Portuguese society is overwhelmingly Roman Catholic. 84% of the population are nominally Roman Catholic, but only about 19% attend mass and take the sacraments regularly. A larger number wish to be baptized, married in the church, and receive last rites.

Portuguese society is overwhelmingly Roman Catholic. 84% of the population are nominally Roman Catholic, but only about 19% attend mass and take the sacraments regularly. A larger number wish to be baptized, married in the church, and receive last rites.

Many Portuguese holidays, festivals and traditions have a Christian origin or connotation. Although relations between the Portuguese state and the Roman Catholic Church were generally amiable and stable since the earliest years of the Portuguese nation, their relative power fluctuated. In the 13th and 14th centuries, the church enjoyed both riches and power stemming from its role in the reconquest and its close identification with early Portuguese nationalism and the foundation of the Portuguese educational system, including the first university. The growth of the Portuguese overseas empire made its missionaries important agents of colonization with important roles of evangelization and teaching in all inhabited continents.