So much for "Religion Poisons Everything". Not saying that Icelanders owe their national success to their Christian faith, entirely, but religion certainly has not been a hurdle either and has certainly not poisoned anything there.
SocietyIceland is
the most developed society in the world, ranked first on the United Nations' Human Development Index.
http://hdr.undp.org/en/statistics/ Icelanders are the second longest-living nation with a life expectancy at birth of 81.8 years.
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ic.html#People Iceland is a very technologically advanced society. In 1999, 82,3 percent of Icelanders had access to a computer, and this figure has not declined in the last years. Iceland also had 1,007 cell phone subscribtions per 1,000 people in 2006, the 16th highest in the world.
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2151rank.htmlhttp://www.visindavefur.is/svar.asp?id=959 EducationThere is virtually no adult illiteracy. Education is compulsory for children ages 6 to 16. Icelanders have access to excellent healthcare and education.
http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Europe/Iceland-EDUCATION.html EconomyEconomy is basically capitalistic, yet with an extensive welfare system (including generous housing subsidies), low unemployment, and remarkably even distribution of income.
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ic.html#EconIceland is the forth most productive country in the world based on nominal gross domestic product per capita (54,858 USD) and ranks fifth most productive country in the world based on GDP at purchasing power parity (40,112 USD).
http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2007/02/weodata/weoselco.aspx?g=2001&sg=All+countries http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_%28PPP%29_per_capitaGovernmentIceland is a representative democracy and a parliamentary/constitutional republic.
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ic.html#Govthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iceland#GovernmentReligion in IcelandThough not a theocracy,
there is no separation of Church and State in Iceland.
Freedom of religion is guaranteed in Iceland by the Constitution.
There is a State church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church, to which about 83% of the population belongs. Other denominations: Evangelical Lutheran Free churches (4.7%), Roman Catholic Church (2,4%), Pentecostal and Charismatic Congregations (1.0%) and others (5.5%). Non-affiliated amount to 2.6% of the population.
Millennium of the Conversion to Christianity in 2000The conversion of Iceland to Christianity was a unique event. A whole society abandoned its ancient heathen belief and
peacefully adopted the Christian faith. This happened at the opening session of Althing, the parliament, at Thingvellir in the year 1000, when the nation faced bitter divisions. The Speaker, Thorgeir of Ljósavatn, himself a heathen, addressed Althingi and spoke the classic words: "If the law torn asunder, so will the peace". He declared that all Icelanders should be baptized into Christianity. This decision is considered to be the most important ever taken at Althingi since its establishment in 930 AD.
http://www.iceland.is/people-and-society/Religion/
