Church factory (Luxembourg)
The church factory was a special legal form in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and regulated the relationship between the state and the (Catholic) church.
task
In contrast to non-profit associations under private law under Luxembourg law, such as the often encountered Oeuvres paroissiales , parishes are not regarded as legal entities in Luxembourg . Accordingly, they cannot participate in legal acts in order to manage their assets, make expenses or record income. For each church or parish, therefore, a separate church factory was founded, which is responsible for financial management. The real estate of the church building and any existing land remain with the civil parish. Every church factory has a council, which includes the pastor and mayor of the parish on whose territory the parish is located. The original intention was for the civil society of the local parish to have a say in the material church property through this dual system.
In the summer of 2016, there were 285 church factories in Luxembourg, which are responsible for around 500 churches and chapels in the country.
history
The legislation on church factories goes back to a décret impérial by Napoleon in France in 1809, which regulates the composition and functioning of these fabriques in detail. Specifically, it was determined that the state would pay the clergy and maintain the cult buildings (churches, monasteries, etc.) and that the administration of this property would be carried out by the respective church factories. When the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg was established in 1815, the decree remained in force and was incorporated into the country's legislation. As part of the revision of the relationship between church and state in 2015, Interior Minister Dan Kersch is aiming for the church factories to be transferred to a national fund in 2017.
On January 17, 2018, the Luxembourg Parliament, with the votes of the majority parties and Déi Lénk, passed Bill 7037 on the abolition of church factories. The representatives of the CSV and the ADR voted against. The assets of the church factories and the church buildings will be transferred to the planned new church fund, which will also be created by the new law. In the future, the fund will be administered decentrally by the diocese . The ownership of sacred buildings is regulated in three appendices to the law. The law will come into force three months after its publication in the Official Gazette.
criticism
If a deficit arises in a church factory, for example due to necessary renovation work on the church building, this is at the expense of the respective community or the state. In 2015 this was around 14 million euros nationwide. In addition, the ownership structure of the respective church is often not clear. The reorganization of the often criticized relationship between church and state was agreed in a convention in January 2015. In the fund envisaged by Kersch, the individual property of the Luxembourg church factories is to be transferred to a single one. The parishes, however, see this as expropriation and threaten to take legal action at European level . The reform threatens the free practice of religion , also because of the financial consequences , so the critics. Proponents, on the other hand, see the Catholic Church and the Archdiocese finally having an obligation to meet their financial obligations and to relieve the communities. The fund de la gestion des édifices religieux du culte catholique to be created will have a board of directors whose members will be appointed by the archbishop .
swell
- "Church factory" in the Universal Lexicon
- "Church factories on the barricades" in the Luxemburger Tageblatt of July 15, 2015, accessed on March 12, 2017
- "If the church is in the possession of the congregation, the congregation can freely dispose of what becomes of the building" , an interview by Minister Kersch from May 26, 2015 on www.gouvernement.lu, accessed on March 12, 2017
- "The end of the church factories is approaching" , Luxemburger Wort from February 15, 2015, accessed on March 12, 2017
- "It cannot go on like this", interview with Xavier Bettel , Mayor of Luxembourg City, on the shortcomings of the existing system of church factories and equal treatment towards other religious communities, www.forum.lu, Forum 26 / Dossier 325
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b The mass for the church factories has been read. L´essentiel of August 5, 2016. Accessed August 13, 2016 .
- ↑ Abolition of the church factories - Parliament votes with 34 votes in favor , Luxemburger Wort from January 17, 2018.
