Problem rejestracji kościołów i związków wyznaniowych w polskim systemie prawnym
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Date
2012
Authors
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Wydawnictwo Naukowe WNPiD UAM w Poznaniu
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The issue of registering churches and religious associations in the Polish legal system
Abstract
Once Poland regained independence after WWI, it retained the validity of legal
provisions from the period of the partitions, which resulted in incongruous administrative systems. The principle of citizens’ obligatory membership of any of the recognized religious associations was also tacitly acknowledged. The law of interwar Poland distinguished between recognized religious associations, enjoying the status
of legal entities acknowledged by the State, whose relations to the State, as well as
organizational status, were stipulated by law, and unrecognized religious associations,
enjoying the right to freely practice faith and rituals. At that time there was
also an attempt to regulate legal relations between the State and the Evangelical Union
Churches, the Evangelical Augsburg and Helvetian Church with superindenture
in Stanis³awów, the Vilnius Evangelical Reformed Church (Vilnius Unity), and the
Evangelical Reformed Church with the Consistory in Warsaw. However, for numerous
reasons, no normative acts were passed. The fact that in the interwar period
there were no laws to constitutionally regulate the legal relations of churches and religious associations recognized by the former partitioning states, hindered the proces of unifying of religious law in the Second Republic of Poland. This was further
influenced by administrative practices and the antagonistic attitude of the Catholic
Church to religious minorities. For their own purposes, administrative authorities divided the existing churches and religious associations, distinguishing religious associations recognized by law, unrecognized religious associations operating by virtue
of the laws of former partitioning states, and religious associations not recognized
by law, but tolerated by virtue of Articles 111 and 112 of the March Constitution.
After WWII ended, three churches were recognized by virtue of an administrative
decision, and state authorities decided to change the procedure for legal regulation
of newly emerging churches and religious associations in a way different from that
provided by the legislature of the Second Republic. The aim of these changes was to
simplify the procedures related to the establishment of new churches and religious
associations. The Decree on Associations attempted to encompass churches and religious
associations. The matter was later resolved by the Decree of 5 August 1949 on
the protection of free conscience and religion. Later on matters were handled by the Office for Religious Denominations. Since 1989 the register of churches and religious
associations has been conducted by the Minister of Internal Affairs and Administration.
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Keywords
kościoły, związki wyznaniowe, polski system prawny
Citation
Środkowoeuropejskie Studia Polityczne, 2012, nr 3, s.55-86
Seria
ISBN
ISSN
1731-7517