A survey shows that Roman Catholics decline the most and go to church the least. Over half of Protestants attend church at least once a month.
A church in Maastricht, Netherlands. / Photo: [link]Matti Tanskanen[/link], Unsplash CC0.
The latest survey of the Dutch Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek (CBS, Central Statistics Office) shows that almost 58% of the Dutch population aged 15 and over said they do not belong to any religious denomination.
The report Religion in the Netherlands 2021 confirms that secularisation in the Netherlands continues to advance: while in 2010 around 45% did not have a religious affiliation, in 2020 the figure grew to 55%. This year, it rose 3 more points.
Among the 42.6% who say they are religious, Roman Catholics are the ones who decline the most (27% in 2010, 18% in 2021), followed by those who identify as Protestants (from 18% to 14%).
Muslims and those who belong to other groups remain stable at 5%.
According to the survey, the biggest differences are between age groups. 28% of 18 to 24-year-olds belong to a religious group versus 65% of those over 75.
In 2010, the differences between the age groups were less pronounced. Almost half of all between 15 and 44 belonged to a religious group whereas the peak was among those over 75 (73%).
Furthermore, women are more likely to be part of a religious group (45%) than men (40%). The differences were similar in 2012 (57%-52%).
The survey also shows that increasingly fewer Dutch people over 15 attend religious services at least once a month. In 2021 it was 13%.
Catholics go to church the least often (13%), while over half of Protestants (50,8%) regularly attend church.
Among Muslims, 43% go to the mosque at least once a month.
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