Quote Originally Posted by Marcus View Post
I've always thought postsoviet countries are mostly atheist, but it turns there are even more atheist!
Western Europe is more atheist, I think. People are just so materialistic that there is no time or space in their lives for religion and faith.

I don't know how religious Russians & co are though; maybe they are just ritualistic and simply like the church and what it represents, without having much faith.

But I am seeing a lot more faith and religion here than you'd see in England, Sweden or anywhere else in Northern Europe.
But lots and lots of people have religious items in their cars, cross themselves when they pass a church and buy icons etc.
When I have peeked my head in at services in orthodox churches they seem packed, and that is with people standing.. In most places in Europe the church is 1/2 to 2/3 empty during the services. Another interesting thing is that people seem to have memorised all the responses in the mass - they are not using any books or leaflet that I can see. That tells me that they go regularly. Many priests and nuns seem quite young, that's also a difference with Western Europe where hardly any priests or nuns are young.