Roman Catholicism in Estonia

The Catholic Church in Estonia is part of the worldwide Roman Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope and curia in Rome.

The History of Catholicism in Estonia

At the beginning of the XIII century, Estonia was conquered by the Danish Teutonic Order and Christianized by force. Some archaeological evidence suggests that Christianity was known in the centuries prior to the conquest. Based on archaeological relics, such as crosses and metal book corners, some area of Estonia have been Christian.

The whole of Estonia was subjugated by the year 1227 and, until the mid XVI century, Estonia was divided among Catholic feudal landlords and, thus, Catholic territory, although not yet unified.

During the Livonian War, medieval Estonia was conquered by the Swedes, initially occupying northern Estonia and, later, the southern part. Swedish rule, from 1561-1710, banned the Catholic faith for benefit of the Lutheran Church.

In the Great Northern War Sweden lost Estonia to Russia, which governed the land from 1710 to 1918. Russian Tsars granted vast privileges to the resident Baltic-German nobility of Estonia, including freedom of religion. During the XVIII century, Polish and then Lithuanian immigrant noblemen started to make their own use of this right aimed at preserving Lutheranism in the Baltic. The first Catholic mass, after more than a hundred years, was held on 18 January, 1786. There were less than 300 Catholics in Estonia at that time. Catholicism began its revival. On 26 December, 1845, the new Catholic Church of Tallinn was consecrated, followed by the new Catholic Church of Tartu in 1899.

In 1918, when Estonia gained independence, Estonian citizens had complete freedom of religion. The Holy See recognized Estonia on October 10, 1921. In 1936, Eduard Proffitlich was ordained as the first Estonian bishop. When World War II broke out, there were almost 5,000 Catholics in Estonia (Tallinn: 2.333, Tartu: 1.073, Narva: ca. 600, Valga: ca. 800). In 1939 Estonia was invaded by the Soviets. They arrested Bishop Proffitlich who subsequently died in a Soviet prison in 1942. During the Soviet occupation, all but two of Estonia's Catholic churches were closed. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Estonia regained its independence and was re-recognized by the Holy See on August 28, 1991. Estonia received its first Papal visit when Pope John Paul II visited in September, 1993.

The Current State of Catholicism in Estonia

The Catholic population of Estonia is small, approximating 6,000 adherents. There are no dioceses. Instead, the country forms an apostolic administration.

External links

* [http://www.katoliku.ee/ Homepage of the Catholic Church in Estonia]
* [http://muse.jhu.edu/cgi-bin/access.cgi?uri=/journals/catholic_historical_review/v088/88.2salo.html History of the Catholic Church in Estonia]
* [http://www.vm.ee/eng/kat_176/2198.html Estonia and the Vatican]
* [http://www.einst.ee/culture/II_MMIV/ringvee.html An article about the history and heyday of the Catholic Church in Estonia in English]
* [http://www.estonica.org/eng/lugu.html?menyy_id=101&kateg=41&nimi=&alam=56&tekst_id=130 Religion in Estonia: web encyclopedia Estonica]