Instruct: Given a question, retrieve relevant passages that answer the question.
Query: What is the official religion of Ireland?
The predominant religion in the Republic of Ireland is Christianity, with the largest church being the Roman Catholic Church. The Irish constitution says that the state may not endorse any particular religion and guarantees freedom of religion.
Ireland's political scene and ecclesiastical was changed permanently by the coming of the Normans and the influence of the English Crown. With the English Reformation, church property was forfeited by the state and transferred to the official state religion - the Church of Ireland. Although only a winning over a minority of the people, despite the many political and economic advantages offered by conversion to the state religion, all subjects of the Crown were obliged, in their taxes to support the official state church. Additionally, the Penal Laws sought to curb or altogether extinguish the practice of the Roman Catholic religion amongst the majority population of the Archdiocese.
Islam is the official state religion in the Republic of Iraq, but the constitution guarantees freedom of religion. Iraq is a multi ethnic and multi religious country with Islam, Christianity, Yazdanism, Zoroastrianism, Shabakism, Judaism, Mandaeism, Bahā'i, Ahl-e Haqq-Yarsanis, Ishikism and numerous other religions all having a presence in the country. Shia Islam is the main religion in Iraq followed by 60–65% of the population, while Sunni Islam is followed by 32–37% of the people. Many cities throughout Iraq have been areas of historical prominence for both Shia and Sunni Muslims, including Najaf, Karbala, Baghdad and Samarra.
"Azalea Indica of natural growth 1st Professor Yonge Azalea Indica in pots 1st Professor Yonge" - Calceolarias 2nd C.D. Yonge"
In 1869 he wrote to his cousin Charles Tripp in New Zealand. He refers to his being director of the Botanical Garden, he voices his dislike of the disestablishment of the Anglican Church of Ireland in the previous year "it [the church] has been thrown into a sad state of distress and agitation by Gladstone’s nefarious attack on the Church". Though the religion of a minority of Irish people, the Anglican Church of Ireland remained the official religion of Ireland, established by law, until the Act of Parliament of 1869, came into effect in 1871. The Act had been brought forward by Gladstone in an attempt to induce the majority Roman Catholic population to accept continued English rule.
In the letter referred to above he writes of returning to England when his 10-year appointment was up but he in fact stayed in Ireland some 25 years.
Saint Patrick's Cathedral () in Dublin, Ireland, founded in 1191, is the National Cathedral of the Church of Ireland. With its spire, St. Patrick's is the tallest church (not Cathedral) in Ireland and the largest. Christ Church Cathedral, also a Church of Ireland cathedral in Dublin, is designated as the local Cathedral of the diocese of Dublin and Glendalough.
Catholic Christianity is the largest religion in Spain, but practical secularization is strong. Only 3% of Spaniards consider religion as one of their three most important values, even lower than the 5% European average. The Spanish Constitution of 1978 abolished Catholicism as the official state religion, while recognizing the role it plays in Spanish society. As a result, there is no official religion and religious freedom is protected.
Unusually, St Patrick's is not the seat of a bishop, as the Archbishop of Dublin has his seat in Christ Church Cathedral. Since 1870, the Church of Ireland has designated St Patrick's as the national cathedral for the whole of Ireland, drawing chapter members from each of the twelve dioceses of the Church of Ireland. The dean is the ordinary for the cathedral; this office has existed since 1219. The most famous office holder was Jonathan Swift.
Roman Catholicism, which has a long history in Spain, remains the dominant religion. Although it no longer has official status by law, in all public schools in Spain students have to choose either a religion or ethics class. Catholicism is the religion most commonly taught, although the teaching of Islam, Judaism, and evangelical Christianity is also recognised in law. According to a June 2016 study by the Spanish Centre for Sociological Research about 70% of Spaniards self-identify as Catholics, 2% other faith, and about 25% identify with no religion. Most Spaniards do not participate regularly in religious services. This same study shows that of the Spaniards who identify themselves as religious, 59% hardly ever or never go to church, 16% go to church some times a year, 9% some time per month and 15% every Sunday or multiple times per week. Recent polls and surveys have revealed that atheists and agnostics comprise anywhere from 20% to 27% of the Spanish population.
One feature not usually found outside Ireland is the round tower, such as that at Clonmacnoise in County Offaly or the one on Devenish Island near Enniskillen in County Fermanagh. These were usually built within the monasteries that sprang up all over the island, as the country became the "land of saints and scholars". They were possibly defensive in nature, serving as lookout posts and a place of refuge during an attack (the door to such structures was usually quite high off the ground). Viking raids on Ireland's shores and monasteries were relatively common. St. Cronan's Church in Tuamgraney, County Clare, a pre-Romanesque church which dates from the 10th century, is the oldest church in continuous use in both Ireland and Great Britain.
St Doulagh's Church () is one of two churches in the "United Parishes of Malahide, Portmarnock and St Doulagh's" in Fingal, Ireland. It is the oldest stone-roofed church still in use in Ireland. The church is situated approximately 10 kilometres from Dublin city, just north of the hamlet of Balgriffin. Its complex also comprises a stone pool-house and an octagonal baptistry - Ireland's only surviving standalone baptistry. 
The oldest part of the church as it stands is medieval dating from the 12th century, and believed to have been home to a small monastic settlement. However, according to studies on the site, Christian activity here dates back to the time of St. Patrick.
The population of Ireland is about 6.3 million, but it is estimated that 50 to 80 million people around the world have Irish forebears, making the Irish diaspora one of the largest of any nation. Historically, emigration from Ireland has been the result of conflict, famine and economic issues. People of Irish descent are found mainly in English-speaking countries, especially Great Britain, the United States, Canada and Australia. There are also significant numbers in Argentina, Mexico and New Zealand. The United States has the most people of Irish descent, while in Australia those of Irish descent are a higher percentage of the population than in any other country outside Ireland. Many Icelanders have Irish and Scottish Gaelic forebears.
30,000 Irish live in Benelux countries of Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg. More than 3/4 million attend the Netherlands', Belgium's and Luxembourg's Irish music, cultural and sports events. The region has Irish clubs, societies and associations, Irish theatre groups, Irish and Celtic studies centres, and James Joyce groups. Its 200+ Irish bars have regular live Irish music, as well as live Irish sports coverage - GAA, Soccer and Rugby. As well as Irish Dancing Schools & Groups, the region has many local Irish music bands, and festivals. It also has Irish soccer clubs, darts, rugby, badminton and GAA clubs, as well as Irish golf societies.
In 797 AD, the Vikings (or "Danes") carried out one of their earliest raids in Ireland when they plundered the monastery on Church Island. As the origin of the name is Norse and many localities have Norse-based names, it is safe to assume the Vikings did settle and occupy the area. Sitric, who was a son of a Dane called Murchard, re-founded the monastery on Church Island in 1120. He dedicated it to St. Patrick, the Apostle of Ireland. By this time, the Danes who had settled in Ireland had become Christians.
Religion in Ukraine is diverse, with a majority of the population adhering to Christianity. A 2018 survey conducted by the Razumkov Centre found that 71.7% of the population declared themselves believers. About 67.3% of the population declared adherence to one or another strand of Orthodox Christianity (28.7% of the Kiev Patriarchate, 23.4% state simply 'Orthodox' with no declaration as to which Patriarchate they belong to, 12.8% of the Moscow Patriarchate, 0.3% Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church, and 1.9% other types of Orthodoxy), 7.7% 'Christian' with no declared denominational affiliation, 9.4% Ukrainian Byzantine Rite Catholics, 2.2% Protestants and 0.8% Latin Rite Catholics. Judaism was the religion of the 0.4%; while Buddhism, Paganism (Rodnovery), and Hinduism were each the religions of 0.1% of the population. A further 11.0% declared themselves non-religious or unaffiliated. According to the surveys conducted by Razumkov in the 2000s and early 2010s, such proportions have remained relatively constant throughout the last decade, while the proportion of believers overall has decreased from 76% in 2014 to 70% in 2016 and 72% in 2018. (p. 22).
The other great change for the cathedral occurred in 1871 when, following disestablishment of the Church of Ireland, the newly independent church at its general synod finally resolved the "two cathedral" issue, making Christ Church the sole and undisputed cathedral of the Dublin diocese and St Patrick's the national cathedral.
The Jain community in Ireland is involved across different occupations. 
The Jains in Ireland are estimated to be around 1000 people. The majority live in and around Dublin but few families are spread across other part of countries including Northern Ireland. Jains in Ireland are well settled and respected community. Jain Samaj Ireland consists members of all different panths within Jainism.
Byzantine Rite Catholicism is the religion of 9.4% of the population of Ukraine as of 2016. This church is largely concentrated in western Ukraine, where it gathers a significant proportion of the population (39.7%). Latin Rite Catholicism, instead, is the religion of 0.8% of the population of Ukraine, mostly in western (1.3%) and central (1.2%) regions. Catholicism is largely absent in eastern Ukraine and non-existent in Donbass.
The partition of Ireland () divided the island of Ireland into two distinct jurisdictions, Northern Ireland and Southern Ireland. It took place on 3 May 1921 under the Government of Ireland Act 1920. Today the former is still known as Northern Ireland and forms part of the United Kingdom, while the latter is now a sovereign state also named Ireland and sometimes called the Republic of Ireland.
The Synod of Thurles, which took place in 1850, was the first formal synod of Catholic episcopacy and clergy since 1642. The cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly is located in Thurles. The Synod was called by Paul Cullen following his appointment as Archbishop of Armagh. The Synod took place in St. Patrick's College, Thurles, County Tipperary, Ireland. Proceedings commenced on Thursday, 22 August 1850.
The synod marked the beginning of a movement led by Cullen to standardise the administration, religious practices, teaching and discipline of the Catholic church in Ireland. Practices in the Church in Ireland had evolved differently from practices in continental Europe due to state suppression of the Church in Ireland from the c.1640 until Catholic emancipation in 1829. In advance of the synod, Cullen had been in Rome where he was appointed an Apostolic Delegate which in effect give him direct papal authority over the Catholic church in Ireland. Cullen was an 'ultramontanist' in philosophy and was committed to bringing the church in Ireland into line with the church in Rome. In particular, Cullen was opposed to local or popular religious expression and interpretation; he was determined to end such practices in Ireland. The synod also occurred at a sensitive time following the devastation of the Great Irish famine. Counteracting proselytising efforts by the protestant churches were also discussed.
One of the main commitments from the Synod was to establish a Catholic University in Ireland in response to the establishment of the Queen's Colleges and the Queen's University of Ireland by the Universities Ireland Act of 1845 by the British Government. The bishops adopted the papal condemnation of the 'godless colleges' (i.e. the Queen's colleges) but were divided over priests accepting college positions and lay involvement. The consequence was the Catholic University of Ireland established in 1851 and the invitation from the bishops to Cardinal John Henry Newman to become its chancellor and its foundation in 1854.
The Government of Ireland defines the Irish diaspora as all persons of Irish nationality who habitually reside outside of the island of Ireland. This includes Irish citizens who have emigrated abroad and their children, who are Irish citizens by descent under Irish law. It also includes their grandchildren in cases where they were registered as Irish citizens in the Foreign Births Register held in every Irish diplomatic mission. Under this legal definition, the Irish diaspora is considerably smaller—some 3 million persons, of whom 1.47 million are Irish-born emigrants. Given Ireland's population of 4.85 million, this is still a large ratio.
However, the usage of "Irish diaspora" is generally not limited by citizenship status, thus leading to an estimated (and fluctuating) membership of up to 80 million persons—the second and more emotive definition. The Irish Government acknowledged this interpretation—although it did not acknowledge any legal obligations to persons in this larger diaspora—when Article 2 of the Constitution of Ireland was amended in 1998 to read ""[f]urthermore, the Irish nation cherishes its special affinity with people of Irish ancestry living abroad who share its cultural identity and heritage.""
Over the following centuries, the two cathedrals functioned together in the diocese, until in the period of disestablishment of the Church of Ireland, the current designation of one as the "cathedral of Dublin and Glendalough", and one as the "National Cathedral", was developed.
Christianity is the main religion in Northern Ireland. The 2011 UK census showed 42.8% Roman Catholic, 21.1% Presbyterian Church, with the Church of Ireland having 16.7% and the Methodist Church 5.0%. Members of other Christian churches comprised 5.8%, 7.9% stated they have no religion or did not state a religion, and members of non-Christian religions were 0.8%.
Georgia has no established church, but the Georgian Orthodox Church enjoys "de facto" privileged status. Much the same applies in Germany with the Evangelical Church and the Roman Catholic Church, and the Jewish community. In Finland, both the Finnish Orthodox Church and the Lutheran Church are official. England, a part of the United Kingdom, has Anglicanism as its official religion. Scotland, another part of the UK, has Presbyterianism as its national church, but it is no longer "official". In Sweden, the national church used to be Lutheranism, but it is no longer "official" since 2000. Azerbaijan, the Czech Republic, Germany, France, Ireland, Portugal, Serbia, Romania, Russia, Spain and Turkey are officially secular.
Despite a large number of schools in Ireland being run by religious organizations but funded by the state, a general trend of secularism is occurring within the Irish population, particularly in the younger generations. Many efforts have been made by secular groups to eliminate the rigorous study in the second and sixth classes, to prepare for the sacraments of Holy Communion and confirmation in Catholic schools. Parents can ask for their children to be excluded from religious study if they wish. However, religious studies as a subject was introduced into the state administered Junior Certificate in 2001; it is not compulsory and deals with aspects of different religions, not focusing on one particular religion.
Though the religion of a minority of Irish people at the time, the Church of Ireland remained the official, established religion of Ireland, until its disestablishment by the Irish Church Act 1869 came into effect in 1871. The representation of the Church in the House of Lords also ceased.