[AneroidOcean]

(04-02-2019 04:29 AM)Pride male Wrote:  

∆Which country are you living in?

Sometimes I wonder why forum users don't look at the most basic information instead of just blurting out a question. Next to his profile as to what country he's in it lists Albania. Sure, he can set this to whatever he wants regardless of what country he's in, but a quick query on Albania's religious landscape shows the following which pretty much matches up with what he's stated. Why blurt out questions instead of just using your reason first?

Quote:

Albania is a secular state without an official religion, with the freedom of religion being a constitutional right.[274] The 2011 census, for the first time since 1930, included an optional open-ended question on religion; the census recorded a majority of Muslims (58.79%), which include Sunni (56.70%) and Bektashi Muslims (2.09%).[275] Christians, making up 16.92% of the population, include Roman Catholics (10.03%), Orthodox (6.75%) and evangelical Protestants (0.14%).[276] Atheists accounted for 2.5% of the population and 5.49% were non-affiliated believers, while 13.79% preferred not to answer.[276]

The preliminary results of the 2011 census seemed to give widely different results, with 70% of respondents refusing to declare belief in any of the listed faiths.[277][278] The Albanian Orthodox Church officially refused to recognize the results, claiming that 24% of the total population adhered to its faith.[279][280] Some Muslim Community officials expressed unhappiness with the data claiming that many Muslims were not counted and that the number of adherents numbered some 70% of the Albanian population.[281][282] The Albanian Catholic Bishops Conference also cast doubts on the census, complaining that many of its believers were not contacted.[283] The Muslim Albanians are spread throughout the country. Orthodox and Bektashis are mostly found in the south, whereas Catholics mainly live in the north.[284] In 2008, there were 694 Catholic churches and 425 orthodox churches, 568 mosques and 70 bektashi tekkes in the country.[285][286]

Religious tolerance is one of the most important values of the tradition of the Albanians. It is widely accepted that Albanians generally value a peaceful coexistence among the believers of different religious communities in the country.[287][288] During an official visit in Tirana, Pope Francis hailed Albania as model of religious harmony, due to the long tradition of religious coexistence and tolerance.[289] The country is ranked among the least religious countries in the world.[290] Furthermore, religion plays an important role in the lives of only 39% of the country's population.[291] In the WIN/Gallup International Report of 2016, 56% of the Albanian people considered themselves religious, 30% considered themselves non-religious, while 9% defined themselves as convinced atheists; 80% believed in God and 40% believed in life after death. However, 40% believed in hell, while 42% believed in heaven.[292]

During classical times, there are thought to have been about seventy Christian families in Durrës, as early as the time of the Apostles.[293] The Archbishopric of Durrës was purportedly founded by Paul the Apostle, while preaching in Illyria and Epirus.[294][295] Meanwhile, in medieval times, the Albanian people first appeared within historical records from the Byzantines. At this point, they were mostly Christianized. Islam arrived for the first time in the late 9th century to the region, when Arabs raided parts of the eastern banks of the Adriatic Sea.[296] It later emerged as the majority religion, during the centuries of Ottoman Period,[297] though a significant Christian minority remained.

During modern times, the Albanian republican, monarchic and later communist regimes followed a systematic policy of separating religion from official functions and cultural life. The country has never had an official religion either as a republic or as a kingdom.