So, as you can see, I have provided Orthodox data on their estimated number. It is completely incomprehensible what kind of situation the majority of local Orthodox churches are in, that it is impossible to count the number of Orthodox Christians. For example, why is it impossible to count the number of Orthodox Christians in Russia? Or why is it more difficult to do than, say, in the USA? Here's why. Orthodox Christians deliberately inflate their numbers in Russia. Any sociological surveys show that the number of Orthodox Christians in Russia is significantly less than the given figure and constitutes, at best, 15-20% of the Russian population, which in absolute terms corresponds to 22-30 million. This is if we count not only the “churched” - there are unlikely to be more than 1 of them -

The classification of “countries geographically and culturally oriented toward Orthodoxy” looks even more absurd. Where do Estonia and Albania come from on this list? Why did Poland, which has always had a Catholic population of 40 million, suddenly become geographically and culturally oriented toward Orthodoxy? Is it because of the one million Orthodox Christians supposedly living there? Or maybe because of its alphabet? Or because of the Pope?
What about Türkiye? Why did the most powerful Muslim country, in which the Orthodox make up only 0.008% (!!!) according to Orthodox estimates, turn out to be geographically and culturally oriented towards Orthodoxy? Or in this case, do Orthodox analysts understand by “geographical and cultural orientation” the countless bloody conflicts with Turkey, in which millions of Russians, Bulgarians and Armenians have died over the last two centuries alone?

Even a quick analysis of the above data shows that they are completely false. The motives for this falsification are also clear - Orthodoxy requires data on the basis of which it could justify its position not only in Russia, but throughout the world.
This state of affairs requires serious, independent and transparent statistical studies of the number of adherents of different religions in Russia, where such studies have practically not been carried out in the last 10 years

In the section on the question How many Catholics, Protestants and Orthodox are there in the world? given by the author chevron the best answer is the True trolls above did not miss the opportunity to prove themselves. There are 2.31 billion Christians in total, of which 1.15 billion are Catholics, 426 million Protestants, from 240 to 300 million Orthodox and from 70 to 80 million adherents of the ancient Eastern churches (Assyrian Church of the East, Armenian Apostolic Church, etc. .).

Answer from Yoovushka[guru]
anyway, the global caliphate is still far away... Kamil...

Answer from Microscope[guru]
What's the difference? There is only one God, and someone benefits from dividing humanity into religions. For what? - that's another question.

Answer from Woke up[guru]
A hell of a lot, almost as many as the Chinese. The Muslims have not yet overtaken.

Answer from Joanek SAN[guru]
Much more than Muslims, so you don’t even have to twitch.

Answer from Alexander Lunkov[guru]
How do you calculate? Wholesale or retail? :-))

Answer from Matryoshka =)[guru]
What good are Catholics and Protestants? They got caught up in innovations and pulled people along with them. Nowadays in the USA the True Doctrine of Orthodoxy is gaining more and more.

Answer from Pastor Alexander Lapochenko[guru]
There are about 80 million Lutherans alone.

Answer from Liberty Bell 7[guru]
Is there a census of who did it? The main thing is that there are fewer and fewer of yours, the war is with, they are killing their own.

Answer from Lobster[guru]
Are cat people the ones who live with cats?

Answer from Alena Baeva[newbie]
Hah
And here's another link

Schulze Klaus on Wikipedia
Look at the Wikipedia article about Schulze Klaus

Schultz Howard on Wikipedia
Check out the Wikipedia article about Howard Shultz

If you look at data in open sources on the number of representatives of religions in the world over the past 100 years, you will notice that the number of Orthodox Christians in the world, expressed as a percentage of the population, has noticeably decreased. Why is this so, can this trend change and if so, what needs to be done? We asked experts - ​participants in the International Conference “Sociology of Religion in Late Modern Society” (Belgorod, 2016) to answer these questions.

Number of Christians per % of population

From 1910 to 2010, over 100 years, the number of Orthodox Christians in the world as a percentage of the world's population decreased by almost 2 times

The International Conference on the Sociology of Religion has been organized by the National Research University "BelSU" since 2011. The idea belongs to Leonid Yakovlevich Dyatchenko (Rector of BelSU from 2002 to 2012). Initially, the organizers were Mirko Blagojevich (University of Belgrade), Sergei Dmitrievich Lebedev (National Research University "BelSU") and Yulia Yuryevna Sinelina (Institute of Socio-Political Research of the Russian Academy of Sciences). The editors of “Boat” would like to thank Sergei Dmitrievich Lebedev for his supervision and assistance in preparing this survey.

Orthodox:
natural decline?

Head of the survey S.D. LEBEDEV,
interviewed by Kristina SANINA

QUESTION 1. Why over the last 100 years the number of Orthodox Christians in the world, expressed as a percentage of the population, has almost halved?

M. Blagojevich: There are two main factors - demographic and political. In Serbia, for example, there are about 7 million people, about 34 thousand people died in a year, and we are not seeing an increase. By 2050, we predict very unsatisfactory indicators. As for politics, we all remember (or know from history courses) what happened during the times of the USSR. People were forced to leave the faith, this could not be in vain and resulted in corresponding indicators that we are forced to correct now.

prot. Nikolay Emelyanov: The percentage of believers among the main nation, which consists of Orthodox Christians, namely Russians, has greatly decreased. In addition, usually in such studies all Eastern churches are considered Orthodox: Copts, Syrian, - and it was in them that mass genocides took place in the 20th century, including in the Armenian Church. In general, this decline is associated with forced secularization in Russia and with genocide in the Eastern churches.

E.V. Zhosul: The main reasons for this decline, probably, should have been primarily both world wars, which wiped out a significant part of the Orthodox population of the countries of Eastern Europe and Russia. In addition, it was the Orthodox civilizational area that in the twentieth century became the springboard for the largest state-atheistic experiment in the history of mankind. The construction of a socialist camp on the site of the Orthodox ecumene obviously affected the interfaith balance. The Orthodox became victims of the historical process of the past century.

Also, this change in proportions should have been influenced, apparently, by such factors as a noticeable increase in the population of Islamic countries, as opposed to an increasingly distinctly secular Europe, and population growth in the world demographic leader - China. These are the most obvious civilizational factors that help explain the twofold decrease in the number of Orthodox Christians in the world.

S.D. Lebedev: All or almost all Orthodox countries today are experiencing a demographic decline.

Orthodox families simply have fewer children than Islamic, Protestant or Catholic families.

This has nothing directly to do with religion.

T.I. Lipich: It is not only the number of Orthodox Christians that is decreasing... It is only the number of those professing Islam in its various variations that is growing. This is due, first of all, to the geopolitical processes taking place in the world, to the role of Russia as the main representative of Orthodoxy, to the loss of traditional values ​​and interest in liberal ones (especially in Europe). After the collapse of the USSR, too little time has passed for Orthodox values ​​to become part of the flesh and blood of our society. At least two generations must change, or even more, for Orthodoxy to become not a tribute to fashion, but an internal human need.

E.M. Mchedlova:

Religion is becoming irrelevant due to globalization, due to the active introduction of the Internet and total computerization.

V.G. Pisarevsky: Mostly due to demographic factors. We should also not forget about the persecution of Orthodox Christians in the 20th century and the development of the Islamic factor at the beginning of the 21st century. But in general, such trends need to be looked at for each country separately. Native Americans who do not have Russian parents have been switching from Protestantism to Orthodoxy in recent decades - these are significant indicators, and in a qualitative sense they are much more important than quantitative ones.

I.P.Ryazantsev: This tendency is due to the severity of the burden that an Orthodox person places on himself in the matter of saving his soul for the sake of his neighbor. In a secular world, such people are becoming fewer and fewer. In other religious associations, the requirements for its members are not so serious. We still have to work and come to the joy and light of Orthodoxy.

V.V. Sukhorukov: Depends on the viewing angle.

a) “the requirements of Orthodoxy are the possibilities of the believer.” If Orthodox Christians are concentrated in those social strata that have a more difficult life than other social strata, then people do not have enough time, money, and energy for Orthodoxy (it presupposes a rather expensive standard of behavior and thinking for a believer).

b) "Orthodoxy - other religions." If a different worldview has advantages in relation to Orthodoxy, then a believer can change his attitude towards religion. The advantages can be different, for example, less strict requirements for the believer (i.e., perspectives “a” and “b” act together), a larger size of the flock. And in the latter case, several effects may play a role.

• Network effect - the wider the network, the more benefit each new node receives (for example, the more phones in the telephone network or computers on the Internet, the more people a new subscriber can contact). Connecting a believer to a social network of Catholics, of whom there are about a billion, gives the believer a greater potential for interaction than in the case of Orthodox Christians, of whom there are an order of magnitude smaller. In social psychology there is a similar effect - the effect of joining the majority.
• Economies of scale - the more products you produce, the cheaper each unit of goods turns out (for example, if you develop a car project and launch it on an assembly line, then the design costs will be divided into thousands of cars and will make up an acceptable share of the price; and if the same project is implemented in a piece option, the price will become prohibitive). In the field of religion, economies of scale can be associated with the construction of religious buildings (the Russian Orthodox Church could save a lot by developing one standard temple project within the framework of the “Program 200”) and with the training of priests (when seminaries work from the same textbook, then the more seminarians, the fewer unit cost of writing it).
• A cooperative (sometimes called “synergetic”) effect is the result of the interaction between a believer and religion that does not coincide with the arithmetic sum of their possible achievements separately. In part, it combines the two previous effects, but the network effect is more closely related to religious demand, and the scale effect is more closely related to religious supply.

By the way, we need to make one more clarification. From these perspectives, it is necessary to consider not only the religious views of an already established believer, but also the choice of religion by an undecided person. The decline in the share of Orthodox Christians may be caused by the fact that they are gradually dying, and the above reasons are blocking the entry of new adherents into the ranks of the Orthodox.

S.V. Trofimov: The population is increasing, and the number of practicing Orthodox Christians is decreasing. Now this is happening in almost all traditional religions of Western Europe.

A.F. Filippov: There is a completely obvious reason - more than 70 years of Soviet power. It also seems to me that the wording of the question is not entirely accurate. The word “trend” suggests some continuously operating causes, which, by revealing, we can change the course of events. But in this way two different phenomena are confused. There is also a global process of secularization; it affects many in one way or another and has been for quite some time. And there are measures of the Soviet government aimed at radically reducing the Orthodox population, the fight against the church as a state policy (albeit taking different forms in different years and having different intensity). This happened not only in the USSR, but also in other socialist countries, be it Bulgaria or Yugoslavia (although they all had their own specifics). Therefore, one should not be surprised at these indicators, if we take a century as a scale; another thing is how fast the reverse movement will occur and how far it will go. I believe that this process will be long.

QUESTION 2: Can this trend change?

M. Blagojevich: Possible, but difficult economically and financially.

prot. Nikolay Emelyanov: Everything will depend on Russia and how the church and national situation in the country will develop.

E.V. Zhosul:

There are no real reasons to change this trend today.

Precisely real reasons, and not phantasmagorical reasoning on the topic of the need for urgent catechesis of the Chinese. The demographic situation in Russia, the leader of the Orthodox world in terms of the size of the flock of the local Church, is, if not deplorable, then clearly insufficient to ensure a noticeable global increase in the Orthodox population.

S.D. Lebedev: If we are talking about a purely demographic trend, then in the foreseeable future it is unlikely. If we talk about the trend in the social dynamics of Orthodox believers, then in principle this is possible. Religiosity and religious affiliation are reproduced not only through family tradition, especially in modern societies. If Orthodox Christianity suddenly acquires a special attractiveness for people, if people see in it exactly what they now especially lack - as it was in the first centuries of its existence - then a significant increase in the number of Orthodox believers is possible.

T.I. Lipich: We are all working on this! Both you and us! The trend may change, but not as quickly as we would all like. We have an unplowed field in the Far East, Kamchatka, and in general, the entire east of the country. Our Holiness Patriarch only recently visited some of these areas. And the missionary guys (students of the theological seminary and our part-time students) tell how actively and aggressively representatives of other faiths sometimes behave in the “hilling” of these remote corners of Russia.

E.M. Mchedlova: I think no.

V.G. Pisarevsky: It will definitely change: we (in Russia) have no other choice. As the famous sociologist Peter Berger wrote: “The modern world is much more religious than at any other time, only sometimes this religiosity takes slightly different forms.” If we do not return to Orthodoxy, the picture will be quite sad, this should be understood now.

I.P.Ryazantsev: There is no clear answer. On the one hand, few are ready to bear the cross,

There cannot be very many spiritually talented people.

On the other hand, catechesis and extra-liturgical activities in the parish can help a person cross the threshold of the church; intentions can be helped to come true.

V.V. Sukhorukov: In the short term - yes.

S.V. Trofimov: It can change, but for this, firstly, we need (IN PAPER - AS “NEEDED”) pastoral work in the confessions themselves. And secondly, a change in the social situation so that the need for religion can be realized within the framework of traditional faiths. Now it remains, but is more aimed at esoteric areas. And pastoral work can lead people to become interested in traditional religions.

A.F. Filippov: In Russia now, on the contrary, we can talk about an increase in the number of believers - this is rather the trend. This process is also encouraged at the political level; without this, the movement would not be so intense. But whether a complete return to what was is possible (and how possible and desirable it is) is difficult to say.

QUESTION 3. If yes, what needs to be done for this?

M. Blagojevich: A strong and stable policy can change a lot, including this area of ​​religious life of society. The economy should be boosted, because people are simply afraid to have children due to instability in foreign and domestic politics. Hence the unsatisfactory performance and dubious prospects.

prot. Nikolay Emelyanov: Two key themes: good priests and strong families.

E.V. Zhosul: The trend can only be changed by some powerful geopolitical shifts that will lead to a fundamental change in the balance of power on the world stage.

S.D. Lebedev: It is necessary to “grope” for the complex of deep spiritual needs of a sufficiently large number of people and reveal to them the life of the Church from this side in a language they understand. That is, to combine at least three directions - philosophical, scientific and practical missionary work, which now exist as if on their own. Over many centuries, society and partly the believers themselves have accumulated many stereotypes about religion, Orthodoxy and the Church, which prevent one from getting to their essence. And we need to look for new ways of mission, that is, “breaking” this crust of stereotypes, using, among other things, modern science-intensive methods from the field of sociology, social psychology, anthropology and other human sciences.

T.I. Lipich: I won’t say anything particularly new if I advise all of us to work in this direction. It is very important for us as an educational institution that the “theology” direction continues to exist and we can popularize Orthodox values. Wherever our graduates later work, they will be Orthodox-oriented. The new education minister says it is important to shape personality from a very young age. This position is very encouraging. The state must do everything possible so that society quickly stops being “sick,” so that all kinds of sects and “healers” do not spread, so that people see the attractiveness of Orthodoxy. But for this, clergy must also show themselves more actively in society. Go among the people more often and engage in missionary work. Well, and one more thing - when Russia becomes an attractive country for others, where industry, agriculture, science, education are on the rise, then our traditional values ​​will become more attractive. This is an interconnected process; you cannot build a temple without building it in your soul.

E.M. Mchedlova: In the current picture of the world, fear prevails over spirituality - a person feels danger and threats (terrorism, crisis in politics and the economy). The solution to these global problems will be followed by the spiritualization of people, faith will emerge from the shadow of the most important human instinct - self-preservation.

V.G. Pisarevsky: I think the idea “The more churches, the more believers” is really relevant: already now churches in cities and towns often cannot accommodate parishioners. There are also questions about the mass media: having become accustomed to consuming negative sensations, people generally cease to distinguish truth from fiction and lose interest in spiritual search. Involving the younger generation would also help: joint religious activity within the Church would bring young people closer together, and strong Orthodox families would be built.

I.P.Ryazantsev: There is no clear answer. On the one hand, few spiritually talented people are ready to bear the cross, and there cannot be very many. On the other hand, catechesis and extra-liturgical activities in the parish can help a person cross the threshold of the church; intentions can be helped to come true.

V.V. Sukhorukov: To begin with, eliminate possible causes (from perspective “a” - to make people’s lives easier by increasing their income while reducing their workload; from perspective “b” - to limit freedom of conscience to block the three above effects). In addition, measures of a socio-demographic nature are possible: increasing the birth rate of Orthodox Christians, for example, by providing family capital depending on worldview.

S.V. Trofimov: This is a whole policy, and above all, work in the parishes themselves. Now young people, coming to Orthodox, Catholic, and Lutheran parishes in Russia, meet people who are already in this culture and know something. But these people use a certain language that is incomprehensible to young people, they wear clothes that are different from the usual ones, you cannot wear them every day. I don’t want to say that this is sectarianism, but there is a tendency.

If churches do not “open up” and be understood, the situation will not change.

This is not only a question of the language of worship - Church Slavonic or Russian. Although if this language is not understandable to young people, it probably will not increase the number of believers. This means that we are at a moment when we need to explain in correct and understandable language the essence of the teaching of the Church, so that it becomes understandable to today’s people. Without changing the teaching itself, of course.

A.F. Filippov: At the conference we heard an interesting report by Father Nikolai Emelyanov. He showed well how difficult it is to resolve the issue even with a lack of priests - perhaps this lack is not the only, but important reason that things are going slower than many would like. But one cannot simply ask “what needs to be done for this?”, as if the question of a normal state, that is, one to which one should strive, has already been decided. The trend itself, I repeat once again, the trend towards an increase in the number of Orthodox Christians, is normal in a sociological sense, but a slowdown in the process, if it persists, is also normal. I assume that in the near future there will no longer be a sharp increase, but rather a relatively sluggish trend that will keep the situation at a level close to the current one.

BUSINESS CARDS OF PARTICIPANTS:

Blagojevich Mirko
Belgrade, leading researcher at the Institute of Social Sciences, Doctor of Sociological Sciences

Archpriest Nikolai Emelyanov
Moscow, Orthodox St. Tikhon's University for the Humanities, scientific laboratory of sociology of religion, researcher

Zhosul Elena Viktorovna
Moscow, Russian Orthodox University, Candidate of Political Sciences, Head of the Department of Journalism and DIVR, Advisor to the Chairman of the Synodal Department for Relations of the Church with Society and the Media

Lebedev Sergey Dmitrievich
Belgorod, Professor of the Department of Sociology and Organization of Work with Youth, Institute of Management, National Research University "BelSU"

Analysis from December 19, 2011
A comprehensive demographic study of more than 200 countries found that there are 2.18 billion Christians of all ages worldwide, representing almost a third of the world's estimated 6.9 billion population in 2010. At the same time, Christianity has such a wide geographical distribution that not a single continent or region can confidently be called the center of world Christianity.

Orthodox Christians

There are about 260 million Orthodox Christians in the world, which is 12% percent of the total number of Christians.

Almost four in ten Orthodox Christians (39%) live in Russia, the country with the largest number of Orthodox Christians. The second place is occupied by Ethiopia, where the number of Orthodox Christians is more than three times higher than the Orthodox population of Greece. Despite the fact that Turkey is the seat of the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, one of the most highly revered archbishops in the Orthodox world, the country's Orthodox population is relatively small (about 180,000).

Nearly nine out of ten Orthodox Christians (87%) worldwide are in the 10 countries with the largest Orthodox populations. These countries generally have an Orthodox majority - although Orthodox Christians make up less than half of the total population in Ethiopia and only about 5% of the population in Egypt. Orthodox Christians make up the majority of the total population in 14 countries.

The Orthodox population is largely concentrated in Europe, which includes all of Russia. Europe is home to 77% of the world's Orthodox population, South Africa about 15% and the Asia-Pacific region (including Turkey) about 5%. A small percentage of Orthodox Christians also live in the Middle East and North Africa (about 2%) and in America (1%).