{"id":11032,"date":"2018-09-21T07:01:59","date_gmt":"2018-09-21T12:01:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/beta.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/%year%\/%monthnum%\/%day%\/pope-francis-to-visit-the-three-baltic-countries-only-one-of-which-is-majority-catholic\/"},"modified":"2024-04-14T03:14:50","modified_gmt":"2024-04-14T08:14:50","slug":"pope-francis-to-visit-the-three-baltic-countries-only-one-of-which-is-majority-catholic","status":"publish","type":"short-read","link":"https:\/\/beta.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2018\/09\/21\/pope-francis-to-visit-the-three-baltic-countries-only-one-of-which-is-majority-catholic\/","title":{"rendered":"Pope Francis to visit the three Baltic countries \u2013 only one of which is majority Catholic"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Older<\/a><\/p>\n

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Pope Francis will visit the Baltic nations of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia Sept. 22-25. The Hill of Crosses, above, is a destination for Catholic pilgrims in Lithuania, which has the largest share of Catholics among the three nations. (RenataAphotography via Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/figure>\n\n

Pope Francis begins a four-day trip<\/a> this weekend to the Baltic states \u2013 Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania \u2013 the first papal visit to these countries in 25 years.<\/p>\n\n

While the Baltic countries have a substantial Christian population, only Lithuania and Latvia have large numbers of Catholics, according to a Pew Research Center survey<\/a> conducted in 2015 and 2016. Furthermore, the Catholics in these two nations are less religious than Catholics in neighboring countries, such as Poland.<\/p>\n\n

\"Most<\/figure>\n\n

Lithuania is overwhelmingly Christian (93%), and three-quarters of its adults identify as Catholic. The adult population of Latvia also is mostly Christian (77%), but the share of Catholics in the country is smaller (23%). Substantial portions of Latvia\u2019s population are Orthodox Christians (31%) or Lutherans (19%).<\/p>\n\n

By contrast, about half of Estonians identify as Christian (51%), and only 1% of the country\u2019s adults say they are Catholic. As with Latvia, numerous Estonians are Orthodox (25%) or Lutheran (20%). Most other Estonians (45%) \u2013 and about one-in-five Latvians (21%) \u2013 are religiously unaffiliated (those who identify as atheist, agnostic or \u201cnothing in particular\u201d).<\/p>\n\n

\"Most<\/figure>\n\n

By some measures, Catholics in the Baltic states are less religious than Catholics in neighboring countries. For instance, among Catholics, the regional median for attending church at least weekly is 25%, but only 7% of Catholics in Latvia and 10% in Lithuania say they do this. (The survey sample of Estonian Catholics was not large enough to adequately measure their opinions.) By comparison, 45% of Polish Catholics say they attend church weekly or more.<\/p>\n\n

Substantial numbers of Catholics in Latvia and Lithuania have expressed a favorable opinion of Pope Francis (69% and 74%, respectively). However, in other countries in the region that have large Catholic populations, Catholics generally have a more favorable view of the pontiff (median of 83%). That being said, most other Latvian and Lithuanian Catholics do not necessarily have a negative view of the pope; they simply do not have a stated opinion about Francis. (Data in this post about Pope Francis and the Catholic Church’s policies were collected in 2015 and 2016<\/a>, before recently publicized reports<\/a> of sexual abuse<\/a> in the Catholic Church.)<\/p>\n\n

\"Many<\/figure>\n\n

Finally, many Baltic Catholics are open to some change in the church. Most Lithuanian and Latvian Catholics think the Catholic Church should alter the current prohibition on priests marrying (65% and 73%, respectively). This is similar to many of the other Catholic populations in the region (median of 63%).<\/p>\n\n

Latvian and Lithuanian Catholics are less supportive of allowing women to become priests (44% and 36%, respectively) than they are of permitting priests to marry. Again, this is similar to the views of other Catholics in the region (median of 41%).<\/p>\n\n

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Pope Francis begins a four-day trip this weekend to the Baltic states, the first papal visit to these countries in 25 years. While the Baltic countries have a substantial Christian population, only Lithuania and Latvia have large numbers of 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