Religious Freedom in Europe
European history reserves precious few pages to its nurture of religious freedom.
The cherished religious freedom of the Greeks was embraced by the Romans. However, Domitian’s introduction of an Imperial Cult (in ad81-96) led to persecution of Christians and Jews who refused to worship the Emperor. Constantine’s Edict of Milan (ad313) granted religious freedom to all, but two years later new edicts forbad Jews from proselytising and later from holding public office.
In Moorish Spain and in the Ottoman Empire (1301-1922), Jews and Christians were religious minority communities (dhimmis) with historians divided as to whether this afforded state protection or state control of religion. Within those territories under papal influence, Jewish religious and social activities were strictly regulated by decree of Innocent III (1215).
From the 16th to the 20th centuries, the Index of Prohibited Books proscribed the books of religious free thinkers and those considered heretical. The Peace of Westphalia (1648) secured religious plurality in principle although the place of religious minorities remained precarious throughout the 17th century. The advent of the 18th century heralded the Enlightenment ideal of religious tolerance, though frequently rooted in indifference rather than a positive welcome for religious plurality. Despite this new atmosphere, Church leaders were generally hostile to religious tolerance and continued to persecute dissidents.
By the twentieth century, the ideological intolerance of religion emerged in new forms: fascism, communism, and nationalism. Where these have taken political control, ‘freedom’ of religion has generally only been guaranteed to those religious groups that supported the ruling powers.
“ Where fascism, communism, and nationalism have taken political control, ‘freedom’ of religion has generally only been guaranteed to those religious groups that supported the ruling powers. ”
The European Convention on Human Rights (1953) enshrined religious freedom as a basic human right, to be extended across the member states of the Council of Europe. European citizens have legal recourse under this Convention and may bring cases against the State for infringement of their religious rights. However, legislation dealing with religion at national level varies widely across Europe and in many instances reflects the historical relationships that majority Christian traditions have enjoyed with the State. Violent persecution and suppression of religious groups are nowadays relatively scarce across Europe, but official discrimination and social hostility still occur.
EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON HUMAN RIGHTS
Rome, 4th November 1950
ARTICLE 9
9.1 Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief, in worship, teaching, practice and observance
9.2 Freedom to manifest one's religion or beliefs shall be subject only to such limitations as are prescribed by law and are necessary in a democratic society in the interests of public safety, for the protection of public order, health or morals, or the protection of the rights and freedoms of others.
Measuring the degree of religious freedom in any given situation can be difficult. States that uphold religious freedom may nevertheless officially favour one group over another and thereby generate (whether deliberately or accidentally) social suspicion and hostility. Hostility towards religious groups, as well as their regulation, may equally be an outcome of either a committed secular, political, or religiously inspired ideology. As a consequence, most measures of religious freedom avoid the discussion of motivation and instead focus on the social and personal consequences of religious practice and orientation
There are a number of long-standing international bodies, governmental and non-governmental, which monitor and measure religious freedoms. Among these is Freedom House, which publishes Freedom in the World, an annual report of civil liberties and political rights. Freedom House ‘calls attention to global trends in freedom and democracy, and shines a public light on dictatorship and abuse’ by monitoring press reports and press freedoms.
The US State Department is also charged with monitoring religious freedom globally and produces its International Religious Freedom Report (IRFR) as a contribution towards this. F18, meanwhile, is a European-based news service committed to reporting on abuses of religious freedom. In addition, the Hudson Institute’s Center for Religious Freedom, associated with the pioneering work of Paul Marshall, also monitors religious freedom.
More recently the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life published its 2009 study Global Restrictions on Religion which established new criteria for measuring restrictions on religion, deploying multiple researchers coding documented instances of restrictions. From these observations, PEW has developed scales that measure government restrictions and social hostilities against religion.
In addition, the Association of Religious Data Archives (ARDA) measures governmental regulation of religion, favouritism towards religion, social regulation of religion and religious persecution. In preparing its scales of religious freedoms, the ARDA analyses the US State Department’s IRFR and several other important datasets, including those of the Center for Religious Freedom and the CIRI (Cingranelli-Richards) Human Rights Dataset, which monitors governmental human rights practices.
Generally speaking, indicators of religious freedom pay attention to four main measures: governmental regulation (or restriction) of religion, governmental favouritism towards religion, social regulation of religion, and social hostility (or persecution) towards religion. More recent approaches (see the work of the Observatory on Intolerance and Discrimination against Christians, for example) have tended to focus on the nuanced ways in which social hostility can generate, for example, media representations (especially stereotypes) of religious minorities. Media stereotypes can themselves, in turn, become a motivation for further discrimination at multiple levels.
Examples of regulation, favouritism, discrimination and intolerance are to be found across contemporary Europe. Two countries, Georgia and Hungary, have provided contrasting approaches during 2011.
In July, Georgia introduced amendments to its Civil Code which allow religious groups to register as religious associations instead of being forced to register as non-profit bodies. Whilst the Orthodox Church retained its special status within Georgia, the rights of religious association were extended to the widest possible range of religious minorities.
In contrast, on July 12th, the Parliament of Hungary enacted a new ‘Law on the Right to Freedom of Conscience and Religion, and on Churches, Religions and Religious Communities’. The new legislation severely restricts the legal status and activities of a wide range or religious minorities in Hungary, including the Methodist Church, Unitarian Church and the Assemblies of God. Only 14 of 358 registered churches and religious associations were granted legal recognition with others being required to reapply for registration by a court after a two-thirds approval in the Hungarian parliament. In the case of Hungary, these more restrictive measures were introduced by a right-wing government that has previously been an ally of the Churches.
Other instances of similar infringements are not uncommon across Europe and with this edition of Vista we have begun the task of correlating measures of secularism with those of religious freedom. The manner in which secular societies and states respond instinctively to issues of religious freedom varies across Europe and we believe that this relationship bears further investigation. Secularisation has typically been welcomed as a guarantor of religious freedom. That may no longer be taken for granted, particularly with the rise of new forms of nationalism across Europe. Religious freedom may very well serve as a barometer for further restrictions on personal, social and political freedoms. If so, we do well to keep an eye on these vital signs.
Darrell Jackson