Newman and Strossmayer on the Relationship Between the Church and the State (I)

Šimo Šokčević,Tihomir Živić

doi:10.29162/anafora.v7i1.11

Abstract

The relationship between the Catholic Church and the state, and between the Church and the state in general, is a very topical issue, and theoreticians at the present time provide various models that render assistance to the comprehension of that relationship. The complexity and extensiveness of the problem necessitates that it should be dealt with in two parts (articles). Basically, our objective was to represent the deliberations of John Henry Newman (1801‒1890) and Josip Juraj Strossmayer (1815‒1905), which we consider to be exceptionally valuable and relevant even today. Through such an analysis, we intended to examine how the deliberations of these two great thinkers of the nineteenth century may contribute to a better cooperation between the Catholic Church and the state in present‐day Europe. In this, the first article, in which we deal with Newman’s and Strossmayer’s perceptions of the relationship between the Catholic Church and the state, at the very outset we feature the context in which Newman and Strossmayer each take a closer look at that relationship. This context is characterized by liberalism, but with numerous negative connotations that suffocate the originally positive meaning of liberalism. A negative context of liberalism is an aggravating circumstance in the comprehension of the relationship between the Catholic Church and the state, and on the other hand, from the position of a modern liberal state, Newman’s and Strossmayer’s comprehension of history, in whose center is the principle of God’s Providence, is also qualified in this way, which simultaneously renders the Catholic Church consistent and authentic, unlike the modern liberal state, which frequently assumes utopian and ideological characteristics. For this very reason, that difference regularly seems insurmountable. Finally, we observe that the issues are additionally complicated by the erroneous notion of the Dogma of Papal Infallibility, which is not understood in the spirit of harmony between the conscience and an Authority.

Highlights

The right to religious liberty is considered the basis of any healthy democratic régime
The legal protection of religious liberty varies from one country to the other, so we may speak about a multitude of theoretical models of the relationship between religion (Church) and the state
The relationship of the Catholic Church and the state has been the subject of debate throughout history, but in this two‐part account, we would like to tackle contributions in the nineteenth century that seem to be especially pertinent today

Summary

Introduction

The right to religious liberty is considered the basis of any healthy democratic régime. John Henry Newman is one of the most significant persons in the religious history of England of the nineteenth century, whose influence on twentieth‐century theology, especially on the Second Vatican Council, is immense. Both of these men personally experienced all the gravity and complexity of the relationship between the Church and the state, which only amplifies the relevance of their deliberations on the topic. We start from the thesis that Newman’s and Strossmayer’s deliberations on the topic are ahead of their time, and, as such, may be the fundament of a modern, democratic comprehension of the relationship between the Catholic Church and the state. We will try to create a synthesis of Newman’s deliberations on the topic, for they are unsystematic, that is, Newman tackles the problem dispersedly, at different places, and in different contexts

The Context of Liberalism

The Relationship Between Conscience and Authority

Conclusion

Works Cited

Fakultet agrobiotehničkih znanosti Sveučilišta Josipa Jurja Strossmayera