The main religion in Norway is The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Norway, to which 89% of the population belongs to and which is the religion of the state. Church and state are not separated in Norway, but complete religious freedom is guaranteed. The remaining 11% of the population belong to Islam, the Roman-Catholic church, various Protestant denominations, other religions or are non-religious.

Ecclesiastical and religious matters in Denmark are subject to the Constitution, the main principles being established by the stipulation that the Evangelical Lutheran Church – as the established Church of Denmark – shall be supported by the State, and also by provisions on freedom of religion, speech and assembly. State support is partly moral and political (Sunday observance legislation and legislation on church matters), partly financial and administrative (contributions to clergy salaries and pensions, the collection of church taxes, the maintenance of the national church governance by means of a Ministry of Ecclesiastical Affairs and diocesan administration, supervision, advisory services, etc.).

Of religious communities, the established church is by far the largest (encompassing 85.4% of the population in 1998). Alongside the established church various other Christian churches are represented in Denmark and have been accorded the status of officially recognised religious communities. These are (in order of size) the Roman Catholic Church with c. 35,000 members, the Danish Baptist Church with c. 5500 adult members and the Pentecostal churches with c. 5000 members; of communities with 3000 members and under mention should be made of the Seventh Day Adventists, the Catholic Apostolic Church, the Reformed Churches in Fredericia and Copenhagen, the Salvation Army, the Methodist Church, the Anglican Church and the Russian Orthodox Church in Copenhagen. In addition, with a rather more distant relationship to Christianity, there are Jehovah’s Witnesses with ca. 15,000 members and the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-Day Saints (Mormons) with c. 4500 members. Outside the National Church there are nine other independent recognised Lutheran congregations of Grundtvigian origin. (The Grundtvigian and other elective congregations form part of the National Church) The German minority in Southern Jutland has its own parishes within the National Church, with its own clergy in the four southern Jutland towns of Haderslev, Aabenraa, Sønderborg and Tønder, in addition to which they have six independent Lutheran congregations outside the National Church.

In 2000, the Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Finland had more than 4.4 million members, that is 85% of the population, registered with a parish.

The Evangelical-Lutheran Church comprises eight dioceses with nine bishops and almost 600 independent parishes. The average parish has 7,000 members, with the smallest parishes comprising only a few hundred members and the largest tens of thousands.

Freedom of religion is guaranteed in Iceland by the Constitution. There is a State church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church, to which over 85% of the population belongs. Other denominations: Evangelical Lutheran Free churches (3.5%), Roman Catholic Church (1,1%), Pentecostal and Charismatic Congregations (1.0%) and others (1.2%). Non-affiliated amount to 2.0% of the population.
The conversion of Iceland to Christianity was a unique event. A whole society abandoned its ancient heathen belief and peacefully adopted the Christian faith. This happened at the opening session of Althing, the parliament, at Thingvellir in the year 1000, when the nation faced bitter divisions. The Speaker, Thorgeir of Ljósavatn, himself a heathen, addressed Althingi and spoke the classic words: “If the law torn asunder, so will the peace”. He declared that all Icelanders should be baptized into Christianity. This decision is considered to be the most important ever taken at Althingi since its establishment in 930 AD.

I’ll cede Europe and wager that in 10 years you will not be trumpeting the secularization of Europe yourself.

The United States on the other hand (being one of the more religious counties on the planet) has been embroiled in war after war during the post WWII era.
Korean War… war of containment and against Communism

Vietnam War… against Communism

Desert Storm… against Facsism… joined by British, French, Egyptian and even Syrian forces

Operation Enduring Freedom… against Facsism

Iraqi Freedom… against Facsism

I would continue point by point but it would be a total waste of my time.

You have consistantly shown by your statements that you oppose the system that protects your rights in favor of one that is hell bent on destroying that system, as well as those rights.

You deny the religion from whence your rights derive and prefer to place them under the State. A State that can take them as easily as they give them and you can do nothing about because you have separated the State from the Church.

Yet at the same time, you seem to defend a Theocratic religion that has married itself to a Facsist/Marxist ideology that would force you to accept its ideology, give up your rights or die for refusing.

If you want to believe that crap, thats your business.

If you become pro-active and it threatens my liberties and rights, it becomes my business.

Europe in general and Scandinavia in particular are secular where religion has little or no effect on people’s daily lives. They are relatively peaceful and prosperous. The United States on the other hand (being one of the more religious counties on the planet) has been embroiled in war after war during the post WWII era. There just might be a connection there. Plus we put ourselves up as a target for all the Islamic extremists of the world to aim at.

The Pope was recently lamenting in a speech in Europe that Europeans should not forake God. Leave them alone they’re doing fine! He’s now further inflamed things by his recent anti-Islamic remarks, Great job Pope!

“For ten long, weary years prior to 9/11, WBC warned you daily on the mean streets of this nation
that your sodomite sins would be avenged by an angry God “except ye repent.” You presecuted us,
thereby aggravating your great transgression. On 9/11/01, God Almighty dealt backslidden America
a staggering blow.

What do either quotes have to do with your So maybe we should give freedom from religion a chance
and my suggestion…

So maybe you should do a little research into societies that have done that and let us know how they fared or are faring now?

“Therefore, I am convinced that I am acting as the agent of our Creator. By fighting off the Jews, I am doing the Lord’s Work.”

Mussolini was Catholic, Italy is and was Catholic

I vote the latter. ;^)

Looks like we were in “lockstep” there. Ha! Either that or the precise incidents of abject dim-wittedness are apparent to anyone who’d happen upon the comment.

I was apparently writing up my comment while you were posting…good response.

Especially in light of your stating as fact that Hitler was Catholic.

The fact is, Hitler was born into a Catholic family but he specifically rejected Catholicism and he rejected Christianity in general.

Historians agree that Hitler was pointedly anti-Christian.

This addresses perversion of religion but not “freedom from religion”. Try again.

READ WHAT FFRF HAS WRITTEN FOR PETE’S SAKE. IT IS FAR MORE CLEAR THAN YOU CARE TO ADMIT. YOU GIVE THESE FACSISTS FOR MORE CREDIT THAN THEY DESERVE.

JUST LOOK AT THE TITLE: “PICTURE A WORLD FREE FROM RELIGION” — NO QUALIFIER THERE IS THERE?

“Lest we not forget Germany, Italy, and Japan just a few short years ago started a thing called WWII. I believe Germany and Italy were strongly Christian countries, in fact Adolf himself was Catholic. Japan was a non-Christian but spiritual country.”

Historical illiteracy does not promote your case SS. Because you “believe” what you write doesn’t make the facts conform to your “belief.” Not one of those countries waged war IN THE NAME OF any god or because of any religious influence. Hitler WAS NOT “a Catholic” and specifically rejected Christianity as a step-child to Judaism in favor of radical naturalism (the “perfection” of society through eugenics — a clearly non-Christian pursuit) in a nationalist, state-as-god context, which is prevelant today not on the Right, but on the Left.

Up in smoke, SS.