What is the main religion in italy today

Religious Beliefs and Spirituality in Italy

The area that comprises the modern state of Italy never formed a political unit during the first 15 centuries of Christianity, and for many centuries the region was ruled by petty states. Napoleon formed the Kingdom of Italy in 1805, and by 1870 the region had attained its modern political boundaries. Following World War I, the fascist leader Benito Mussolini seized control, and the region entered World War II as an ally of Germany. In 1946 it became a republic, and joined NATO as a charter member in 1949. Italy has been a major force in the political and economic unification of Europe as part of the European Economic Community (EEC) and adopted the euro in 1999. Northern Italy is more industrialized, and hence more affluent, than the agricultural south, which is troubled by organized crime, corruption and unemployment, which reached 20 percent by 2000.

Religion in Italy

Although Italy is very diverse from a cultural standpoint, the country is fairly homogenous both linguistically (the majority of the population speaks Italian) and religiously, as Roman Catholicism is the religious faith of choice for nearly 90 percent of the Italian population.

Trinità dei Monti church, Rome, Source The Italian Constitution provides for freedom of religion, and the government is thought to respect this right in practice, not tolerating its abuse, either by government or private action. There is no state religion of Italy, and although the constitution prohibits state support for private schools, the Catholic Church does enjoy some privileges, stemming from its sovereign status and its historical authority, which is not applicable to other faiths.

The Catholic Church is allowed to select Catholic teachers, paid by the State, to provide instruction in «hour of religion» courses taught in the public schools, although this class is optional, and students who do not wish to attend are free to study other subjects. While historically this instruction involved Catholic priests teaching Catechism, today church-selected instructors now may be either lay or religious, and their instruction should include material relevant to non-Catholic faiths. Problems may arise in small communities where information about other faiths and the numbers of non-Catholic communicants is limited.

The status of the Roman Catholic Church in Italy has been determined by a series of accords with the Italian government. The Lateran Pacts of 1929, which were confirmed by the present Constitution, affirms that the State of Vatican City be recognized by Italy as an independent, sovereign entity. While preserving that recognition, in 1984 Italy and the Vatican updated several provisions of the 1929 Pacts, which included the end of Roman Catholicism as Italy’s formal state religion.

While most of Italy’s population self-identifies as Roman Catholic, there are also several religious minorities in the country, including Protestants, Jews, Jehovah’s Witnesses and Muslims. Although Jehovah’s Witnesses form the second largest denomination among native-born citizens, numbering approximately 400,000, increasing immigration has made Islam the second-most practiced faith in Italy, with somewhere between 800,000 and 1.5 million adherents.

Immigration, both legal and illegal, continues to add large groups of non-Christian residents to Italy’s overall population, mainly Muslims, from North Africa, South Asia, Albania, and the Middle East. Buddhists number some 60,000 in Italy, and Scientologists claim to have approximately 100,000 members. Waldensians estimate approximately 30,000 members (concentrated mainly in the northwest), and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) has approximately 20,000 members. A Jewish community of approximately 30,000 persons maintains synagogues in 21 cities. Other significant religious communities include Orthodox churches, small Protestant groups, Japanese Buddhists, the Baha’i Faith, and South Asian Hindus. Recent polls show that approximately 14% of the population consider themselves to be either atheists or agnostics.

The relatively harmonious relationship between the various religions in Italy has contributed to the country’s religious freedom, though the influential role played by the Catholic Church in Italian society has led to controversy when church teachings have appeared to influence Catholic legislators on matters of public policy.

Roman Catholicism in Italy: Historically and Today

Roman Catholicism has played an enormous role in Italy’s history and continues to dominate as the most prominent faith in the country today. In the following section we will take a closer look at Catholicism as it relates to Italy. This section is divided into three parts: from the early beginnings of Christianity through the 15 century; from the 16 century to roughly the end of the 18 century; and from the 19 century to the present.

Early Christianity through the 15 Century

Christianity began to seep into Italy not long after the death of Christ. A Christian population existed in Rome from about 50 AD and served as the prime center for the propagation of the new faith in Italy under the Roman Empire. Christianity faced larger obstacles in Italy than in lands to the east, for in the West both the government and the aristocracy, committed to the state religion as part of the Roman way of life, regarded it as nothing but a superstition. Even people seeking spiritual salvation and those in the country’s rural areas tended to cling to their local cults and/or seek solace in the mysterious new religions of the Orient.

The key areas of Christian dissemination up until the end of the 2 century were the central and southern portions of Italy, where the religion spread from Rome and from other towns that had Eastern connections and contained Greek, Jewish or Syrian communities. In the region of Rome itself, the Christian Church was for several generations an immigrant church, composed largely of people from the Greek-speaking Levant. In fact, Greek was the official language of Catholicism up until the end of the 2nd century, when Latin membership spiked and the Latin language replaced Greek. Although the Christian community in Italy exceeded 25,000 members by 250 AD, outside of Rome, participation was fairly meager at best. In northern Italy, as opposed to peninsular Italy, Christianity spread much more slowly.

By the close of the 2 century, the main blueprints for a creating an Episcopal diocese in peninsular Italy had been clearly drawn, although such dioceses would be slower to start in the north. In accordance with ancient custom, Italian bishops were elected by the clergy and the people of their dioceses. Given the decay of the Roman Empire and the influx of the Barbarian Nations to the west, the bishops assumed a position of leadership in their region. They protected people against the barbarians, organized public services to aid the poor and helped ransom captives. Many public functions passed into their hands, and in 554 the Pragmatic Sanction issued by Emperor Justinian legalized the governmental functions that the Italian bishops had assumed.

The relationship between the papacy and the Lombards improved under Lombard Queen Theudelinda, and although an anti-Catholic reaction soon followed, the 7th century saw both the monarchy and people of Italy embracing Catholicism.

During the 8th century in Italy, the tensions between the papacy and the Byzantine emperors reached their peak. These emperors, known locally as “Caesaropapists,» claimed the right to sanction papal elections and to intervene in church matters. The crisis came to a boiling point in the year 751, when the Lombard King Aistulf captured Ravenna and threatened the Duchy of Rome. Byzantine military power in central Italy collapsed, and without protection against the Lombards, the papacy turned to the rising power of the Franks in the north. In 754 Pope Stephen II crossed the Alps and made a personal appeal to Frankish King Pepin III (the Short), conferring upon him and his sons the title of Patricius Romanorum, or defenders of Rome. In campaigns in 754–755 and 756 Pepin regained the territory, which he conferred upon the papacy, thus creating the states of the church.

The Roman Vatican, Source The next five centuries of Italy’s—and the church’s—destiny was bound up with the Carolingian kings and their successors in Germany. The Frankish semi-theocratic notion of royal power was now transplanted to Italy, where it severely altered Church-State relations. The royal right to authenticate any Episcopal election in the Lombard kingdom was established, together with the principle that the bishop’s post was in part a royal office involving obligations to the State, and that the bishop-elect must be the king’s faithful servant (fidelis ). By the Roman edict of 824, Lothair I, co-emperor with Louis I the Pious, affirmed the right of the emperor to confirm papal elections as well.

Family feuds and wars eventually led to the downfall of the Carolingian Empire. In 888, following the deposition of Emperor Charles III the Fat, Italy was detached from the empire and formed a separate kingdom, albeit one devoid of national character. The Kingdom of Italy (889-962) saw an endless struggle between kings who were merely after personal power. What’s more, the region’s growing anarchy was intensified by a growing Muslim occupation.

By the end of the 9th century the papacy had become an almost purely local institution. Attempts on the part of individual popes to secure foreign protection or to carry out needed reforms produced no lasting results, and the north Italian dioceses were increasingly immersed in political struggles.

The Ottoman Period and Italy

The involvement of the German King Otto I (936–973) in Italian politics meant that there was once again a strong Germanic power in Italy. In 962 Otto intervened in Rome to protect Pope John XII against the continued encroachments of Berengar and was crowned Roman emperor by the pope, thus reviving the empire of Charlemagne and establishing the personal union between Germany and Italy later known as the Holy Roman Empire.

The spiritual climate in Italy changed radically under Otto’s grandson, Emperor Otto III (983–1002). Influenced by Byzantine ideas, Otto wished to make Rome the capital of a Christian Roman Empire, a universal state ruled by a Christian emperor. He was assisted by a number of people in this endeavor, including Leo of Vercelli, who received from Otto III a strategic bishop’s position in northern Italy. Practical statesmen, these men realized that their goals could be realized only through German power and Church personnel.

The Norman Kingdom

Southern Italy, including Sicily, did not form part of the Carolingian Empire and therefore pursued an entirely different course of development from that of northern and central Italy. Eventually, the southern region was conquered by Norman adventurers in the 11th century. Relations between the Normans and the papacy were at first hostile, but Pope Nicholas II recognized the Norman conquest as an accomplished fact and conceded Apulia, Calabria and Sicily. The Norman rulers favored the introduction of Latin monasticism into their dominions as a means of consolidating their power. While the Greek rite and Muslim religious practices were tolerated, most members of these groups gradually passed over to the Latin rite. The Norman monarchy attained its height under King Roger II of Sicily (1130–54), under whom Sicily and the mainland of southern Italy were united.

The Late Middle Ages

Towards the Late Middle Ages (1300-1500), northern and central Italy still formed part of the Holy Roman Empire, but save for the fruitless expedition of Emperor Henry VII (1310–13), the emperors made no real attempt to assert effective control. In the south Pope Boniface VIII and Charles II of Anjou finally ended the 20-year war of the Sicilian Vespers in 1302, by recognizing a prince of the house of Aragon as the ruler of Sicily.

In the 14th century, a series of ruthless tyrants expanded their states through consolidation and conquest. Of the dozen or more principalities into which Italy was eventually divided, the most important were the Duchy of Milan, the republics of Venice and Florence, the States of the Church and the kingdom of Naples, all of whose shifting alliances and alignments in the 15th century were aimed at maintaining a balance of power.

For the papacy, the later Middle Ages was a period of humiliation and division, as its very identification with Rome was broken during the 70-plus years of the Avignon papacy in France. The long residence of the popes at Avignon (1309–78) was due in part to the uprisings in Rome that made the city unsafe and the Papal States almost ungovernable. Papal taxation came to rest very heavily upon the churches and monasteries, and papal control over the dioceses was tightened by increased use of reservations. Yet the economic condition of the Church in Italy steadily deteriorated. The northern Church had been impoverished by 1500 largely as a result of the passage of its property into the hands of land speculators and tenants whose rents had remained stationary despite general inflation. Nevertheless the great prelates, in true Renaissance style, carried out expensive building and artistic programs.

Contrary to popular opinion, most historians do not regard the Italian Renaissance as a predominately antireligious or pagan period. In fact, the period, especially during the 14th century, was a great age of religion; the plague epidemics at mid-century were followed by a wave of religious feeling among all classes that was vividly reflected in the art of the time.

16 Century through 18 Century

European politics entered a new era in 1516 with the accession of Charles I as king of Spain; three years later he became Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, as successor to Emperor Maximilian and heir of the vast Hapsburg kingdoms. It was inevitable that the rivalry between the Valois family from France and the Spanish Hapsburgs should have an Italian phase—and an important one.

Pope Leo X and Henry VIII supported Charles V against the French, and in 1522 the French lost Milan, Parma, Piacenza and Genoa. French forces returned in force in 1524, recapturing Milan, but in 1525 the Spanish army, under the command of Duke Charles de Bourbon, inflicted an overwhelming defeat on Francis I at Pavia. The French king was captured and taken as a prisoner to Madrid. Despite the Treaty of Madrid (January 1526) in which, among other things, he agreed to abandon all claims to Italy, Francis formed a new coalition, the League of Cognac, against Charles V a few months later.

The French coalition included Pope Clement VII (1523–34), Milan, Venice and Florence. The pope’s involvement in the League of Cognac, which failed to have any success, led to the terrible sack of Rome by the Spanish and German mercenaries of Emperor Charles in May of 1527. Clement himself for a time was a virtual prisoner. By the 1529 Treaty of Barcelona the emperor agreed that the Papal States should be restored to the pope and that the Medici should again rule Florence. Shortly thereafter the Treaty of Cambrai held that France again give up her claims to Italy, Venice had to return her conquests, Francesco Sforza received Milan and Alessandro de’ Medici was confirmed as hereditary ruler for life. Charles V was solemnly crowned by the pope as emperor and king of Italy on Feb. 23, 1530.

By the mid-16th century, large swaths of Italy were directly under foreign control; states that had enjoyed titular independence were reduced to a passive role in European politics, their fortunes often determined by battles fought by armies of great foreign powers on battlefields outside of Italy. Italy no longer played a major role in European trade and commerce, although the 18th century would see a resurgence of Italian intellectual life and achievement. The largest state in Italy during this period was that ruled by the Catholic popes; of the other states, which were at least somewhat independent, the most important were Venice, Genoa and Savoy.

18 Century

The Wars of the Spanish Succession produced major changes in Italy, and in the fortunes of the independent Italian states. Politically, there was no essential change in the Papal States, but on the religious side this was a difficult period in the internal history of the Church.

Under Austrian administration, in the last half of the 18th century, Lombardy and Tuscany enjoyed a period of peace and prosperity and benefited from a series of reforms aimed at improving agriculture, taxation, criminal law and education. However, in these areas, as in Savoy and elsewhere in Italy outside the Papal States, the eradication of clerical privileges, suppression of monasteries, and secularization of other forms of Church property all revealed the spread of Enlightenment policy and its influence on government, especially after Emperor Joseph II (1780–90) replaced Maria Theresa on the throne of Austria. The ideas of the French philosophers also were spreading in Italy, and a national patriotism distinct from the local patriotism of the past was beginning to develop.

19 Century to the Present

By 1789, when the French revolution began, the enlightenment had infiltrated from France into Italy by means of Freemasonry. During this time, the Church underwent a severe structural crisis, the result of having its economic privileges abolished, much of its property seized, and its religious orders suppressed. Fortunately the labors of St. Alphonsus de Liguori, Pio Lanteri and the St. Thomas academies helped to check this Jacobinism, which seemed on the point of making greater advances.

The second period of French domination (1800–14) saw groups of patriots come out in support of the first Italian republic, and also witnessed the negotiations for the Italian concordat of 1803, modeled on the French concordat of 1801. Among the most important consequences of the French rule were the capture and exile of Popes Pius VI and Pius VII and the suppression of the papal temporal power with the seizure of the states of the church (1797, 1808).

The Congress of Vienna, held from November 1814 to June 1815, returned Italy to its former (ancient) self. Papal temporal power and the Church’s rights and privileges were restored, thanks to the diplomatic accomplishments of Cardinal Ercole Consalvi.

While the first Vatican Council (1869–70) defined the papal spiritual prerogatives of primacy and infallibility, the final loss of the States of the Church at this time terminated effectively the pope’s political power.

In the face of the radicalism of the 19th century, the Church showed its strength by resisting corrosive structural and doctrinal elements and by making adjustments to the changed situation. During the Risorgimento (the period of Italian unification) the two most outstanding developments in the Church were the remarkable growth of religious congregations and the development of the modern Catholic movement. More than 300 religious congregations of women were founded in Italy between 1815 and 1915, besides many institutes for men. Like the vast majority of modern congregations, most of these dedicated themselves to the church through education, charitable and social services or missionary endeavors. The most phenomenal growth was experienced by the Salesians, founded by St. John Bosco, and the Salesian sisters, started by him in conjunction with St. Maria Mazzarello; together these two groups spread throughout the world.

Although Catholics were eager to end the strained relations between Church and State, not all agreed on the same solution. Conciliation was favored by some of Italy’s most important figures, while others feared that conciliation seemed inopportune; they demanded the restoration of all the Church’s rights and privileges, including the return of the papal temporal power.

A third group abided by the view of Pius IX, who was influenced by Cardinal Giacomo. This group created organizations that rejected the political unification of Italy and the selection of Rome as the capital. They also advocated active and passive abstention from parliamentary life. To these ends Giambattista Casoni (d. 1919) started an association for the defense of the Church (1865) in Bologna. Meanwhile, Mario Fani (1845–69) and Giovanni Acquaderni (1838–1922) created the Society of Italian Catholic Youth (1867).

20 Century

During World War I, the understanding between Church and State culminated in the Unione Sacra (1916), whereby the government instituted military chaplains and abandoned anticlerical polemics, while the hierarchy appealed for solidarity behind the endangered fatherland. Fascism ended all democratic liberties (1922–26), but it made peace with the Church and papacy in the Lateran Pacts (1929), which established Catholicism as the state religion. Benito Mussolini, the Duce of Italy until 1943, conceded privileges and favors to the Church in order to have its leaders support his dictatorial and imperialistic policies, although among the laity dissension arose over problems of liberty and racism. After Mussolini’s downfall in 1943 many Catholics participated in the resistance movement in committees of liberation and joined the Christian Democratic Party. Among these was Father Giuseppe Dossetti (d. 1996), who would serve in the country’s first national assembly before going on to found the Small Family of the Annunciation in 1954.

In 1946, following its defeat in the Second World War, Italy became a republic. Its new constitution, dated Jan. 1, 1948, declared that Church-State relations would continue to be regulated by the Lateran Pacts, which could be modified only by bilateral agreements. The Christian Democratic Party, which headed the new government, attempted reconstruction and education of the masses while battling political parties and syndicates ranging from the extreme right (Movimento Sociale Italiano) to the Communist extreme left. Under the new constitution, the state was prohibited from funding private schools.

Influenced by the increasingly liberalized morals of the 20th century, Italians began to stray from Church doctrine in the late 20th century. 1971 saw the legalization of divorce. In 1978 the government passed legislation legalizing abortion, and a Church-led referendum on the new law three years later was unsuccessful in its efforts to preserve the sanctity of human life. Concerns over declining enrollments at Church-run schools became cause for concern beginning in the 1960s; by 2000, Catholic schools educated approximately a third of all Italian children, despite the government’s repeated unwillingness to extend subsidies to parents.

Religious procession, Cerasuolo, Source In part because of the influence of a radicalized liberal party within the government, the role of the Church in the 1980s and 1990s became increasingly subdued relative to its former influential position within both society and politics. In 1984, while preserving the recognition of the state of Vatican City as an independent, sovereign entity extended under the Lateran Pacts, a secularized Italy and the Vatican updated several provisions of the 1929 accords, diminishing a number of privileges formerly granted to the church and ending the status of Roman Catholicism as the religion of the Italian state. The state extended certain financial and other privileges to not just the Catholic Church but to each of Italy’s recognized faiths, although it remained unwilling to help fund parochial education. The increasing secularization of the country resulted in the demand for the removal of crucifixes and other symbols that had been displayed in courtrooms, government offices and other public places for many years.

21 Century

By the year 2012, there were 25,806 parishes in Italy tended by 36,566 diocesan and 18,930 religions priests. Other religious members included 4,100 brothers and 115,775 sisters. In response to the Church’s shifting demographics, a new seminary was opened to provide a new home for some of the country’s aging priests. Despite the many social, educational and humanitarian efforts that continued to occupy Church members, calls for drug legalization, euthanasia and stem cell research required vigilance and outspokenness on the part of Italian bishops, as well as the pope.

Church leaders also aggressively spoke out against same-sex marriage, cloning, income inequality and abortion.

Other Religions Practiced in Italy

If you include all people who call Italy home, Islam is the second-most practiced religious faith in the country, with over 1 million adherents and some 500 mosques.

Muslim presence in Italy dates back to the 9th century, when Sicily came under control of the Abbasid Caliphate. There was also a large Muslim presence in Italy from 827 until 1300 (the destruction of the last Muslim settlement of Lucera). From that point forward, Islam was very minor in Italy until the 20 century.

During the 20th century, the first Somali immigrants from Italian Somaliland began to arrive. In more recent years, there has been Muslim migration from Morocco, Egypt, and Tunisia, among other areas in Africa and southern Asia. Although Italians are free to practice the religious of their choice, Islam is not recognized by law in the country.

Jehovah’s Witnesses make up the third-largest religious group in Italy, with roughly 400,000 members, while practitioners of Judaism number approximately 45,000. Other minority religious groups include Protestants, Buddhists, Hindus and Eastern Orthodox, among a few others.

The Religious Demographics Of Italy

Italy’s old Catholic churches, such as the Pisa Cathedral neighboring the famous Leaning Tower of Pisa, are some of its most famous sites.

Italy is among Europe’s most developed countries covering an estimated area of 116,347 square miles. Italy shares its borders with Austria, France, San Marino Vatican City, and Slovenia. It is the third most populous country in Europe with a population of 61 million. Po Valley is the most populated area in Italy accounting for over 50% of the total population. while Sardinia Island and the Basilicata Plateau are the least populated areas. Italy has no state-recognized or official religion – however, the Catholic Church plays a significant role in society. Some of the common religions in Italy include Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Sikhism, and Judaism.

Major Religions In Italy

Christianity

71.4% of Italians ascribe to Christianity making it the dominant religion in the country with Catholicism being the majority Christian denomination. Other Christian denominations include Orthodox, Jehovah’s Witness, Protestant, and Methodists. The Catholic Church accounts for 93% of all Christians in Italy. Vatican City, which is the headquarters of over one billion Catholics worldwide, is within the territory of Italy and has a massive influence on the growth of Catholic Church in Italy. Most of the Catholic religious orders have their offices in Italy, specifically Rome. These orders include Benedictines, Jesuits, Dominicans, Redemptorists, Silesians, Franciscans, and Divine Word Missionaries. Italy is divided into 225 Dioceses headed by bishops. Apart from the Catholic Church, there are other native churches, and these are Italo-Albanian Catholic Church and Waldensian Evangelical Church which originated from Lyon in France forming a Calvinist denomination. Some of the Protestant churches in Italy include Baptist Evangelical Christian Union of Italy, Lutheran Evangelical Church, Methodist Church, and Presbyterian Church in Italy.

Islam

Islam does not command a huge following as Christianity in Italy and is not recognized by the state. Only 3.1% of the population in Italy confesses Islam faith. Islam is thought to have been brought into Italy when the Abbasid Caliphate took control of Sicily in the 9th Century. The Norman Conquest led to the conversion of Muslims leading to their decline in Italy. In the 20th Century, Somali Immigrants started arriving in Italy, and the immigration has continued to date. Muslims have had issues with the presence of Crucifix in public places demanding their removal.

Buddhism

Buddhists in Italy account for only 0.4% of the total population. Buddhism in Italy can be traced back to 1960s when Buddhists Italian Association was founded. In 1985 Italian Buddhist was formed in Milan with the president recognizing the union in 1991. The agreement between the IBU and the Italian government was signed in 2007 by the Italian constitution while the agreement became law in 2012.

Other Religions in Italy

Only 0.6% of the Italian population ascribe to other religions such as Hinduism, Sikhism, and Judaism while the rest of the population either ascribe to other faiths or are not affiliated with any religion. With the current rate of immigration, Italy will experience an increase in the number of Muslims coming into the country. Other religions such as Orthodox Christianity are already establishing themselves in the country. Jehovah’s Witnesses, another Christian sect, are also relative newcomers to Italy, and a denomination that is quickly rising there with a popular following of 420,000. Christian immigrants are also pushing up the number of Christians in Italy.

Italy Traditions: Clothing, Religion, Weddings

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It’s no surprise that a country so diverse as Italy has a rich background of traditions. For centuries they have formed the Italy we know today, so let’s learn more about them.

What Italian People are Like

It is difficult to characterize Italians as it is quite an expressive and contradictory nation. Italian people are very hospitable and usually set up a big table for the guests’ arrival, even if the visit is not planned. Moreover, Italians value family and the most common Sunday leisure is to visit parents or any other relatives for dinner. Partially, this Italian custom owes to the peculiar timetable of Italian institutions: the majority of shops and malls are closed on Sunday.

It’s well known that Italian people, especially Southern Italian people, have a fiery temperament and love to use gestures. A typical street of any Italian city is filled with locals’ emotional chatting, talking on the phone and even singing. Italian mentality is distinguished by passionately gesticulating and talking in a loud voice, which can be perceived as a quarrel. But don’t worry, it’s only a manner of communication and you’ll get accustomed to such a noise level and lively rhythm very fast.

Traditional Italian Clothing

The national Italian costume has many interpretations and, actually, every region has its own. The thing is that different Italian lands were separated from each other for a long time, and finally merged a little more than 150 years ago. However, if to generalize, the outfits are characterized by a riot of colors and a lot of decorative elements. So it’s not for no reason that Italy became the motherland of the world fashion industry.

The basis of the female national costume is a pleated skirt (called «gonna»), a white embroidered shirt (camicia) and a corsage. The costume was complemented by a bright apron and a headscarf (fazzoletto). These are the main elements of a women’s Italian costume, found in all regions of the country.

As for the distinguishing features, the costumes varied by the length and color of the skirt, the presence or absence of lace details. Lace was very popular with noble Italians, and the casual clothes of ordinary girls were simple and modest.

The male national costume is much simpler than the female one. It consisted of trousers below the knee and a white shirt. The image was complemented by a short or a sleeveless jacket. The head is covered with «berrite», a woolen hat or a Phrygian cap.

Italian Religion

The main religion in Italy is Catholicism. And this is not surprising for the country, the capital of which is the residence of the Pope. It is noteworthy that the predominant position of Catholicism is determined by the Italian Constitution of 1984. The document New Concordat says that there is a clear division of the Catholic and non-Catholic religions in Italy.

The country boasts more than 45 thousand Catholic churches and cathedrals. As for the nation, Italians are very religious, visit churches on a regular basis and celebrate lots of church holidays.

Must-visit churches in Italy:

Italian Wedding Traditions

A modern Italian wedding does not require a strict following of the canons accepted in immemorial times, but still, living in a Catholic and patriarchal country, Italians pay much attention to traditions.

Talking about generally accepted customs, Italians also marry in white dresses and tuxedos, arrange stag and hen parties, organize photo sessions for the newlyweds, cut the wedding cake and throw a bouquet at the end of the banquet.

However, Italians are very superstitious people, especially when it concerns the wedding. The wedding preparation can last several months and even years in order to keep all traditions that determine the further happiness of the spouses. For instance, in the evening before the wedding the Italian bride necessarily wears something green, because this promises wealth in the upcoming marriage.

Meanwhile, on the wedding day brides usually wear no gold, except for the wedding ring, and grooms have a piece of iron in the pocket to ward off evil spirits and protect the family from the evil eye.

When leaving the church, guests throw rose petals, paper confetti, and rice at the newlyweds which also promises the prosperity of the future marriage.

At the end of the celebration, the couple should break a vase or a glass and count the number of shards as it symbolizes the number of years during which the spouses will be happily married.

Not a few travel guides are enough to describe the rich variety of Italian traditions. As a popular travel quote tells: “Tourists visit. Travellers explore». So that we enhance you to become a creator of your dream journey and plan your Italy vacation

Italian Weddings Facts

Religion in Italy

A Christian country

Italy is a Christian country, some 88 per cent of the population belonging to the Roman Catholic church, although only around a third of these regard themselves as ‘active’ in religious terms.

The majority of the world’s religious and philosophical movements have churches or meeting places in the major cities and resort areas, including the Anglican and American churches.

Other religious groups in Italy include over 1m Muslims, 700,000 Eastern Orthodox Christians, 550,000 evangelical Protestants, 235,000 Jehovah’s Witnesses, 45,000 Jews, and the Waldensian Evangelical Church and other small groups such as Swiss-Protestant Baptists in Piedmont, plus a number of Eastern Orthodox Albanian communities in the Mezzogiorno. Although the right to freedom of worship is guaranteed under the Italian constitution, some extreme sects are prohibited.

Italy has a unique religious heritage and 2,000 years of Christianity has permeated every facet of Italian life. The Vatican City (covering 47ha/116 acres and with a population of around 900) was established in 1929 and is a self-contained sovereign state (the world’s smallest) within the city of Rome.

The Vatican

The Vatican is the home of the government of the Roman Catholic Church and of the Pope ( il Papa or Supreme Pontiff), the spiritual leader of the world’s Roman Catholics. As well as its own peacekeeping force, the Swiss Guard, the Vatican has its own post office, newspaper and radio and TV stations. It also mints coins (with the Pope’s face) and issues stamps.

The Catholic church enjoys considerable influence, partly by virtue of a historical tradition that has seen the Church of Rome as a constant in government and the organisation of public life. There have traditionally been close relations between the state and the Catholic Church, which remains at the centre of Italian society and political power.

However, a concordat signed in 1984 ended the church’s position as the state religion, abolished compulsory religious teaching in public schools and reduced state financial contributions to the church.

Every town or village has at least one Catholic church and, although only around a quarter of Italians regularly attend mass, over 95 per cent are baptised, saints’ days, first communions and religious festivals remain popular and the majority of Italians prefer to be married in church. Children usually take their first communion (when they become full members of the Catholic church) at the age of eight or nine, usually in April or May, which is an important date in their lives.

When visiting a house of worship in Italy, you should avoid wearing shorts, short skirts or skimpy tops, although you’re rarely refused entry or asked to leave (except at St. Peter’s in Rome, where women must cover their shoulders).

This article is an extract from Living and Working in Italy. Click here to get a copy now.

РЕЛИГИЯ В ИТАЛИИ

Italy has live and believers of non-Christian faiths. Ever since the days of ancient Rome has preserved the Jewish community, which now numbers about 30 thousand people? The ancient roots and has a Muslim Diasporas that occurred in the period of Islamic domination in Sicily (827-1091 gg.). Currently, the number of persons professing the religion significantly increased due to refugees and about 1.2 million people. In addition, according to statistics, in Italy, home to 160 thousand Buddhists, 115 thousand 70 thousand Hindus and Sikhs.

For centuries, religion has been an integral part of Italian society. Even under the dictatorship of Mussolini’s fascists in 1929, Catholicism was recognized as the state religion. The state was officially separated from the Church in Italy only in 1976. But now the vast majority of the population is deeply religious, and the Pope’s authority is very great. Although the Italians can hardly be called fanatics, the church enjoys the unquestioned authority, and religious leaders are actively involved in public life.

Center of Catholicism in Italy, of course, is the Vatican. It is an autonomous republic of the Pope, which is in the center of Rome. Currently, the post of head of the Roman Catholic Church takes Pope Benedict XVI. Pope to actively participate both in the internal political processes in Italy, and have a certain weight in the international arena. The relationship of the state and the Catholic Church defined the Concordat, as noted in the Italian Constitution in 1984. It is also alleged that the citizens enjoy equal rights regardless of their religion, and without exception, the representatives of various religions have the right to organize.

The main Catholic holidays in Italy are Christmas and Easter. A huge number of people going to churches across the country to pray and celebrate the most important holiday in the life of all Catholics. Then the celebration held in the family as well as friends, acquaintances and relatives. Also important are the Epiphany, the feast of the Body and Blood of Christ, Assumption, All Saints’ Day.

In Italy there are more than 45,000 Catholic churches. The peculiarity of religion in Italy is the fact that almost all of them are open to the public. However, for women, for example, it is worth remembering that you need to grab a handkerchief at least, if it is hot, to cover shoulders, otherwise will not be allowed into the temple. It is also useful to know that you should stock up on coins of 50 cents for a better view of the interiors, to include automatic lighting. Entrance is free for both Catholics and representatives of other religions; no one will ask you, in what you believe in God, Jesus, Allah or Buddha. All churches are open from early morning until the evening, closing for a few hours in the afternoon.

Also, despite the fact that paganism was virtually eradicated in Italy, still traced the trail of the former Roman religion and Catholicism. For example, you can easily find a magician, healer and even a witch.

The overwhelming majority of Italians periodically Church walks and festivals such as Christmas and Easter Catholic churches across the country are always full of people.