Religion in Czechoslovakia

Religion In Czechoslovakia

Czechoslovakia entered the socialist era with a varied religious heritage. There were nine major creeds listed in its censuses: Roman Catholic, Uniate (Greek Catholic Church; preserving the Eastern rite and discipline but submitting to papal authority), the Evangelical Church of Czech Brethren, Lutheran, Calvinist, Orthodox, the Czech Reformed Church (the Hussites), the Old Catholic Church, and Judaism. Nearly 6 percent of the population was without religious preference. At the time of the communist takeover, two of every three citizens were Roman Catholics, but within each major ethnic group there was a sizable minority of Protestants: Bohemian Brethren in the Czech lands, Lutherans in Slovakia, and Calvinists among the Hungarians.