Posted on 02/11/2004 4:45:28 PM PST by MarMema
Greetings from La Belle France, the land of a true and thorough separation of Church and State.
Today the French Senate approved a law which will make it a punishable offence to carry or wear a obtrusive religious symbol in a school, hospital or government building. This is meant to include crosses, veils, yarmulkes, turbans. This action is being taken to protect the ideal of a truly secular state.
The question must be posed: have the traditional religions been officially wiped off the books of legal recognition and replaced by one which is difficult to identify and ambiguous to define? And also, is the enactment of this law a counter attack against a large and growing immigrant population - predominantly Muslim, but which also includes immigrants from predominantly Christian countries (the Orthodox Eastern European countries) as well as the countries of Africa, India and the Far East - people whose outward appearance frequently manifests an identity with a chosen religious tradition?
In many ways the presence of these people challenges the identity of the "unofficial creed of secularism" - the religion which has replaced Christianity (the Roman Catholic Church) in France since 1789. The official and state protected "religion" of LAÏCITÉ - best translated as "secularism" - underlies the French conception of government. "In contrast to pluralistic societies that try to accept, or even celebrate, cultural (and religious, my addition) differences among their citizens, the French ideal envisions a uniform, secularized French identity as the best guarantee of national unity and the separation of church and state." (quoted from an article entitled GUARDING SECULARISM RELIGIOUSLY, IN FRANCE by Elaine The Secular State Religion.ems Sciolino, International Herald Tribune, Monday 09 Feb. 2004.)
This "secular" religion has its tenets, now so aptly defined and defended by the passing of this law, as well as its rituals and its symbols. Further along in the aforementioned article the writer mentions the symbols which have been identified with this creed of secular republicanism since its inception; the almost deific symbol Marianne, not carrying a cross, but holding "a carpenter's level symboliziing equality, placed between her exposed and nuturing breasts, and a Gallic rooster sitting on her Phrygian bonnet - a symbol of liberty."
I am sure that religious anthropologists such as Mircea Eliade would find much interest in writing about the profound religious identities of these - the most precious symbols of French secular religion.
As concerning examples of its rituals, I didn't have to wait long for examples. This evening on French news there were two lengthy reports, complete with interviews and commentaries, reflecting upon what must surely be considered identifiable - if not curious - ritual practices.
The first account reported the marriage of a woman with her absent fiance, a ceremony performed by the mayor of her city and approved by the 'high priest' of the secular religion, the President of France. The curious fact about this marriage is that the man has been dead for over a year. I would surmise that unfortunately he didn't even have the chance to sign the marriage document or change his mind.
My question after hearing the account was; will he be able to file for a divorce if the marriage doesn't work out? Oh yes, divorce is allowed according to the disciplines of French secular religion.
The second account touches more pointedly and directly on a longstanding and basic ritual practice in several religious traditions, especially Christianity - the religion de-legalized by the Republican decrees of 1789 - that being the practice of BAPTISM. It appears that in order to fill the ritual void created by the new Republic an ordinance was passed providing anyone who chose to deny their Christian Baptism with a ceremony called "BAPTEME REPUBLICAIN" - Republican Baptism (don't get any ideas Mr. Bush). The 'religious' ceremony was conducted by the mayor of the city - not the same as above - and included a 'baptismal certificate'.The ceremony was witnessed by a 'parrain' and 'marraine' (Godfather and Godmother in english Christian terminology). The young boy - who had already been baptized as a Roman Catholic Christian - justified his new 'baptism' by saying that it was better to have a 'marraine' who lived closer to him. His parents, a non-practicing Muslim man and a non-practicing Christian woman said that they are believers. They now must very much believe in the power of the state religion to wash their son clean of any civil infraction thereby bringing him fully into the community of faith - that is, full French citizenship and an inheritor of the ideals of the French Republican religion. And yes, I musn't forget to mention the visibility in the film report of the gifts he received honoring his newly acquired initiation, a watch and some books. The Bible or Koran were not to be noticed among them.
Perhaps the most honest statement made during these past weeks of discussion and display of sentiment has been the action of a mayor of one of the province cities. He ordered the national symbol (shield) which includes the inscription of the names of the three pillars of French secular philosophy - Liberté, Fraternité, Égalité - to include a fourth pillar - LAÏCITÉ (Secularism). I have no information at this time as to whether he has been ex-communicated from the ranks of the hierarchic administration of his city. Perhaps he has been relegated to a position responsible for ecumenical negotiations with the representatives of the religions having members residing in Metropolitan France and it's Territories & Departments abroad, religions not recognized by the French Government.
(permission to forward this commentary is kindly granted)
Fr. Francis DesMarais
An Orthodox Priest serving in France
A most curious sort of "anabaptist regime", considering that Baptists are among the denominations marked for State surveillance on the official French Government blacklist of 173 "dangerous cults" (which includes Mormons, Jehovah's Witnesses, Scientologists, Seventh-Day Adventists and.... Baptists).
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