Society and Culture France

Religious Clerics
Roman Catholic priests in some rural areas continue to have an influence among the laity. However, strong anticlerical beliefs,
particularly in southern France, combined with a decline in religious participation, have undermined their traditional status. Because of
a shortage of priests, rural churches conduct fewer religious services and devotees often travel to towns for Mass. In recent years, the
French Catholic Church has been importing priests from Africa and Asia to remedy the shortage of priests.
Catholic priests are trained in seminaries such as the Seminaire International Saint Cure d'Ars and the seminary at Paray-le-Monial, a
pilgrimage site considered second only to Lourdes.

State Regulations
There is no state regulation of clerics in France. The state does not provide monetary support to the clergy. Government subsidies,
however, are given to schools with religious affiliations.

Religion and Public Life

The French have traditionally viewed religion as belonging to the private sphere and as a threat to the absolute authority of the laïcité
of the Republic. Religion has no influence in public life, and the French are highly sensitive to anything that smacks of official
recognition of a religion, to the point that both government and media refer to the ban on Islamic scarves as the ”French head scarf
ban.”
Education in public schools is completely secular. Religious instruction is absent in public schools, although religious facts may
feature in history textbooks. Apart from home schooling, which many parents choose for religious reasons, all schools are required to
conform to the secular standards established by the government.
Religious marriage ceremonies are not considered legal unless followed by a civil ceremony. The minister, priest, or rabbi requires a
certificate of civil marriage as proof before consenting to conduct the religious ceremony.
Some religious customs in public life include Pentecôte/ and Mardi Gras, an annual celebration just before the beginning of Lent
marked by costumed celebrations, floats in the streets, the Battle of Flowers, and a great deal of feasting and revelry. Thousands of
barefooted students mark Whit Sunday and Whit Monday by an annual pilgrimage to Chartres in memory of the dying wish of the poet
Charles Péguy.

Religious Holidays and Ceremonies

National religious holidays include Good Friday, Ascension Day, Christmas, Easter, and All Saint’s Day. The religious holidays of
minorities do not have the status of national holidays.
Christians observe the Fête des Rois (Epiphany) by placing the figures of the three wise men in the mangers of churches and homes
and sharing the galette des rois (king’s cake), which conceals a bean or a little porcelain doll.
La Chandeleur, or Candle Feast, is a rural Christian celebration observed by bringing home a blessed candle from the church in order
to protect the home during the coming year. Crêpes (pancakes) are tossed on the griddle while holding a gold coin in the left hand to
usher in prosperity in the coming year.

Government and Religion

The 1905 law on the separation of religion and state laid the foundation for the current legislation on religious freedom. The
constitution grants freedom of faiths, and the government is committed to total secularism.
Although the law does not mandate registration of religious organizations, they may do so to obtain tax exemptions and to acquire
official recognition. Religious groups may register as tax-exempt associations of worship or as cultural associations that are taxed but
have access to government subsidies for cultural and educational programs. Both categories are subject to government scrutiny in
terms of management and finances. Most religious groups register under both categories.
Copyright © 2010. World Trade Press. All rights reserved.

The laws of France are not a reflection of any organized religion, but are rather a reflection of the philosophy of Rationalism adopted
during the French Enlightenment.

Persecution
The government accords freedom of faiths to all religions. However, following the ban on religious clothing in public schools, many
members of affected minority groups have claimed that the law infringes on their constitutional right to religious freedom. French
Protestant leaders have also alleged that government laws are barriers to the growth of the evangelical community in France,
especially when it comes to acquiring property or building churches. Similarly, the Muslims of Trappes (a western suburb of Paris)
claim that they had to resort to sit-in protests in front of the City Hall to get approval for their mosque in 2000.
Many human rights activists have warned that certain legislation passed in 2001 and 2004 will seriously undermine religious freedom
in France. The legislation calls for the dissolution of religious groups “under certain circumstances.” This law proposes to imprison
proselytizers for “mental manipulation” of the public. The bill is targeted at 173 "dangerous sects,” including Jehovah's Witnesses,
Scientologists, Unificationists, and evangelical groups like Baptists.

Religious Tolerance
In general, apart from anti-Semitic incidents and several instances of Islamo-phobia, the highly secular outlook of the French is

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World, Trade Press. 1993-2010
France Society by World
& Culture Complete ReportTrade Press. AllProfile
: An All-Inclusive Rights Reserved.
Combining Society and Culture Reports, World •Trade
www.WorldTradePress.com
All of Our www.BestCountryReports.com
Press, 2010. ProQuest Ebook 11
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 Society and Culture France

reflected in their religious tolerance.

Protocols for Foreigners

Foreign visitors are free to participate in the religious activities of France so long as they do not violate laws that maintain religious
harmony in the country. Non-Catholics attending Catholic Mass should refrain from taking the communion bread and wine, and in
general, foreigners should consider religious sensibilities and behave respectfully at places of worship.
Copyright © 2010. World Trade Press. All rights reserved.

© Copyright
World, Trade Press. 1993-2010
France Society by World
& Culture Complete ReportTrade Press. AllProfile
: An All-Inclusive Rights Reserved.
Combining Society and Culture Reports, World •Trade
www.WorldTradePress.com
All of Our www.BestCountryReports.com
Press, 2010. ProQuest Ebook 12
Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/csla/detail.action?docID=535828.
Created from csla on 2017-09-02 15:23:17.