Irreligion in Belgium pertains to citizens of Belgium that are
atheist
Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...
,
agnostic
Agnosticism is the view or belief that the existence of God, of the divine or the supernatural is unknown or unknowable. (page 56 in 1967 edition) Another definition provided is the view that "human reason is incapable of providing sufficient ...
, or otherwise
unaffiliated with any religion. Irreligion is the second most common religious stance in Belgium, following
Catholicism
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
.
History
The
Constitution of Belgium
The Constitution of Belgium ( nl, Belgische Grondwet, french: Constitution belge, german: Verfassung Belgiens) dates back to 1831. Since then Belgium has been a parliamentary monarchy that applies the principles of ministerial responsibility f ...
guaranteed the right to freedom of religion when it was enacted in 1831. Articles 19-21 provide for protections of secularism: the Constitution of Belgium guarantees the freedom of worship and its public practice, forbids the obligation of any religious practices, and disallows government intervention or involvement in a religion's leadership.
The
First School War
The First School War (french: Première guerre scolaire, nl, Eerste schoolstrijd) was a political crisis in Belgium over the issue of religion in education. The School War marks the high water mark of the conflict between the conservative Cathol ...
was a dispute between Catholicism and secularism in schools in the 1880s. The dispute was revived in the
Second School War
The Second School War (french: Deuxième guerre scolaire, nl, Tweede schoolstrijd) was a political crisis in Belgium over the issue of religion in education. The conflict lasted between 1950 and 1959 and was ended by a cross-party agreement, know ...
in the 1950s.
Demographics
Religion has declined in Belgium, though Catholicism still remains large among the Belgian population. As of 2018, 29.3% of Belgians are irreligious. 20.2% of Belgians identify as not religious, while 9.1% identify as atheist.
Secular groups
Due to
pillarization
Pillarisation (from the nl, verzuiling) is the politico-denominational segregation of a society into groups by religion and associated political beliefs. These societies were (and in some areas, still are) vertically divided into two or more gr ...
which is in place in Belgium, irreligious individuals and families who desire to receive counseling and celebration for life moments often go to institutions of
organized secularism
In Belgium, organized secularism (french: Laïcité organisée, nl, georganiseerde vrijzinnigheid) is the local associations and organizations which provide moral support for naturalist, atheist, agnostic, secular humanist, freethinking, Bright ...
, including ''secular organizations'' or ''liberal philosophical organizations'' ( nl, vrijzinnige levensbeschouwelijke organisaties, french: organisations laïques) which are headed and led by clergy-like officials known as "counsellors".
Organized secularism
In Belgium, organized secularism (french: Laïcité organisée, nl, georganiseerde vrijzinnigheid) is the local associations and organizations which provide moral support for naturalist, atheist, agnostic, secular humanist, freethinking, Bright ...
is recognized by Belgium as a philosophy that exists alongside religious groups and receives state funding.
See also
*
Demographics of Belgium
This article is about the demographic features of the population of Belgium, including ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population. All figures are from the Nat ...
*
Freedom of religion in Belgium
The Constitution provides for freedom of religion, and the Government generally respected this right in practice. However, government officials continued to have the authority to research and monitor religious groups that are not officially reco ...
*
Religion in Belgium
Religion in Belgium is diversified, with Christianity, in particular, the Catholic Church, representing the largest community, though it has experienced a significant decline since the 1960s (when it was the nominal religion of over 80% of the ...
References
Religion in Belgium
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
Secularism in Belgium
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