Sweden was pagan In its broadest definition, pagan denotes all non-Abrahamic religions, that is to say it denotes all religions other than Judaism, Christianity, and Islam before the 11th century, when the country underwent Christianization The historical phenomenon of Christianization, the conversion of individuals to Christianity or the conversion of entire peoples at once, also includes the practice of converting native pagan practices and culture, pagan religious imagery, pagan sites and the pagan calendar to Christian uses, due to the Christian efforts at proselytism (evangelism). Since the Protestant Reformation The Protestant Reformation was a Christian reform movement in Europe which is generally deemed to have begun with Martin Luther's Ninety-Five Theses in 1517 although a number of precursors such as Johannes Hus predate that event. The Reformation is considered to have ended with the Peace of Westphalia in 1648; however, many of the denominations in the 1530s, the country is Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Western Christianity that identifies with the teachings of the 16th century German reformer Martin Luther. Luther's efforts to reform the theology and practice of the church launched the Protestant Reformation. The reactions of governmental and churchly authorities to the international spread of his writings,, with the Church of Sweden The Church of Sweden is the largest church in Sweden. The Church of Sweden professes the Lutheran branch of Christianity, and is a member of the Porvoo Communion. With almost 6.9 million members, it is the largest Lutheran church in the world. Until 2000 it held the position of state church. As of 2008 72.9% (down 1,4 % compared to 2007) of the (Swedish Swedish ( svenska ) is a North Germanic language, spoken by approximately 10 million people, predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along the coast and on the Åland islands. It is to a considerable extent mutually intelligible with Norwegian and to a lesser extent with Danish (see especially "Classification"). Along: Svenska kyrkan) being allowed the status of state church A state religion is a religious body or creed officially endorsed by the state. Practically, a state without a state religion is called a secular state. The term state church is associated with Christianity, and is sometimes used to denote a specific national branch of Christianity. Closely related to state churches are what sociologists call until 2000. As of 2008, 72.9% of the Swedes were members of the church, a drop of 1.4 % compared to 2007. Less than 4 percent of the Church of Sweden membership attends public worship during an average week; about 2 percent are regular attenders.[1]
Numerous other religious groups are represented in the Swedish society. The history of the Jews in Sweden can be traced back to the seventeenth century. Due to immigration, there is also a significant number of Swedish Muslims During the eighteenth century, Sweden formed an alliance with the Ottoman Empire. This, coupled with the fact that the Swedish king Carl XII lived under Ottoman protection from 1709 to 1714, made the Swedes interested in Islam. Soon, Sweden granted freedom of worship to Muslims. During the eighteenth century, many dissertations about Islam were, as well as Syriac Christians Syriac Christianity is an ancient near Eastern Christian group represented by denominations primarily in the Middle East and in Kerala, India. Particularly notable is the liturgical use of ancient Syriac, a dialect related to the Aramaic of Jesus. Immigration, most notably from Poland Poland /ˈpoʊlənd/ (Polish: Polska), officially the Republic of Poland (Rzeczpospolita Polska), is a country in Eastern Europe. Poland is bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north. The total and former Yugoslavia Yugoslavia is a term that describes three political entities that existed successively on the Balkan Peninsula in Europe, during most of the 20th century, is also the reason behind the fast growth of the Catholic Church in Sweden.
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