Freedom or discrimination: Lithuania’s parliament and president still too often guided by religion

On World Humanism Day, humanists in Lithuania say religion still holds an exceptional place in public life, leading to discrimination against non-believers, LRT.lt reports.

Sociologist Domantė Platūkytė notes that in Western societies, around one-fifth of the population identifies as non-religious, with secular worldviews growing in diversity.

At a press conference in the Seimas on Monday, MP Arūnas Valinskas said that while Lithuania is a secular state, it has one of the most complex religious hierarchies. He argued that the role of religion in public life is not always aligned with principles of equality and non-discrimination.

Valinskas cited the case of the Romuva community, which the Seimas initially refused to recognise. In 2021, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that the Seimas had violated the European Convention on Human Rights by denying Romuva state recognition. Lithuania finally recognised the community in 2024.

Urtė Žukauskaitė-Zabukė, co-founder and head of the Humanist Association of Lithuania (HIA) and a humanist celebrant, said she had not felt discriminated against for being non-religious until she and her husband decided to marry.

“A religious wedding did not suit us because we are non-religious, and a civil ceremony did not reflect our values at all,” she recalled.

She added that non-believers face discrimination at various stages of life, such as when seeking alternative wedding ceremonies or arranging funerals for non-religious loved ones. “In Lithuania, there are very few funeral homes that can help bury a person without religious symbols, and in some regions, there are none at all,” she said.

The Humanist Association began organising humanist wedding ceremonies in Lithuania 10 years ago, starting with just nine ceremonies per year. Today, around 500 such ceremonies take place annually.

“We not only marry couples but also welcome them, accompany them through all life’s moments—from welcoming a child to farewells. Each ceremony is created personally,” Žukauskaitė-Zabukė said. Over 10 years, the organisation has held more than 2,200 ceremonies.

“In Lithuania, around 13,000 couples marry each year. 2,800 register a church wedding, and 500 choose a humanist ceremony,” she noted. However, while religious communities are allowed to register marriages, humanists are not. Their ceremonies remain symbolic, and couples must still legally register their marriage at a civil registry office.

MP Simonas Gentvilas also highlighted that humanists seek equal rights and services. “Unfortunately, in Lithuania today, both the Ministry of Justice and the parliament, as well as the presidential institution, still too often follow religious principles that are not enshrined in our Constitution and are not the basis for coexistence in society,” he said.

Gentvilas pointed out that representatives of the Catholic Church actively participate in various stages of public life. “Unfortunately, as we see, the president’s oath in the Seimas today begins with an introductory word from the Catholic archbishop, not even from a Constitutional Court judge. We see that our prime minister is criticised for how she understands Catholic rites, even though she herself admits she is not religious,” he observed.

In Gentvilas’ view, there is still an expectation that society will be shaped by Catholic traditions, even though the principle of coexistence in society is humanist.