Chapter 15 In What Ways is Europe Post-Christian?

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Chapter 15

In What Ways is Europe Post-Christian?

In terms of religion and society, Europe presents us with a paradox: No other region in the world has been exposed to the Biblical message and the influence of the church for such a prolonged and intensive way as Europe. At the same time, nowhere is the abandonment of the Christian faith and the retreat from institutional churches as wide-spread as in Europe, and nowhere else has this been going on for such a prolonged period of time.

Ours is not only the continent of beautiful cathedrals but also the continent of almost empty beautiful cathedrals, of chapels in ruins, deserted monasteries, church buildings turned into cultural centres, shops or apartments, or converted to mosques. Once Europe was the heartland of worldwide Christian mission, now it has become a major mission field. Our societies are now multi-religious and non-religious. Ours is the most secularised of all continents.

Present day European societies and cultures are not only the outcome of the age-old influence of Christianity, but also deeply influenced by modes of thought and movements that deliberately distance themselves from Christianity. They are rooted in Biblical values and a Christian worldview but also marked by secularisation in politics and public life, by modes of thought that more or less have rejected traditional doctrines and ethical claims of Christianity.

This is the paradox of Europe: its societies are marked as much by the Christian faith as by its abandonment and rejection. Failing to take into account the two sides of the coin leads to misrepresentations. Either we draw a picture that is too optimistic with respect to the influence of the church, or we depict an image that is too much the opposite.

Two questions flow from this paradox. Firstly, in what sense has Europe become post-Christian? Secondly, to what extent are European societies still influenced by the Christian faith? In this chapter, we shall take up the first question.

15.1. Post-Christianised

It is commonplace today to say that Europe is post-Christian. However, statements to this effect lack precision. In what sense has it become post-Christian? Or is it perhaps post-something-else?

When we examine it more closely, the term post-Christian means different things, depending on the context in which this term is used.

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Christianity has not been relegated to the pastFirstly, it can mean that Christianity has been relegated to the past, and that society is emancipated from its influence. Granted, Christianity is no longer the dominant religion. Looking at the dramatic decline of religious practice in Europe over the last century, at least in quantitative terms, some commentators have come close to suggesting that further de-Christianisation is inevitable, and that the ‘death of Christianity’ is only a matter of time. Claire Berlinski claims that ‘Europe has in the past several centuries seen a complete – really complete – loss of belief in any form of religious belief.’

But this is a ‘gross exaggeration,’ as Philip Jenkins rightly comments. Having quoted this author, he estimates that ‘Europe still has a solid minority of committed believing Christians.’181

Neither Europe as a whole nor any single European country can be called post-Christian in the sense that Christianity no longer counts, that it has disappearing from the scene. Even though practicing Christians represent a minority of the population, they constitute an important and influential minority. They are the largest of all religious communities in Europe.

It is true that everywhere in Europe, church membership is dwindling. But there are also vibrant churches. Evangelical Christianity in particular, to which we should also reckon Pentecostalism, shows stability and growth. Another sign of vitality is the charismatic movement in the Roman Catholic Church. Moreover, the number of migrant churches is increasing, while some existing countries have been revitalised by the presence of Christians from other parts of the world.

How Christian was Europe in the past?Saying that Europe has become post-Christian presupposes that it once was Christian. But was it ever that, really? The answer depends of course on how we define ‘Christians.’ If the definition is ‘born again’ or ‘having accepted Jesus as personal Saviour and Lord,’ the answer is definitely no. Europe has never been Christian in this sense. But these notions are typically Evangelical. Many churches used other criteria.

If you define Christians in terms of ‘discipleship’ or ‘active church membership,’ you will be disappointed by the history of Europe. Even though Christianity was the official religion, many people were not very keen to live by all its principles. For centuries, priests and pastors have complained of low church-attendance. For most people, religious practice was limited to certain rituals at certain times. Read the Pensées of Blaise Pascal and you will notice that a lifestyle-as-if-God-

181 Philip Jenkins, God’s Continent, p. 56.

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does-not-exist was already a phenomenon in seventeenth century France! Lamenting reports of concerned Anglican ministers of the state of religion in eighteenth-century England describe a totally depressing situation. Not even during the Reformation or the religious upsurges in the Middle Ages was the majority of the European population to be found in church every Sunday; far from it.

Surveys have shown that the golden age of active participation in church life and involvement in mission in the English-speaking world and in Protestant Europe was the period between 1750 till the end of the nineteenth century.

In the past, Europe has never been totally Christian in the sense that everybody was a believer in Jesus. There were always many non-Christians to be evangelised, disconnected church members to be reached, new generations to be educated in the faith, churches to be reformed, unjust structures to be changed, social evil to be dealt with, and societies in want of Christian values.

Post-Christianised However, there is a difference between the present and former times. For ages, society was Christianised, which means that Christian morals served as the frame of reference for legislation, social norms, public life and private life. This is no longer the case. Practising believers are a minority among other minorities. Their principles of conduct are in many respects at variance with those of the mainstream population. The public sphere is now largely disconnected from Christian norms and values.

This did not happen overnight and the process is still going on. The degree of de-Christianisation varies from country to country, but the overall tendency in Europe is that Christianity is losing ground in terms of numbers and of influence in society.

15.2. Post-Constantinian (Christendom)

A second way in which Europe can be called post-Christianised is that we are witnessing the end of an era in which society and politics were dominated by the combined influence of the institutional church and the state. This era and this system are called Constantinian, after the first Roman emperor to embrace Christianity, Constantine the Great. In his famous Edict of Milan in 313 he put an end to the long series of persecutions of churches in the Roman Empire. He granted Christianity the status of religio licita, ‘officially permitted religion.’ Here we have the beginning of Christendom, based on the alliance between throne and altar.


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Constantinian alliance of throne and altarIn English publications, this system is often called Christendom, not to be confounded with Christianity.182 We prefer the designation Constantinianism, which is used in other languages. A lucid description has been given by the Dutch scholar of cultural history, Feitse Boerwinkel, already in 1974.183 We will follow his presentation.

After Constantine the Great had made Christianity the official religion of the ruling class, it soon became the privileged religion of the empire as a whole. From that time onwards, ‘the state wants the invincible church to be the guarantee for its own existence.’184

Roman religions were based on the foundational principle do ut des, ‘I give in order that you give.’ This means that man offers cultic worship to a divine being (or beings), in exchange the divinity offers his protection to human society.

When Constantine won the battle against rival Roman generals, under the sign of the cross, he concluded that the god of the Christians was invincible and very powerful. Therefore, the people of his empire needed to render favour to this divinity. So Christianity became the official religion of the state.

Constantine granted many privileges to the Church. He ordered the construction of church buildings in Rome, his new capital Constantinople and many other cities. Clergy were exempt from state duties. Bishops were given judicial powers and allowed to make use of imperial transport. This is the beginning of the European custom that ecclesial institutions are exempt from paying taxes. The church obtained the right of legacy and the right of asylum. In a church building, state officials had no authority to take someone prisoner or to execute someone!

As for Constantine himself, his position remained somewhat ambiguous. He turned the persecuted church into an established church. In 325 he even convened the famous Council of Nicaea to settle doctrinal matters that divided the church. Nevertheless, he postponed his baptism until shortly before his death. After the Edict of Milan in 313, he ordered the construction of several temples for Roman gods. Apparently, he wanted to remain on good terms with both the Christians and the adherents of the very popular Mithras cults.

182 The English term ‘Christendom’ looks the same as christendom in Dutch, and Christentum in German, but the meaning is not the same. The latter terms denotes Christianity as such, they are the equivalent of ‘Christianity’ in English.183 Feitse Boerwinkel, Einde of nieuw begin, 1974.184 Hendrik Berkhof, De kerk en de keizer, quoted by Feitse Boerwinkel, op. cit., p. 52.

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Dominance of Christianity After 324, when he had become the sole ruler of the empire, Constantine made it increasingly clear that he demanded of his subjects that they become members of the church. Yet he never crossed the line between persuasion and coercion.

This was done by one of his successors, Theodosius, in 380. Just recovered from a serious illness, he wanted to show his gratitude by issuing a law that made it compulsory for all his subjects to accept the Christian faith:

We order that those who obey this law shall be called Catholic Christians. We order that the others, whom we deem outrageous and foolish, shall have to bear the shame of being heretics. They are not allowed to call their meetings church meetings. They will be dealt with by divine wrath. They shall also be punished by us, we have this authority on the basis of the divine will.185

Tis implies that the church has become a state church. From now on, all other religions, Jewish and pagan, as well as deviant Christian groups, would be persecuted and their building demolished. Already in 385 the first heretics are put to trial.

Boerwinkel is cautious, and rightly so, to distinguish the Constantinian system of the alliance between throne and altar, and the Theodosian system of official Christianity to which everyone should belong. While the first allows for a certain measure of religious plurality in society, the second is much more intolerant. Constantine introduced the alliance between throne and altar, i.e. between the political power and the institutional church. He made Christianity the privileged and dominant religion. Theodosius amplified this by making Christianity the only religion in society.

A European phenomenonIn the Constantinian system the church is the established religion of the state. This arrangement has been taken over by the successors of the Roman Empire in the West and in the East. It became the rule everywhere in Europe. Even Protestant countries, for all their protest against the abuse of clerical-political power, have not gone as far as abolishing it. They have established a Protestant state church (Lutheran, Anglican or Reformed), although its dominance in actual practice has been less stringent than that of Roman Catholicism.

Of course, an intrinsic link between politics and religion is not uniquely European. All ancient societies knew it. What makes the European case so remarkable is that it was Christianity, of all religions, which entertained this

185 Edict of Theodosius, 27 February 380, quoted by Feitse Boerwinkel, op. cit., p. 53.


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symbiotic relation with civil government. This is all the more startling when we realise that Christian churches started as a countercultural movement, with values that were subversive in the society of that time. For that reason they were persecuted, marginalised, and considered to be a threat to the social system. A movement that challenged the legitimacy of the ruling powers for three centuries became the legitimisation of emperors and kings.

The alliance between the state and the institutional Christian church has originated and developed in Europe. In English, this is called ‘establishment.’ The underlying ideal was to create a Christianised society, under the combined rule of church and state. The first uses the spiritual powers of preaching and sacraments, the second has the temporal powers of law and, if need be, military arms.

The underlying conviction was that of ‘one king, one law, one faith.’ In order for a country or an empire or a state to be united, it should belong to one religion. Thus, Christianity became the guarantor of national cohesion. The sovereign prince needed the legitimization of the church, in order to confirm the divine right by which he ruled. Hence coronations in churches, and official prayers at the opening of parliamentary sessions

The Constantinian system has determined European history, and marked the socio-cultural development of each and every country on the continent.

Counter movementsWe should note that there have always been counter movements that wanted to change this. Usually designated as heretics and sects, they were not tolerated because they called into question the existing system. Persecution was their common lot. Many sought refuge in the New World.

The most challenging critique of the Constantinian system came from the Anabaptists and the Non-Conformists movements. Their church model was that of a community of professing believers, not dominated by the state and not allied to political power. This ‘radical reformation’ was met with fierce opposition from both Catholic and Protestant leaders.

Separation of church and stateThe Theodosian system of a state church came to an end with the Enlightenment principle of the separation of church and state. This led to the creation of a secular state, which, by the way, is yet another European phenomenon.

The separation of church and state was first implemented outside Europe, in the United States at the time of their independence in 1776. Some years later it was introduced in France, in the wake of the French Revolution, by a Regulation adopted in the National Assembly in 1795. During the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, other countries adopted the same principle, although the church often retained certain privileges. In some countries, there

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are still established churches (Lutheran in Denmark, Anglican in England, Orthodox in Greece, for example), although their political role is limited, and part of a parliamentary democracy. Be that as it may, the principle of separation of church and state is now generally accepted as a basic value in European societies.

The Enlightenment and the secularisation of the state were not so much anti-Christianity as they were opposed to the Constantinian and Theodosian arrangement of a dominant and privileged state church.

Be that as it may, some churches were bitterly opposed to these new ideas. In Roman Catholic and Orthodox countries, the separation of church and state took place in the context of long battles, fuelled by fierce anticlericalism on the one side, and outright conservatism on the other. In other countries, this separation was brought about gradually and by peaceful means. But the net result was the same: the state became neutral. Here are the main characteristics:

• The divine right of the sovereign ruler (who reigns by the grace of God) is replaced by the sovereignty of the people.

• Inhabitants are no longer subjects of the prince but citizens of the nation.• The law is not based on the will of the king but on a constitution that is

voted on by the elected representatives of the people.• Governments are formed by the elected representatives of the people, in

order that they execute the will of the people.• Religion is a matter of private concern, outside the civil and political realm,

which means the disestablishment of the official state church.• Pluralism is the guiding principle of democracy. This implies religious

tolerance.

In French, this principle is known as laïcité. There are two kinds of laïcité: an ideological and a pragmatic form. The first is rigid, opposed to any Christian involvement in education, medical care, social welfare and parliament. Its adherents are against any form of state support for religious institutions. The second is pluralist and less rigid. Its adherents allow for confessional schools (Christian, Jewish or Muslim), hospitals, trade unions, charitable societies, political parties and so on, as long as they abide by the rules that are set for the whole society, and as long as they do not seek to dominate, and as long as they do not impose their views on people outside their constituency.

Opportunities for nonconformistsFor a long time, the ‘free’ non-conformist churches were in at a disadvantage in comparison to the historical churches that represented the dominant religion. They did not receive the same privileges granted to established churches.


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Where the Constantinian arrangement receded, ‘free’ churches of all stripes were allowed to build sanctuaries, set up schools, influence the political debate, and have a voice in the public domain. Indeed, in some countries, Evangelical churches are becoming more important, more visible, and more involved in society.

Recently, the Belgian government has recognised Evangelical churches as one of the two wings of Protestantism. As a consequence, the state is prepared to pay the salaries of their pastors, in the same way that it remunerates other Protestant pastors, and following the same criteria. Some Evangelical churches have welcomed this opportunity. Others are more reluctant, since they are afraid of possible government influence on internal church matters in the future.

In other countries, however, the historical churches are still considered to be the national church, the religion of the people. In Russia and Serbia, for instance, the Orthodox Church fosters nationalistic sentiments, thus perpetuating the close ‘Constantinian’ link with the State. Throughout Eastern Europe we see Orthodox clergy and politicians join forces to limit the action of Evangelicals and other non-traditional churches, because they are seen as foreign elements, as ‘Western sects.’

The end of the Constantinian eraIs this the end of Christendom? This is often stated, but we should distinguish between the Theodosian system of a state church and the Constantinian dominance of Christianity in society. This important nuance is brought out by Feitse Boerwinkel when he writes:

With the French Revolution [i.e. the introduction of the principle of the separation of church and state] the Theodosian era in which the church was privileged by the state ended. Prior to the French Revolution, church membership was assumed. The superiority of Christianity with regards to other religions was also assumed. With the French Revolution, the power of the church comes to an end, but not its influence. That has continued until our day. To be more precise, until the 1970s at which time the assumption that everyone belonged to a church rapidly crumbled. In our view, the 1970s mark the end of the Constantinian phase of the European church.186

Post-Constantinian means: the church has lost its dominant place; the state has taken over functions that hitherto were exercised by the church: education (the introduction of state schools), medical care (hospices become hospitals),

186 Feitse Boerwinkel, op. cit., p. 53-54.

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welfare (orphanages, hostels), civil administration (registration of births and marriage). Here are some other elements of a post-Constantinian situation:

• Disestablishment of the church (the separation of church and state).• Legislation no longer exclusively based on Christian moral values.• Christianity no longer the reference religion.• Churches no longer privileged, although certain privileges still exist in

some countries.• Church membership no longer assumed.• Civil marriage obligatory, church marriage optional.• State responsible for education, medical care and social welfare.• National identity takes precedence over religious identity.

Vestiges of the Constantinian eraEven though Europe has become largely post-Constantinian, several vestiges of the old system remain in virtually every country.

• In the Netherlands, churches have a special and privileged legal status.• In Germany and Switzerland, government collects ‘church tax’ from church

members.• In Greece, Orthodoxy is the official religion of the state.• In the United Kingdome, the queen is the head of the Anglican Church

and the defender of the Christian faith; some bishops are automatically members of the House of Lords.

• Even in France, where the state is so committed to its neutrality in religious matters, the state maintains and restores church buildings that were built prior to 1905 (the year in which the separation of church and state became effective).

Look at the Constantinian vestiges in Belgium, for example. Only a minority of the population regularly attends church, but there is a continued influence of the Roman Catholic tradition in society.187 Here are some special arrangements still in existence today:

• About seventy percent of Belgian children still attend a Catholic school.• Many hospitals and universities have a Catholic flavour.• The Catholic tradition is still very present with regard to public holidays

187 See Patrick De Pooter, De rechtspositie van Erkende Erediensten en Levensbeschouwingen in Staat en maatschappij, Gent: Larcier, 2002, p. 66-67.


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(e.g. All Saints, Assumption of Mary) and school vacations (Christmas, Easter, Ascension Day, Pentecost).

• On the national holiday, a ceremonial Te Deum is celebrated that political, military and royal representatives attend.

• In the Belgian order of precedence, representatives of the Roman Catholic Church have a higher place than representatives of other faith groups.

• Several Belgian trade unions and social security insurance societies have a Catholic history and profile. There definitely is a Catholic civil society consisting of a plethora of societies and institutions. Together they represent an important majority of the Belgian population.188

This list is certainly not exhaustive but offers a general overview. How about the relation between church and state? In Belgium there is no state religion, but neither is there a strict separation church and state. Religion is present in the public sphere and there is public funding of (recognised) religion.

There are seven recognised religions, including Protestants and Evangelicals.189 They (can) receive public funds to cover the salary of their ministers, and subsidies for building churches, carrying out social projects, etc. if they meet the criteria set out by the state. The motivation behind the decision to actively support certain religions is the conviction that these groups have a moral and social utility, serve the general interest of the people, and act as the guardians of morality.

Johan Lorein describes this rationale as pluralistic Constantinianism: the state actively supports the church and acknowledges that its role is useful to the general benefit of society. Instead of one recognised church, however, there are now several recognised religions.190

In this system there is a structural difference between recognised religions and other ones. At the same time, the Belgian constitution affirms the fundamental equality of all religions. This leads to a paradoxical situation: even though the various groups are officially regarded as equal they are not treated equally.

188 Lieven Boeve, ‘Katholieke’ identiteit van organisaties en instellingen uit het cultureel-maatschappelijke middenveld’ in: Peter De Mey and Pieter de Witte (ed.) De ‘K’ van Kerk: De pluriformiteit van katholiciteit. Antwerpen: Halewijn, 2009, p. 109.189 These are Roman Catholic, Protestant (consisting of two recognized wings, Protestant and Evangelical), Anglican, Jewish, Islamic, Orthodox and Humanists (‘secular philosophy of life’).190 Johan Lorein, Assignment paper for the course Europe and the Gospel, Evangelical Theological Faculty, Leuven, August 2012.

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Even among the recognised groups there are significant differences. The most important one is found in the criteria for the funding of ministers. Roman Catholic parishes receive local funding for priests based upon general population rates, while the other religions are dealt with on the basis of ‘effective members’ as criterion for the funding of ministers.191 The reason for this difference is mainly historical: The constitution of 1831 recognised not only Roman Catholicism but also Protestantism and the Judaism. It was decided that only Roman Catholic priests should receive a state salary as a way of compensation for the state’s appropriation of Catholic buildings. While this system made sense in 1831, it is now no longer valid.

Another area in which the Roman Catholic Church maintains a privileged position are the criteria that are used to recognise religions. These criteria seem to be based upon Catholicism. Recently the recognition of Buddhism in Belgium became a problem because it did not meet these criteria. Given the above reality, Johan Lorein concludes that the Roman Catholic Church still dominates the legislation, as primus inter pares. 192

Given the vestiges of the Constantinian arrangement, as described in the above overview, we conclude that institutional churches are still privileged in many ways. This confirms the impression that Europe remains attached in a special way to Christianity.

15.3. Post-Religious (Secularised)

Thirdly, the qualification ‘post-Christian’ can be used in the sense that Europe is secularised, post-religious. When we look at the behaviour of our fellow citizens, at their political views, their scientific explanations of the world, their economic values and sexual norms, we cannot escape the conclusion that many of them live and act etsi deus non daretur, as if God does not exist. Europe has become post-religious. To put it more precisely; the majority of its population is now post-practicing Christian. Usually, where Christianity is abandoned, people do not adopt another religion. They remain irreligious.

Even many of those who do attend church (regularly or occasionally), do not necessarily believe the doctrines taught by that church, nor do they always feel obliged to abide with its ethical principles. As far as their social conduct is concerned, they are more or less like the unchurched, secularised population.

191 Patrick De Pooter, op. cit., p. 302-303.192 Johan Lorein, op.cit.


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Disregard of traditional religious (Christian) valuesEverywhere around us, we see the extent to which the European population has become post-religious. Conspicuous signs are the decline of religious rites and customs, and the disregard of traditional religious values and norms in the public space. In the European context, these values are Christian - or Judeo-Christian if you like. Morals based on religious convictions and sacred texts are give way to ethics based on ‘inner worldly’ considerations, be they philosophical, pragmatic, social, economic, or political.

For example, the ‘facts’ that count in the world of science are studied on rationalistic grounds only, disconnected from the ‘values’ of religion. In the realm of governance, the state is separated from the church. Public and non-confessional institutions have taken over the role of church-related institutions in education. The welfare state is developed as the secular alternative to the social function of the church in the past.

We see this shift also taking place in areas like marriage and family, education and social manners, financial scruples, sexuality, attitudes toward the weak and the elderly, respect for life in its embryonic stage as well as in its final suffering stage, and so on. Currently, abortion has been legalised under certain conditions in most European countries and certain forms of euthanasia are also allowed. It is difficult to tell whether a majority of the public is in agreement with this. If so, it is a silent majority. Pro-life organisations and political parties that oppose these practices constitute minorities.

Until fairly recently, the idea of civil marriage possible for same-sex couples met with general public disapproval. Today, it is accepted by the majority of the public. Some countries (The Netherlands, Belgium, even Spain) have passed laws allowing it, notwithstanding their long history of Christian political involvement and despite protests from religious institutions. Other countries are preparing to follow suit.

As homosexual and lesbian couples demand the right to parenthood, they put forward several options: adoption, in vitro fertilisation, egg/sperm donation, surrogate motherhood, and perhaps other modalities still. All of this is debated. People with religious convictions are very hesitant, to say the least, but opinions also vary among those who argue along purely secular lines.

Of course, alternative ways of procreation made possible by medical technology were and still are primarily used by heterosexual couples. Christians and adherents of other religions who take different views are not, in general, categorically against them. But when these alternatives are made available for single parents and same-sex couples, they lead us far away from the Christian model of marriage of man and woman as the context for procreation and parenthood. They are also at odds with the traditional views of other religions, Judaism and Islam in particular.

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All of this is part of the general trend to rethink, on a non-religious basis, the connection(s) between marriage, living as a couple, procreation, and biological parenthood.

Disregard of traditional values is not only a matter of private ethical issues such as the examples mentioned above; it is also relevant in the economic and political realms: unbridled financial markets, hedonist consumerism, individualisation, anti-immigrant attitudes, and so on.

What people do in the private and the public realm is related to moral convictions called values. Our values are part of our worldview, related to certain philosophical and spiritual convictions, but this spiritual dimension is often overlooked. This is due to the fact that many people live and act on the basis of a worldview that only takes into account what is visible to the eye, tangible and verifiable to the rational researcher, explicable in natural scientific terms.

SecularisationThe technical term for this phenomenon is secularisation. However, using this term may lead to confusion because it can convey several meanings. Surprisingly, it was at first a Christian theological term, denoting the temporal terrestrial realm, as distinct from the spiritual realm. We live in the present age of this world (seaculum), but we hope for the age or the world to come,’ the age of all ages (seaculum saeculorum).

‘Secular’ referred to the world of ordinary believers — as distinct from the clergy — who lived in the world, in contrast to monastic communities who lived according to a religious rule. During the French Revolution, civil authorities took over many church-owned properties, such as monasteries, schools, orphanages, and so on. The technical term for that was the ‘secularisation’ of ecclesiastical possessions, so that they could be administered by terrestrial, i.e. secular authorities.

Much later, the word secularisation reappears in the context of sociological studies. Sociologists use it to denote the rational worldview that has emerged since the Enlightenment, a worldview that does not take into account the intervention of a divine being in human history. Secularisation means excluding God from scientific research and political action. Later still, the same term is used to denote the decline of church membership, the abandonment of organised religious practice, and even the abandonment of any religious belief.

Nowadays, the term secularisation is generally used in this sense although it implies the former sociological sense as well, because people with a religious mode of life usually have a secularised, i.e. non-religious worldview.

The alternative of no religion at all – a European phenomenonGiving up the Christian faith in large numbers is not something that only happened and happens in Europe. This has also happened in North Africa and the Middle East, where Christianity has been the dominant religion for many


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ages but lost this position to Islam. A number of peoples in Central Asia were once Christian, now they are Buddhist. Christian people groups in India have (re)turned to Hinduism.

But there is one fundamental difference. While these peoples have turned from Christianity to another religion, or returned to the religion of their ancestors, Europeans have given up Christianity for no other religion at all. Some may have retained certain beliefs, but they are no longer part of organised religion. In this part of the world, the alternative to Christianity is not another faith, but no faith at all, i.e. a non-religious worldview, a secular life-style. The typical European non-Christian is not a convert to another religion, but someone defining himself as ‘without religion.’

Secularisation as a non-religious worldview and a non-religious way of life is a European phenomenon, historically speaking. It originated in our part of the world. While it has now spread to other regions of the world, mainly countries with a western culture, Europe still stands out as the continent where it has taken root more than anywhere else.

No outside pressureAnother remarkable thing about this phenomenon is that it took place, and still takes place, not because of external pressure but because of internal factors within ‘Christianised’ Europe itself. Several movements emerged in reaction to the predominant place of the church in society. They challenged its doctrines, and secularised its morals. Many Europeans became disillusioned with the institutional church. Why? Generally speaking, this was not because they were attracted by another religion. People abandon the Christian perspective of heaven and a new earth to come. Why? Generally speaking, not because they find more hope in Islam or Buddhism but because they prefer inner-worldly perspectives of a better society brought about by human means only. Today, many have become disillusioned with secular ideologies as well, which leaves them with very little expectation of a better possible world.

Christianity disappeared from Central Asia and North Africa and it has been marginalised in the Middle East because of the impact of outside forces, invasions, and the social pressure of other religions. In contrast, Europe is de-Christianising itself.

Relatively low percentage of atheistsDespite ongoing secularisation, atheism remains a minority option for Europeans. Clearly, people can live secular lives while still having sacred hearts. They might suppose that a divine being exists, they might be deists or agnostics, but the attitude taken is often that of practical secularism. As French people often say: ‘I can’t tell whether God exists or not, but at any rate, he doesn’t bother with me much, so I’m not bothering with him.’

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With the downfall of communism, the official atheism of the Soviet authorities and their anti-religious policy has disappeared. This was followed by a resurgence of religious practice all over Eastern Europe.

How many atheists are there really? That is, how many people are convinced that there is no divine supreme? According to a survey conducted in 2005, fifty-two percent of EU citizens of the member states believe in a personal being called ‘God,’ while another twenty-seven percent believe that there is some sort of spirit or life force. Only eighteen percent believe that no spirit, ‘God’ or life force exists. The remaining three percent declined to answer.193

Another survey conducted in 2004, showed that twenty-five percent on average of the people in Western Europe identified as atheists, over and against twelve percent in Central and Eastern Europe. Its authors also noted some other remarkable disparities. The percentage of atheists varies from four percent in Romania and eight percent in Greece, to a surprisingly high forty-one percent in The Netherlands and even forty-nine percent in the Czech Republic.194

Such high figures are often brought up. However, the wording of the questionnaire does not always make the necessary distinction between convinced atheism on the one hand and practical atheism on the other (living as if there is no God). The latter is usually coupled with agnosticism (not being sure whether God exists). Taking this distinction into account, French sociologists agree that in their country atheists account for only fifteen percent of the population, and that this is the highest percentage in the whole of Europe, with possible exceptions of the Czech Republic and parts of other European countries, such as the eastern Länder in Germany.195 Most people who do not identify as practising a religion are in fact agnostics rather than declared atheists.

Has Christianity paved the way for a post-religious society?Sociologists of religion have pointed out that when Christianity supplanted the preceding pagan religions in Europe, it brought about a certain measure of secularisation. Christian missionaries denied the existence of gods and spirits related to natural phenomena – Boniface cut down the holy oaks of the Saxons to prove the non-existence of the deities that were supposed to send fire from heaven to punish him. In spreading the message of the Bible, the church has disenchanted and demythologised nature.

193 Eurobarometer, statistics provided by the Council of Europe, 2005.194 Wall Street Journal, European edition, 23 December 2004.195 See e.g. Frédéric Lenoir, Le Christ philosophe, Paris: Plon, 2007, as well as the survey published by Le Monde des religions, July 2005.


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Moreover, the church introduced a distinction between political and spiritual authority. Even though the European thrones were in alliance with the institutional church, the two spheres were seen to be parallel, precisely because they could not be equated. The first wielded temporal power by the use of the sword; the second exerted spiritual power by the use of the Word.

While Roman Catholics, Orthodox, Protestants and Radical Reformation movements disagreed on the way in which church and state should relate to each other, they all insisted on the fundamental distinction between the two, following the statement of Jesus, ‘Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, yield to God what belongs to God’ (Matthew 22). Protestants developed the principle of freedom of religion and tolerance. This amounted to denying the authority of the state to intervene in matters of conscience. In all these respects, Christianity paved the way for the secularisation of politics that was to come about in the wake of the Enlightenment.

Christianity has also contributed to the development of an autonomous scientific research, through its emphasis on rational enquiry. Initially, the church applied reason and philosophy to Biblical revelation. Rational enquiry served to understand God’s Word (theology), God’s principles for society (law), and God’s laws of creation (medicine and natural sciences). The idea was to ‘try and think God’s thoughts after Him.’

Gradually, the study of the laws of nature became independent from the religious context, leading to secular rationalism and a secular worldview which no longer explained reality in relation to a divine being. Modern science and technology have developed out of this. But they would probably never have come about without the prior phase of Christian rationalism. Here we have yet another way in which Christianity can be said to have paved the way for a post-religious society.

Churches and missionaries have generally presented their faith as being superior to all other belief systems. Christianity, they say, provides the answer to the fundamental problem of man that no other religion can resolve, i.e. how to be reconciled with God. Of course, this is a Christian way of making the comparison. But it shows that, from a Christian point view, this faith is the nec plus ultra. So if people give up Christianity for whatever reason, where would they look for something better? If one follows the rationale of Christianity, then the logical answer would be nowhere, because Christianity was already considered to be superior to all others. This is exactly the conclusion drawn by Europeans who are disaffiliated from church institutions, and who no longer practice the Christian faith. They have developed a secularised, non-religious way of life.

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15.4. Post-Modern

Contemporary Europeans are often described as postmodern. It would be more precise to say that a considerable portion of the population (e.g. the young, the cosmopolitan and the affluent) has a more or less postmodern mindset. Is this yet another way in which Europe is becoming ‘post-Christian?’ To answer this question, we must take a very brief look at the shift from modern to postmodern.

A reaction to the Enlightenment and modernismPostmodernism, or ultramodernism,196 is not a clearly defined movement but rather a philosophical outlook, a mindset. Postmodernism has permeated every aspect of European culture, but it began as a philosophical critique of totalitarian regimes such as Nazism. Reacting against social structures and ideologies that claimed to represent absolute truth, postmodern philosophers argued that such claims were claims for absolute loyalty that were instruments of power.

Philosophers like Jacques Derrida, Jean-François Lyotard and Jürgen Habermas set out to deconstruct these systems in order to bring to light the political and economic interests behind them. They serve to oppress people, to exclude all rivals, and to maintain the ruling elite. This leads to oppression of individual freedom. Nazism and Soviet communism were prime examples, as they were perpetrated the worst horrors of the twentieth century: the genocide of the Jews in the Shoa and the Gulag Archipelago of forced labour camps in Siberia.

From a postmodern point of view, the same mechanisms are evident on a much wider scale. The dogmatic rationalism and the belief in scientific progress that characterize modern Western culture are equally suspect, when they serve to impose this one worldview, without tolerating alternative worldviews. Hence the name of this critique: postmodern. In a similar vein, this critique can also be applied to cultures claiming to be superior to others, to religions claiming to be ‘the only way.’

Postmodernism has become a school of thought that sharply critiques the Enlightenment with its faith in the triumphant march of science and continuing social progress. Human beings are fundamentally a mystery even to themselves so instead of relying on the limited power of reason, this mystery can often better be explored by means of music, aesthetics, intuition, religion and other rich worlds of experience.

Postmodernism has been characterised as a turning away from objectivity to subjectivity, according to which everyone has the right to live according to his or

196 French authors, in particular, prefer the term ‘ultramodernism.’ Cf. Jean-Paul Willaime, Europe et religions, p. 204ff.


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her ‘truth.’ One of the fundamental claims of postmodernism is that there is no absolute truth and no single worldview that is better than any other, let alone superior. Claims to that effect should be critically dismantled. The age of these so-called meta-narratives is over. Instead, all religious, moral and philosophical viewpoints have a value as such, because they are related to a particular real life context. In principle, they are of equal value.

Postmodernism is a philosophical corollary of the multicultural society: cultural and religious differences should be accepted. Diversity is inevitable. This position leads to a pluralist outlook; let there be room for different values, ethical norms, religious beliefs, etc. If there is any universal value, than it should be tolerance.

Is Postmodernism a reaction to Christianity?Returning to the question put in the preceding paragraph: is postmodernism a reaction to Christianity? The answer is ‘yes’ inasmuch as it is critical of any claim to absolute truth, including the Christian one. But the Gospel presents Jesus as the only Name by which people can be saved. There is an exclusivist element in Christianity that cannot be denied if we want to remain loyal to the Biblical revelation. Postmodernism has a problem with that. In this respect it is a reaction to Christianity. There is unease with missionary efforts to bring non-Christians to this one faith in one unique saviour who is the way, the truth, and the the fullness of life.

However, the answer is ‘no’ inasmuch as postmodernism is not a reaction to any religious experience and practice. Postmodernism is not against religion, nor does it present itself as an alternative religion. People with a postmodern outlook are not closed off to religious belief and spiritual experience, quite the contrary. One can be postmodern and practice a religion – as long as one remains tolerant of other forms of ‘truth,’ a postmodern person would add. From the Christian standpoint, the great problem of postmodernism is its pluralism, which leads to relativism.

15.5. Post-Evangelised

Several missiological publication place Europe among the ‘evangelised world,’ a term indicating that at least fifty percent of the population has unrestricted access to an understandable presentation of the Gospel.197 Indeed, any

197 Apart from the ‘evangelised world’ there is the ‘non-evangelised world’ where less than 50% of the population has free access to an understandable presentation of the Gospel, and the ‘unreached world’ where less than 2% of the population is Christian. In missiological jargon, these are called World C, B and A respectively.

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observer will notice the plethora of literature, movies, videos, television programs, Christian items in the news, Christian television channels, journals, tracts, billboards, and bookstores, all presenting the message of the Bible, not to mention church buildings which people can enter, Christian schools, Christian hospitals, Christian holiday centres, museums with Christian art, and religious education in schools. The list can be expanded at length. It seems almost impossible to not be informed about the message of Christianity. Furthermore, churches regularly engage in evangelism aimed at arousing an interest among the un-churched. To this we should add the countless occasions on which individual believers talk about their faith to non-Christian friends and colleagues.

Finally, there are church planters all over the continent, trying to bring people together in new communities, in areas where the Christian testimony is deemed insufficient, or thought to be completely lacking. (It is a matter of debate whether such initiatives should also be undertaken in towns that already have an important Roman Catholic or Orthodox presence.)

Yes, Europe is being evangelised at length and to a large extent. We should add that this has been going on for many centuries. Even so, despite the fact that Europeans have access to the Christian faith, and despite the impressive amount of evangelism efforts, a great number of our contemporaries do not seem to be interested. It is as if these people are saying, ‘I know all about Christianity, in Europe we have seen a lot of it, but I prefer leaving it in the past. I appreciate the heritage of Christian art, I appreciate what Christians are doing for the poor, and so on, but as for me, I’m not interested in joining a church. I can pray on my own, when I feel the need for it.’

In a very real sense, Europe can be called post-evangelised. Talking about the Gospel gives the impression of presenting ‘old news’ instead of ‘good news.’ While becoming a Christian represents a step forward in other places of the world, it is seen as joining the religion of the past in Europe.

In his interesting book on the way today’s secularised citizens in the United Kingdom look at the church and Christianity, Anglican pastor Allan Billings makes some thought provoking observations. What he says about British society can easily be applied to other European countries:

Whether the losses in Church attendance spell terminal decline, as some have predicted, is debatable: the Church has considerably resources and the fall in numbers is not uniform across the different types of Anglicanism. But...if the starting point for assessing the place of religion in Britain today is with numbers of active members, the message of decline cannot be disputed. Moreover, this is in spite of considerable efforts at evangelism during the final decade of the 20th century. The inescapable message of the twentieth century was that the British people do not want to attend Churches on a regular basis and there is no


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strategy of either evangelism or Church restructuring that can make a significant difference to that.198

The exceptional continentHow different the situation is in other parts of the world, not only in the developing countries, but also in a modern and highly technological society like the United States. British sociologist Grace Davie has characterised Europe as ‘the exceptional continent.’ She gives us two important starting points to understand why this is so. In Europe, the rise of modernity (a worldview based on rational science and technology) has been accompanied by secularisation and the decline of religious practice. But this combination is not a universal phenomenon. In other parts of the world, the development of a society along the lines of western technology and rational science does not seem to hamper religious practice. On the contrary, in United States, Canada, Korea, China, and Latin America, to mention a few striking examples, religious communities are thriving and secularisation remains limited in scope. It seems that the European combination of modernity and secularisation is the exception to the rule.199

In a recent publication, Peter Berger, Grace Davie and Effie Fokas compare the religious practice in Europe and in the United States.200 While there are similarities, the differences are striking. Their analyses show that religion occupies an important place in American society, while European societies are much more subject to secularisation.

Could Christianity become marginalised or even extinct?Suppose we extrapolate the trends in the USA and in Europe. Should we then come to the conclusion that the Christian faith will continue to prosper over there, and continue to decline over here?

Certainly, Christianity is still a vibrant and influential religious community. Here and there we see thriving, growing churches. The number of immigrant churches has risen sharply over the last years. But even so, the overall decline of Christian religious practice continues. The proportion of un-churched Europeans is growing steadily. This raises the question, could it be that Christianity in Europe will sooner or later be marginalised or even become extinct?

198 Allan Billings, Secular Lives, Sacred Hearts, p. 11.199 Grace Davie, Europe: the Exceptional Case, p. 137 and p. 145200 Peter Berger, Grace Davie and Effie Fokas, Religious America, Secular Europe?

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In theory this is possible. Throughout history, there are examples of both. North Africa once had a thriving church. Christianity in the Middle East is marginalised where earlier it was the dominant religion for many centuries. Central Asia offers similar examples. Looking at the figures of diminishing church membership, we should not jump to conclusions though. Developments in the area of religious practice are never linear. Others refuse to believe that faith in Jesus could one day become a rare phenomenon in our lands. Hoping for revival they point to signs of revitalisation in the present. However, the presence of some almond blossoms does not yet make the summer of a re-Christianised Europe.

In theory, then, both scenarios are possible: gradual extinction despite occasional local upsurges, or renewal and revival. Philip Jenkins does not believe in the possibility of the first scenario. Looking at earlier periods in history when leading thinkers were convinced that Christianity was doomed or in its final days, he finds that often the opposite happened. Similarly, current predictions about the inevitable further decline of Christianity ‘is perhaps the best indicator that it is about to expand or revive.’201

For the time being, one cannot be certain of any scenario, as Grace Davie rightly pointed out in her study on the spread of religious beliefs and values in western European societies. She gives two reasons for this uncertainty. ‘There exists no simple alignment between modernity, secularisation, and the decline of religious sensibility.’202

201 Philip Jenkins, God’s Continent, p. 288.202 Grace Davie, Europe: The Exceptional Case, p. 137 and p. 145.


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Chapter 15 In What Ways is Europe Post-Christian?