I am totally not suprised. In most of the Eastern and Central-Eastern European countries (like in mine, Poland) Catholic or Orthodox Church do possess very large influence over the ordinary peoples living there. Same in Greece.
There is some explanation why it is like that. Eastern or Central-Eastern European lands were frequently conquered, partitioned or occupated in the past, the rulers were changing frequently and in effect there was no such kind of political, social or historical continuity like it is in Western Europe, and only one institution in ex. Poland, Greece or Hungary who had some sort of continuity through the ages was the church, so it is no wonder that the Catholic or Orthodox Church want to return the favor nowadays after largely helping to hold back the national, political or social unity of ex. my country, but that case doesn't applies to Spain or Ireland (where church was also influential back in the time), and the reason why I think could be a different culture of Irish or Spaniards compared to ex. Poles or Greeks.
