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Religious opinions, beliefs and attitudes

Reasons to believe

For those who participated in a national study carried out in 2001, reasons for religious beliefs are the following (to a great extent):
– believing in God (81,08%)
– respect for the (...)

For those who participated in a national study carried out in 2001, reasons for religious beliefs are the following (to a great extent):
– believing in God (81,08%)
– respect for the traditions of the family and of the people (71,35%)
– tranquillity and spiritual peace (70,59%)
– education (66,25%)
– the need for protection and security (66,02%)
– the desire to preserve a pure soul (64,45%)
– the desire for redemption (63,71%)
– "it makes me a more honest, decent and moral person” (59,31%)
– religious practices (58,73%)
– "I experience special feelings in church” (55,21%)
– habit (33,29%)
– encouragement from relatives (24,39%)

Study results chart: “I believe because…”

	To a great extent (%)	Probably(%)	Not at all (%)	No answer (%)
I am sure that God exists	81,08	13,09	2,50	3,33
I want my soul to be redeemed	63,71	22,73	6,12	7,45
I experience special feelings in church	55,21	25,01	10,88	8,90
It makes me a more honest, decent and moral person	59,31	25,01	7,31	8,38
I want to keep my soul pure	64,45	20,59	6,09	8,88
It makes me feel more protected, like I am safe	66,02	18,40	7,33	8,28
Believing gives me tranquillity and spiritual peace	70,59	17,13	5,64	6,64
The religious practices are appealing (beautiful)	58,73	22,80	8,83	9,64
I respect the traditions of the family and the people	71,35	15,23	6,52	6,90
I was educated this way	66,25	17,49	9,14	7,12
It’s a habit	33,29	25,11	25,68	15,92
My relatives encourage me to	24,39	20,06	38,46	17,09

National Survey “The Religiosity of the Romanian population in 2001”, Ministry of Religions, Department of Socioreligious Research, Constantin CUCIUC, Laurentiu TANASE (Dir.) Unpublished information.

D 2 October 2012 AManuela Gheorghe

Belief in God

Declaring affiliation to a religious group does not always imply a strong faith or the belief that God exists. In the 1992 and 2002 national censuses over 99% of the population said they (...)

Declaring affiliation to a religious group does not always imply a strong faith or the belief that God exists. In the 1992 and 2002 national censuses over 99% of the population said they belonged to a recognised religious group in Romania. However, the number of people who believe in God represents a smaller percentage: according to a Gallup survey taken in autumn 2003, 93.7% of respondents said that God exists, 2.4% said that God probably exists and 3.9% either did not know or did not wish to answer. There are differences, sometimes rather significant ones, between the members of different religions when it comes to asserting their belief in God. A survey conducted in 2001 (national survey “The Religiosity of the Romanian population in 2001”, Ministry of Religions) showed that 86% of Orthodox, 92% of Pentecostalists and approximately 100% of Muslims believe that God exists. More people in rural areas, which are traditionally religious, believe God exists than those who live in urban areas.

Results of the survey: "I believe that God exists..."

Place of residence	To a very large extent	God probably exists	God doesn’t exist
Bucharest	75%	19%	4%
County capitals	79%	14%	4%
Other cities	80%	13%	1%
Rural areas	85%	11%	2%

D 2 October 2012