as a deacon, priest or bishop. This is not due to discrimination or disrespect for women (an example of this is the Virgin Mary, revered above all saints). The fact is that a priest or bishop at a divine service represents the image of the Lord Jesus Christ, and he became human and lived his earthly life a man, which is why he cannot be represented by a woman.

The deaconesses known in the Ancient Church were not female deacons, but catechists who talked with people before Baptism and performed other functions of clergy.

7. Number of Orthodox Christians

Data from mid-2015 indicate that there are 2,419 million Christians in the world, of which 267-314 million belong to Orthodoxy.

In fact, if we take away 17 million schismatics of various kinds and 70 million members of the Ancients Eastern Churches(not accepting the decisions of one or more Ecumenical Councils), then 180-227 million people around the world can be considered strictly Orthodox.

8. What types of Orthodox Churches exist?

There are fifteen Local Orthodox Churches:

Patriarchate of Constantinople
Patriarchate of Alexandria
Patriarchate of Antioch
Jerusalem Patriarchate
Moscow Patriarchate
Serbian Patriarchate
Romanian Patriarchate
Bulgarian Patriarchate
Georgian Patriarchate
Cypriot Orthodox Church
Greek Orthodox Church
Polish Orthodox Church
Albanian Orthodox Church
Czechoslovak Orthodox Church
Orthodox Church of America

Within the Local Churches there are also Autonomous Churches with varying degrees independence:

Sinai Orthodox Church IP
Finnish Orthodox Church KP
Japanese Orthodox Church MP
Chinese Orthodox Church MP
Ukrainian Orthodox Church MP
Ohrid Archdiocese SP

9. Five largest Orthodox Churches

The largest Orthodox Church in the world is the Russian Church, numbering 90-120 million believers. The following four Churches in descending order are:

Romanian, Hellenic, Serbian and Bulgarian.

10. The most Orthodox states

The most Orthodox state in the world is... South Ossetia! In it, 99% of the population consider themselves to be Orthodox (more than 50 thousand people out of more than 51 thousand people).

Russia, in percentage terms, is not even in the top ten and is at the bottom of the dozen most Orthodox states in the world:

Greece (98%), Transnistrian Moldavian Republic (96.4%), Moldova (93.3%), Serbia (87.6%), Bulgaria (85.7%), Romania (81.9%), Georgia( 78.1%), Montenegro (75.6%), Ukraine (74.7%), Belarus (74.6%), Russia (72.5%).

11. Large Orthodox communities

In some “non-traditional” countries for Orthodoxy there are very large Orthodox communities.

So, in the USA it is 5 million people, in Canada 680 thousand, in Mexico 400 thousand, in Brazil 180 thousand, in Argentina 140 thousand, in Chile 70 thousand, in Sweden 94 thousand, in Belgium 80 thousand, in Austria 452 thousand, in Great Britain 450 thousand, Germany 1.5 million, France 240 thousand, Spain 60 thousand, Italy 1 million, 200 thousand in Croatia, 40 thousand in Jordan, 30 thousand in Japan, 1 million Orthodox each in Cameroon, Democratic The Republic of Congo and Kenya, 1.5 million in Uganda, more than 40 thousand in Tanzania and 100 thousand in South Africa, as well as 66 thousand in New Zealand and more than 620 thousand in Australia.

12. State religion

In Romania and Greece, Orthodoxy is the state religion, the Law of God is taught in schools, and the salaries of priests are paid from the state budget.

13. All over the world

Christianity is the only religion represented in all 232 countries of the world. Orthodoxy is represented in 137 countries of the world.

14. Martyrdom

Throughout history, more than 70 million Christians have become martyrs, with 45 million of them dying in the 20th century. According to some reports, in the 21st century, every year the number of those killed for faith in Christ increases by 100 thousand people.

15. “Urban” religion

Christianity initially spread precisely through the cities of the Roman Empire, coming to rural areas 30-50 years later.

Today, the majority of Christians (64%) also live in cities.

16. "Religion of the Book"

The basic doctrinal truths and traditions of Christians are written in the Bible. Accordingly, in order to become a Christian, it was necessary to master literacy.

Often, previously unenlightened peoples received, along with Christianity, their own writing, literature and history and the associated sharp cultural upsurge.

Today, the proportion of literate and educated people among Christians is higher than among atheists and representatives of other religions. For men, this share is 88% of the total number, and for women - 81%.

17. Amazing Lebanon

The country, in which about 60% of the inhabitants are Muslims and 40% are Christians, has managed without religious conflicts for more than a thousand years.

According to the Constitution, Lebanon has its own special political system - confessionalism, and from each confession there is always a strictly specified number of deputies in the local parliament. The President of Lebanon must always be a Christian and the Prime Minister a Muslim.

18. Orthodox name Inna

The name Inna was originally a masculine name. It was worn by a disciple of the Apostle Andrew the First-Called - a Christian preacher of the 2nd century, who, together with the preachers Rimma and Pinna, was brutally killed by the pagan ruler of Scythia and received the status of a martyr. However, having reached the Slavs, the name gradually transformed into a feminine one.

19. First century

By the end of the 1st century, Christianity spread throughout the entire territory of the Roman Empire and even crossed its borders (Ethiopia, Persia), and the number of believers reached 800,000 people.

By this same period, all four canonical Gospels were written down, and Christians received their self-name, which was first heard in Antioch.

20. Armenia

The first country to adopt Christianity as a state religion was Armenia. Saint Gregory the Illuminator brought the Christian faith to this country from Byzantium at the beginning of the 4th century. Gregory not only preached in the Caucasus countries, but also invented the alphabet for the Armenian and Georgian languages.

21. Shooting rockets is the most orthodox game

Every year on Easter in the Greek town of Vrontados on the island of Chios there is a missile confrontation between two churches. The goal of their parishioners is to hit the bell tower of the opposing church, and the winner is determined the next day by counting the number of hits.

22. Where on Orthodox cross crescent?

Some people mistakenly believe that it appeared during the Christian-Muslim wars. Allegedly, “the cross defeats the crescent.”

In fact, this is an ancient Christian symbol of an anchor - a reliable support in the stormy sea of everyday passions. Anchor crosses were found back in the first centuries of Christianity, when not a single person on Earth had ever heard of Islam.

23. The largest bell in the world

In 1655, Alexander Grigoriev cast a bell weighing 8 thousand poods (128 tons), and in 1668 it was raised to the belfry in the Kremlin.

According to eyewitness accounts, at least 40 people were required to swing the tongue of the bell, which weighed more than 4 tons.

The miracle bell rang until 1701, when during one of the fires it fell and broke.

24. Image of God the Father

The image of God the Father was prohibited by the Great Moscow Council back in the 17th century on the grounds that God “is never seen in the flesh.” However, there are quite a few iconographic images where God the Father is represented as a handsome old man with a triangular halo.

In the history of literature there have been many works that became world bestsellers, interest in which lasted for years. But time passed, and interest in them disappeared.

And the Bible, without any advertising, has been popular for almost 2000 years, being today the No. 1 bestseller. The daily circulation of the Bible is 32,876 copies, that is, one Bible is printed every second in the world.

Andrey Szegeda

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Orthodoxy is divided into two main denominations: the Orthodox Church and the Ancient Eastern Orthodox Church.

The Orthodox Church is the second largest community in the world after the Roman Catholic Church. The Ancient Eastern Orthodox Church has similar dogmas to the Orthodox Church, but in practice there are differences in religious practices that are more varied than those of the conservative Orthodox Church.

The Orthodox Church is dominant in Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece, Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Romania, Russia, Serbia and Ukraine, while the Ancient Eastern Orthodox Church is dominant in Armenia, Ethiopia and Eritrea.

10. Georgia (3.8 million)

The Georgian Apostolic Autocephalous Orthodox Church has about 3.8 million parishioners. It belongs to the Orthodox Church. Georgia's Orthodox population is the largest in the country and is governed by the Holy Synod of Bishops.

The current Constitution of Georgia recognizes the role of the church, but determines its independence from the state. This fact is the opposite of the historical structure of the country before 1921, when Orthodoxy was the official state religion.

9. Egypt (3.9 million)

The majority of Egyptian Christians are parishioners of the Orthodox Church, amounting to about 3.9 million believers. The largest church denomination is the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, which is a follower of the Armenian and Syriac Ancient Eastern Orthodox Churches. The Church in Egypt was founded in 42 AD. Apostle and Evangelist Saint Mark.

8. Belarus (5.9 million)

The Belarusian Orthodox Church is part of the Orthodox Church and has up to 6 million parishioners in the country. The Church is in full canonical communion with the Russian Orthodox Church and is the largest denomination in Belarus.

7. Bulgaria (6.2 million)

The Bulgarian Orthodox Church has about 6.2 million independent believers of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of the Orthodox Church. The Bulgarian Orthodox Church is the oldest in the Slavic region, founded in the 5th century in the Bulgarian Empire. Orthodoxy is also the largest religion in Bulgaria.

6. Serbia (6.7 million)

The Autonomous Serbian Orthodox Church, referred to as the Autocephalous Orthodox Church, is the leading Serbian religion with nearly 6.7 million parishioners, representing 85% of the country's population. That's more than most ethnic groups in the country combined.

There are several Romanian Orthodox Churches in parts of Serbia founded by migrants. Most Serbs identify themselves by adherence to the Orthodox Church rather than by ethnicity.

5. Greece (10 million)

Number of Christians who profess Orthodox teaching, close to 10 million of the population of Greece. The Greek Orthodox Church includes several Orthodox denominations and cooperates with the Orthodox Church, holding liturgies in the original language of the New Testament - Koine Greek. The Greek Orthodox Church strictly follows the traditions of the Byzantine Church.

4. Romania (19 million)

Most of the 19 million parishioners of the Romanian Orthodox Church are part of the autocephalous Orthodox Church. The number of parishioners is approximately 87% of the population, which gives reason to sometimes call the Romanian language Orthodox (Orthodoxie).

The Romanian Orthodox Church was canonized in 1885, and since then has strictly observed the Orthodox hierarchy that has existed for centuries.

3. Ukraine (35 million)

There are approximately 35 million members of the Orthodox population in Ukraine. The Ukrainian Orthodox Church gained independence from the Russian Orthodox Church after the collapse of the USSR. Ukrainian Church is in canonical communion with the Orthodox Church and has greatest number parishioners in the country, accounting for 75% of the total population.

Several churches still belong to the Moscow Patriarchate, but Ukrainian Christians for the most part do not know which denomination they belong to. Orthodoxy in Ukraine has apostolic roots and has been declared the state religion several times in the past.

2. Ethiopia (36 million)

The Ethiopian Orthodox Church is the largest and oldest church in both population and structure. The 36 million parishioners of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church are in canonical communion with the Ancient Eastern Orthodox Church and were part of the Coptic Orthodox Church until 1959. The Ethiopian Orthodox Church is independent and the largest of all the Ancient Eastern Orthodox Churches.

1. Russia (101 million)

Russia has the largest number of Orthodox Christians in the entire world with a total of approximately 101 million parishioners. The Russian Orthodox Church, also known as the Moscow Patriarchate, is an autocephalous Orthodox Church, which is in canonical communion and complete unity with the Orthodox Church.

Russia is believed to be intolerant of Christians, and the number of Orthodox Christians is constantly disputed. Not a large number of Russians believe in God or even confess Orthodox faith. Many citizens call themselves Orthodox Christians because they were baptized in the church as children or are mentioned in official government reports, but do not practice the religion.

The video will tell in detail about the main religions practiced in the world, with many historical facts.

Orthodoxy (from “correct glorification of God”) is one of the largest areas of Christianity and the world. After the split of the Christian Church in 1054 into two branches - eastern (Greek) and western (Roman or Latin) - it completely inherited Byzantine religious traditions. Formed in the east of the Roman Empire in the 1st millennium AD, in the 11th century it separated from the Western Christian model and took organizational form.

Religious basis Orthodox religion

The religious basis of the Orthodox religion includes:
1. Holy Scripture - the Bible (Old Testament and New Testament), Apocrypha ( sacred texts, not included in the Bible).
2. Sacred tradition - the decisions of the first seven ecumenical councils (Roman Catholics recognize the subsequent ones) and the works of the church fathers of the 2nd - 8th centuries, such as Athanasius of Alexandria, Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian, John of Damascus, John Chrysostom.

The main tenets of Orthodoxy

The main tenets of Orthodoxy:
- the idea of salvation through confession of faith,
- the idea of the trinity of God (God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit),
- the idea of incarnation,
- the idea of redemption,
- the idea of the resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ.
All dogmas were formulated in 12 paragraphs and approved at the first two Ecumenical Councils of 325 and 382. The Church declared them absolutely true, indisputable, eternal, communicated to man by God himself.

The basis of the cult of Orthodoxy

The Orthodox cult is based on seven main rituals and sacraments:
- baptism. Symbolizes the acceptance of a person into the bosom of the Christian church and means spiritual birth. It is carried out by immersing a person in water three times (in honor of God the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit)
- communion (Eucharist). It symbolizes communion with God through the rite of communion - eating the body and blood of Christ, that is, bread and wine.
- repentance (confession). Symbolizes the recognition of one’s sins before Jesus Christ, who, through the lips of a priest, absolves them.
- Confirmation. Symbolizes the preservation of the spiritual purity received at baptism.
- marriage. It is performed in the temple during the wedding, when the newlyweds are bid farewell to a long and happy life. life together in the name of Jesus Christ.
- Blessing of oil (unction). Symbolizes the descent of the grace of God on the sick. It consists of anointing his body with wooden oil (oil), which is considered sacred.
- priesthood. It consists of the bishop transferring to the new priest a special grace that he will possess throughout his life.

The main divine service in Orthodoxy is called liturgy (from the Greek “worship”), at which the sacrament of communion (Eucharist) is celebrated. Worship in Orthodoxy is longer than in other Christian denominations, since they include a large number of rituals. In most Orthodox Churches, services are conducted on national language, in the Russian Orthodox Church - in Church Slavonic.

In Orthodoxy it is given great importance holidays and fasting.

The most revered holiday is Easter. The 12 most significant holidays of Orthodoxy: the Lord, the Presentation, the Annunciation, the Transfiguration, the Theotokos, the Presentation of the Theotokos into the Temple, the Dormition of the Theotokos, Trinity (Pentecost), the Entry of the Lord into, the Ascension of the Lord, the Exaltation of the Cross of the Lord and the Nativity of Christ.

There are four fasts (multi-days) in Russian Orthodoxy: before Easter, before the day of Peter and Paul, before the Dormition of the Virgin Mary and before the Nativity of Christ.

Church hierarchy in Orthodoxy

The church hierarchy originates from the Christian apostles, ensuring continuity through a series of ordinations. Only men are ordained. The priesthood has 3 degrees: bishop, presbyter and deacon. There is also an institution of monasticism - the so-called black clergy. Single center world Orthodoxy does not exist. Now there are 15 autocephalous (independent) churches: Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem, Russian, Georgian, Serbian, Romanian, Bulgarian, Cypriot, Hellenic (Greek), Albanian, Polish, Czech lands and Slovakia, American and Canadian.

Orthodoxy in the world

Orthodoxy is professed by approximately 220-250 million people, which is one tenth of the entire Christian population of the planet. Orthodox believers make up the majority or a significant part in countries such as:
- - 99.9% - 11291.68 thousand people.
- - 99.6% - 3545.4 thousand people.
- Romania - 90.1% - 19335.568 thousand people.
- Serbia - 87.6% - 6371.584 thousand. people
- - 85.7% - 6310.805 thousand people.
- - 78.1% - 3248 thousand people.
- - 75.6% - 508.348 thousand people.
- Belarus - 74.6% - 7063 thousand people.
- - 72.5% - 103563.304 thousand people.
- Macedonia - 64.7% - 1340 thousand people.
- - 69.3% - 550 thousand people.
- - 58.5% - 26726.663 thousand people.
- Ethiopia - 51% - 44,000 thousand people.
- Albania - 45.2% - 1440 thousand people.
- - 24.3% - 320 thousand people.

Peoples professing Orthodoxy

Among the peoples professing Orthodoxy, the following prevail:
- Eastern Slavs (Russians, Ukrainians).
- Southern Slavs (Bulgarians, Macedonians, Serbs, Montenegrins).
- Greeks, Romanians, Moldovans, Abkhazians.

Many peoples living in the Russian Federation: Nenets, Komi, Udmurts, Mordovians, Mari, Karelians, Vepsians, Chuvashs, Yakuts, Koryaks, Chukchi.

Relations between Orthodox Churches and the state

The relationship between Orthodox Churches and the state develops differently everywhere. Over its long history, the Orthodox Church existed in different countries at different political regimes. It was dominant in both Byzantine and Russian empires, was subjected to persecution, as in the times of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, in the Balkans during the time of Turkish rule. Today Orthodoxy is the state religion only in (according to Article 3 Section II of the Greek Constitution). The canons prohibit persons of holy orders from “entering into public administration,” that is, from holding government positions. Orthodox priests can give advice to politicians, but they themselves should not be members of secular structures.

The attitude of Orthodox churches to other religions

The relationship of the Orthodox churches to other religions was also quite complex. The Primates of the Orthodox Churches, who gathered for a solemn joint service in Bethlehem on January 7, 2000, issued the following statement: “We turn to other great religions, especially to the monotheistic religions of Judaism and Islam, with the readiness to create favorable conditions for dialogue with them in order to achieve peaceful coexistence of all peoples... The Orthodox Church rejects religious intolerance and condemns religious fanaticism wherever he comes from."

However, significant difficulties exist in the relations of specific religious organizations. For example, there is still some tension in relations between the Russian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate and the Vatican. Also, local Orthodox Churches do not recognize the so-called autocephalous Churches, which are not recognized local churches world Orthodoxy. It's about, for example, about such organizations as: Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Kiev Patriarchate); Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church; Montenegrin Orthodox Church; Belarusian Autocephalous Orthodox Church; Macedonian Orthodox Church.

The attitude of Orthodoxy to business

The attitude of Orthodoxy towards business is expressed rather conditionally. The position of the Church on the economy in general and on entrepreneurship in particular is not as clearly expressed as, for example, in Islam or Protestantism. The goal of an Orthodox person’s life is, first of all, the salvation of the soul, and not production and sale. material assets. But, in general, Orthodoxy has nothing against enrichment if:
1. Business is of a production nature and is perceived by the entrepreneur himself as a creative process;
2. Business is accompanied by work as a creative and educational process;
3. A businessman gives generously to charity.

In Orthodoxy, wealth itself does not have a blessing; it is possible only if it is used righteously.

The attitude of Orthodoxy to medicine and

Orthodoxy's attitude toward medicine and science is typical of most traditional Orthodox faiths. church organization, that is, very careful. Previously, openly obscurantist views prevailed, based on the thesis that “everything is a consequence of sin, and it is possible to be cured only by cleansing oneself.” Over time, the attitude of Orthodox Christians to medicine changed and, as a result, evolved to the recognition of medical feats. Some innovative areas, such as cloning or Genetic Engineering, are perceived sharply negatively by Orthodox Christians. More recently (in the 30-40s of the twentieth century), the Russian Orthodox Church actively disapproved of research in the field of nuclear energy and even the construction of the metro.

Orthodox countries make up a large percentage of total number states on the planet and are geographically scattered throughout the world, but most of all they are concentrated in Europe and the East.

There are not many religions in the modern world that have managed to preserve their rules and main dogmas, supporters and faithful servants of their faith and church. Orthodoxy is one of these religions.

Orthodoxy as a branch of Christianity

The very word “Orthodoxy” is interpreted as “correct glorification of God” or “correct service.”

This religion belongs to one of the most widespread religions in the world - Christianity, and it arose after the collapse of the Roman Empire and the division of churches in 1054 AD.

Basics of Christianity

This religion is based on dogmas, which are interpreted in Holy Scripture and in Sacred Tradition.

The first includes the book of the Bible, consisting of two parts (New and Old Testaments), and the Apocrypha, which are sacred texts that were not included in the Bible.

The second consists of seven and the works of the church fathers who lived in the second to fourth centuries AD. These people include John Chrysostom, Athanasius of Alexandrovsky, Gregory the Theologian, Basil the Great, and John of Damascus.

Distinctive features of Orthodoxy

In all Orthodox countries, the main tenets of this branch of Christianity are observed. These include the following: the trinity of God (Father, Son and Holy Spirit), salvation from the Last Judgment through confession of faith, atonement for sins, incarnation, resurrection and ascension of God the Son - Jesus Christ.

All these rules and dogmas were approved in 325 and 382 at the first two Ecumenical Councils. proclaimed them eternal, indisputable and communicated to humanity by the Lord God himself.

Orthodox countries of the world

The religion Orthodoxy is professed by approximately 220 to 250 million people. This number of believers is a tenth of all Christians on the planet. Orthodoxy is spread throughout the world, but most percentage of people who profess this religion in Greece, Moldova and Romania - 99.9%, 99.6% and 90.1%, respectively. Other Orthodox countries have a slightly lower percentage of Christians, but Serbia, Bulgaria, Georgia and Montenegro also have high percentages.

The largest number of people whose religion is Orthodoxy live in countries of Eastern Europe, the Middle East, has a large number of religious diasporas throughout the world.

List of Orthodox countries

An Orthodox country is one in which Orthodoxy is recognized as the state religion.

The country with the largest number of Orthodox Christians is the Russian Federation. In percentage terms, it is, of course, inferior to Greece, Moldova and Romania, but the number of believers significantly exceeds these Orthodox countries.

Greece - 99.9%.
Moldova - 99.9%.
Romania - 90.1%.
Serbia - 87.6%.
Bulgaria - 85.7%.
Georgia - 78.1%.
Montenegro - 75.6%.
Belarus - 74.6%.
Russia - 72.5%.
Macedonia - 64.7%.
Cyprus - 69.3%.
Ukraine - 58.5%.
Ethiopia - 51%.
Albania - 45.2%.
Estonia - 24.3%.

The spread of Orthodoxy across countries, depending on the number of believers, is as follows: in first place is Russia with the number of believers 101,450,000 people, Ethiopia has 36,060,000 Orthodox believers, Ukraine - 34,850,000, Romania - 18,750,000, Greece - 10,030,000, Serbia - 6,730,000, Bulgaria - 6,220,000, Belarus - 5,900,000, Egypt - 3,860,000, and Georgia - 3,820,000 Orthodox.

Peoples who profess Orthodoxy

Let's consider the spread of this belief among the peoples of the world, and according to statistics, most of the Orthodox are among Eastern Slavs. These include peoples such as Russians, Belarusians and Ukrainians. In second place in the popularity of Orthodoxy as a native religion are the South Slavs. These are Bulgarians, Montenegrins, Macedonians and Serbs.

Moldovans, Georgians, Romanians, Greeks and Abkhazians are also mostly Orthodox.

Orthodoxy in the Russian Federation

As noted above, the country of Russia is Orthodox, the number of believers is the largest in the world and extends over its entire large territory.

Orthodox Russia is famous for its multinationality; this country is home to a large number of peoples with different cultural and traditional heritage. But most of these people are united by their faith in the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Such Orthodox peoples of the Russian Federation include the Nenets, Yakuts, Chukchi, Chuvash, Ossetians, Udmurts, Mari, Nenets, Mordovians, Karelians, Koryaks, Vepsians, the peoples of the Komi Republic and Chuvashia.

Orthodoxy in North America

It is believed that Orthodoxy is a faith that is widespread in the Eastern part of Europe and a small part of Asia, but this religion is also present in North America, thanks to the huge diasporas of Russians, Ukrainians, Belarusians, Moldovans, Greeks and other peoples resettled from Orthodox countries .

Most residents North America- Christians, but they belong to the Catholic branch of this religion.

It's a little different in Canada and the US.

Many Canadians consider themselves Christians, but rarely attend church. Of course, there is a slight difference depending on the region of the country and the urban or rural areas. It is known that city residents are less religious than country people. The religion of Canada is mainly Christian, most Believers are Catholics, followed by other Christians, and a significant portion are Mormons.

The concentration of the latter two religious movements is very different from region to region of the country. For example, many Lutherans live in the maritime provinces, once settled there by the British.

And in Manitoba and Saskatchewan there are many Ukrainians who profess Orthodoxy and are adherents of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.

In the United States, Christians are less devout, but, compared to Europeans, they attend church more often and perform religious rituals.

Mormons are mainly concentrated in Alberta due to the migration of Americans who are representatives of this religious movement.

Basic sacraments and rituals of Orthodoxy

This Christian movement is based on seven main actions, each of which symbolizes something and strengthens human faith in the Lord God.

The first, which is performed in infancy, is baptism, which is carried out by immersing a person in water three times. This number of dives is done in honor of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. This ritual signifies a person’s spiritual birth and acceptance of the Orthodox faith.

The second action, which occurs only after baptism, is the Eucharist or communion. It is carried out through eating a small piece of bread and a sip of wine, symbolizing the eating of the body and blood of Jesus Christ.

Orthodox Christians also have access to confession, or repentance. This sacrament consists of confessing all one’s sins before God, which a person says before a priest, who, in turn, absolves sins in the name of God.

A symbol of preserving the resulting purity of the soul that was after baptism is the sacrament of confirmation.

A ritual that is performed jointly by two Orthodox Christians is a wedding, an action in which, in the name of Jesus Christ, the newlyweds are given farewell to a long family life. The ceremony is performed by a priest.

Unction is a sacrament during which a sick person is anointed with oil (wood oil), which is considered sacred. This action symbolizes the descent of God's grace on a person.

The Orthodox have another sacrament that is available only to priests and bishops. It is called priesthood and consists of the transfer of special grace from the bishop to the new priest, the validity of which is for life.