If the National Church of Denmark instead of primarily being a religious authority has bestowed with an ethical or moral authority that is acknowledged and valued of the population
Lars Ahlin, University of AarhusThe National Church of Denmark is the dominating religious organisation in Denmark with a vast majority, more than 80 %, of the grown-up population as its members. Studies in sociology of religion have for a long time come to the conclusion that the membership for a majority is not based on a religious conviction. A very small part of the members namely take part in the services of the church, and furthermore, just a small fraction of them have beliefs, that are consistent with the dogmatic foundation of the church. A conclusion out of this is that the National church functions as a religious authority for a relatively small group. In spite of this most of the Danes actually are members of the church. One reason is for sure the fact that membership makes it easier to be a part of the tradition, that is to use the church for the traditional rites of passage. Another reason might be that the church has acquired a new role, with its basis in another form for authority than the religious. This is the topic of this paper: to discuss if the church instead of primarily being a religious authority has bestowed with an ethical or moral authority that is acknowledged and valued of the population.