established churches
Official national faiths
Established churches are religious institutions officially recognized and supported by a government, often receiving state funding and holding special legal status.
England has the Church of England; several Scandinavian countries have Lutheran state churches.
The concept contrasts with separation of church and state, as in the United States, where the First Amendment prohibits establishment of religion.
- minsterImportant church, historically monastic
- concordatsFormal agreements, often papal
- sectBreakaway religious faction
- denominationNamed religious group
- blasphemy lawsProhibitions on religious insult
Act of Supremacy · government · parishioners · doctrine · congregation · worship · religion · institutions · sermons · religious exemptions · religious authority · religious festivals · Henry VIII · divine right · sacraments · Book of Common Prayer · sacred architecture · monarchy
established churchesseparation of church and state
Constitutional religious neutrality principle
church-state separation · secularism · secular state · disestablishment · religious pluralism
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