Thursday 27 November 2014

Estonia: The Most Godless Nation on Earth


This is a very interesting article about religion in Estonia written by New Zealand based journalist Scott Yeoman. In this piece he highlights many key facts, namely how Estonia used to be quite a religious country with 80% of the population identifying as Lutheran. That all changed however with the Soviet and German occupations that repressed religion for over half a century.

Looking back on my grandparents' generation in Estonia, religion once played an integral role in society. Most Estonians were baptised, had three godparents and confirmation was a very important day in a young person's life. Preparations were done weeks and months in advance. Today roughly 10% of the population identify as being Lutheran representing a significant reduction in church attendance.

To read Scott Yeoman's full story, please click here: The most godless nation on earth.