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Religious Beliefs and Spirituality in Spain

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Spain is a country with a deep religious tradition.  For centuries now, Roman Catholicism has been the primary religious faith of the Spanish people, even though it no longer holds any official status under the law in the new democratic Spain.  Still, in all Spanish public schools, students are required to take either a religion or ethics class as part of the regular curriculum, with Roman Catholicism being the only choice for the former.  Other religious faiths are also adhered to in present day Spain, although, as you will see below, none of these account for a very sizable minority.  To help paint a clearer picture with regard to Spain and religion, below we will take a closer look at the various faiths practiced within the country, beginning with Roman Catholicism.  We will also discuss, in the final section the present-day attitude of Spaniards when it comes to religion.

Roman Catholicism and Spain

The Cathedral of BurgosWhile Roman Catholicism is no longer an official state religion in Spain, as it was under the Franco regime, an overwhelming percent of the population is, at least in some way, still associated with the church.  According to an April 2012 study by the Spanish Center of Sociological Research, roughly 71 percent of the Spanish population self-identifies as Roman Catholic.  Other faiths account for a combined 2.7 percent of the population, while approximately 24 percent identify with no religion (9.4 percent of this total are atheists).

The estimated population of Spain currently stands at roughly 47.2 million.  When you compare this figure to our data above, you’ll see that there are approximately 33 million Catholics in Spain, 7 million agnostics, 4.5 million atheists, and only about 1.2 million people practicing something other than Catholicism.  These numbers would seem to suggest that the Sunday highway traffic in Spain—as the country’s 33 million Catholics are heading to mass—would be bumper to bumper with cars.  This, as you might have guessed, is not the case. 

In the same April 2012 study, the data showed that the preponderance of Spaniards do not participate regularly in religious services.  In fact, of those residents who identify themselves as religious, only 14 percent attend church every Sunday or multiple times a week. Another 59 percent admit they “never or hardly ever” attend church services, 15 percent attend church a few times a year, and 8 percent attend church once or twice a month.  This failure to participate in religious services has led to a downsizing of the Catholic church in recent years.  The number of parish priests in Spain gradually diminished from 24,300 in 1975 to 19,307 in 2005. Additionally, the number of Nuns also dropped 6.9% during that period to 54,160 in the period 2000-2005.

The Cathedral of Salamanca, SourceOverall, about 22 percent of the population attends religious services at least once per month.  This figure is down dramatically from that of the middle of the 20 century, when nearly half of all religious Spaniards attended mass frequently.  It is not all bad news, though, when it comes to the future of the Catholic Church. While the Spanish society has certainly become increasingly more secular in the last several decades, the recent influx of Latin American immigrants is slowly helping the Catholic Church to recover.

Other Religious Faiths Practiced in Spain

Although Roman Catholicism is far and away the most practiced faith in the Kingdom of Spain, nearly 3 percent of the population practices something other than Catholicism.

People of Muslim faith make up the most prevalent religious minority in Spain.  This may seem rather odd considering that after the Reconquista in 1492; all Islamic adherents were expelled from the country, but the colonial expansion in northwestern Africa in the 19 century gave a number of the inhabitants living in Spanish Morocco and Western Sahara full citizenship.  in addition, the number of Muslims has also been bolstered by recent immigration, particularly from Algeria and Morocco.  According to a study conducted by Unión de comunidades islámicas de España, there are currently about 1.5 million individuals of Muslim background living in Spain.  The majority of these inhabitants are immigrants who hail from Morocco and other African countries. However, according to the same study, 30 percent of Spain’s Islamic followers were actually born in the country. 

Also expelled after the Reconquista were the Jews, who now total roughly 62,000 in Spain, or 0.14 percent of the population.  They were allowed to re-enter the country in the 19 century, although most of the current followers of Judaism arrived during the past century.

Protestants of various denominations account for the second-largest religious minority in Spain, numbering approximately 120,000.  They are followed (after the practitioners of Judaism) by Jehovah’s Witnesses, with roughly 105,000 members, and Mormons, who total 46,000 in numbers.  Recent immigration into Spain has also led to an increasing number of Hindus, Buddhists and Sikhs.

Although most Spaniards are Roman Catholics, about 300,000 Muslims live in Spain. A group of Muslims called Moors came to Spain from northern Africa in 711 A.D. The Moors ruled the country for hundreds of years. Muslims follow the religion of Islam, which is based on the teachings of God, whom they call Allah, and his prophet Muhammad. These teachings are found in the holy book called the Qur´an, which is written in the Arabic language.

About 12,000 Jews also live in Spain. Jew first came to Spain with Romans, who invaded the country around 200 B.C. and ruled for the next 600 years. Jews follow the teachings of their holy book, the Torah, which is written in the Hebrew language.

Spanish Attitudes about Religion

The inside view of a church in Catalonia, SourceAccording to the most recent Eurobarometer poll—an instrument used to collect certain social data regarding European countries and their citizens:
  • Fifty-nine percent of Spaniards responded that “they believe in God.”
  • Twenty-one percent answered that “they believe there is some sort of spirit or life force”
  • And nineteen percent responded that “they do not believe there is any sort of spirit, God or life force.”

While the majority of Spanish citizens remain Catholic, most of them, particularly the younger inhabitants, do not always adhere to the Church’s traditionalist ways and moral doctrine, especially on issues such as pre-marital sex, contraception, and sexual orientation.  According to the general Western European secularization, today Agnosticism and Atheism enjoy a certain amount of social prestige and status.  Culture wars and discussions now have more to do with politics than religion, and the huge lack of popularity of typically religious-related issues like Creationism prevent them from being used in such conflicts.  In an effort to reach out to the Spanish youth, the Catholic Church has recently initiated many revival efforts, but thus far these efforts have produced only minimal results.  Perhaps this is because only 3% of Spaniards, according to the Eurobarometer study in 2008, consider religion as one of their three most important values, even lower than the European average of 7 percent.

When King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella ruled Spain in the 1400s and 1500s, they decreed that all Spaniards must become Roman Catholics. People who practiced other religions, such as Islam or Judaism, where forced to change religions. If they did not, they were killed or exiled from Spain. Today, almost 97 percent of Spain´s population is Roman Catholic, although Muslims and Jews in the country now practice their religions freely.

Roman Catholicism

Roman Catholicism is one of the oldest denominations of Christianity. Christianity is based on the teachings of Jesus Christ, whom Christians believe is the Son of God. His life story and teaching are written in the holy book called the New Testament, which is part of the Bible. In addition to worshiping Christ, Catholics pray to his mother, Mary, and to hundreds of holy people, called saints, through whom God is said to have performed miracles.

Santiago de Compostela

Many Christians honor saints by making special journeys, called pilgrimages, to the places where they are buried. For hundred of years, pilgrims from all over the world have visited the town of Santiago de Compostela, in northern Spain. They come to celebrate Saint James´ Day on July 25. They believe that Saint James, whom Spaniards call Santiago, is buried in the town´s cathedral. Saint James is Spain´s patron saint, which means that he protects the country from danger.

Legend has it that just as a boat carrying Saint James´ body arrived at Santiago de Compostela, a horse and rider fell into the ocean. Instead of drowning, they emerged from the sea covered in scallop shells. People believe that Saint James was responsible for this miracle. Today, as pilgrims travel thousands of miles on foot, bicycle, or horseback to Santiago de Compostela, they wear scallop shells as a reminder of the miracle. One the pilgrims arrive at Santiago de Compostela, they visit Saint James´ tomb and rub the neck of his statue to receive a blessing.

Romería del Rocío

Christians in Spain go on another important pilgrimage to the village of El Rocío, in southern Spain. In the 1400s, a hunter there found a statue of Mary in a tree trunk, in the marshes of the Guadalquivir River. At first, people from nearby villages journeyed once a year to see the statue. They believed that it had magical healing powers and could perform miracles. Now, almost one million pilgrims travel from all over Spain to see the statue in the church of Nuestra Señora del Rocío, or Our Lady of the Dew. They shout “Viva la Reina de las Marismas!” or “Hurray for the Queen of the Marshes!” Several times during the week-long festival, which is called Romería del Rocío, people carry Mary´s statue around the village. Crowds of faithful pilgrims follow the statue and try to touch it for good luck.