By Vincent Depaigne · European Commission
The Commission has developed a dialogue that is probably unique in the world. The European political institutions seek the views of religions and communities of belief in order to take their views into account in the policy-making process.
The dialogue with “churches, religious associations or communities, philosophical and non-confessional organisations” was conferred by the Lisbon Treaty (Article 17 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union). It is governed by general guidelines drawn up by the Commission.
Article 17 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) provides that: 1. The Union shall respect and not prejudice the status under national law of churches and religious associations or communities in the Member States. 2. The Union shall also respect the status under national law of philosophical and non-confessional organisations. 3. Recognising their identity and specific contribution, the Union shall maintain an open, transparent and regular dialogue with such churches and organisations.
History of the Dialogue
The Commission initiated an informal dialogue with churches and religious organisations in the 1990s. With his 1994 initiative ‘A Soul for Europe’, Jacques Delors, then President of the Commission, established the first formal contacts between the European institutions 1 https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/default/files/guidelinesimplementation-art-17_en.pdf and religious and non-confessional organisations. Its aim was to take into account the spiritual and ethical components of European integration and to encourage the participation of all components of civil society in the integration process, including religious and philosophical organisations.
Declaration 11 annexed to the Treaty of Amsterdam (1997), which states that the Union respects the status of churches and non-confessional organisations under national law, formally recognised for the first time the importance of religious and philosophical issues at Union level. Church-State relations are a matter for the competence of the Member States of the Union. This implies not only that Member States are free to develop their own model according to their history and traditions, but also that the Union institutions are not required to conform to any particular national model of secularism or Church-State relations. Member States are nevertheless required to respect the fundamental rights enshrined in the European Convention on Human Rights, such as freedom of thought, conscience and religion (Article 9).
The Convention on the Future of Europe and Constitutional Treaty (2002) was tasked with drawing up a draft Constitution for Europe. Topics discussed included the role of Christianity and religion in shaping European culture and identity, the place of the Churches in contemporary society, a reference to God or Europe’s Christian heritage in the preamble to the Treaty (as mentioned in the Constitutions of several Member States), and the inclusion of the provisions of Declaration 11.
A reflection group on the spiritual and cultural dimension of Europe presented conclusions on the public role of religions and different models of churchstate relations. Some non-confessional and secular organisations opposed any mention of any God or religion. They expressed reservations about the establishment of a formal dialogue mechanism between the Union institutions and religious or non-denominational organisations, arguing that the provision on dialogue with civil society was sufficient.
The subsequent Intergovernmental Conference in 2003-2004 adopted the final text of the draft Constitutional Treaty. As the heir to a long tradition of secularism, France, supported by Belgium, strongly opposed the idea, put forward by countries with a strong Catholic tradition, of referring to God or Christianity in the preamble to the Treaty. At the same time, representatives of religious organisations insisted on the inclusion of provisions on the status of the Churches and the opening of a dialogue with the Union institutions.
The final version of the preamble to the Constitutional Treaty contained a general reference to the role of religion in the origin of European values. The provisions of Declaration 11 were incorporated into the Treaty, which contains provisions on dialogue with churches and faith-based and non-faith-based organisations. Following the rejection of the Constitutional Treaty in referendums in France and the Netherlands, the Treaty of Lisbon was adopted in 2007 and entered into force in December 2009. The provisions of Article 51 were incorporated without amendments into Article 17 of this Treaty, also known as the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU).
In 2005, José Manuel Barroso, then President of the Commission, took the initiative to organise an annual high-level meeting with European religious leaders. The Presidents of the European Parliament and the European Council were invited to join the dialogue from 2007. According to the Commission, these meetings allow the EU institutions and representatives of the EU’s religious communities to have an open dialogue on EU policies. In 2009, the Commission decided to organise a high-level meeting each year between the three EU institutions and philosophical and non-confessional organisations.
Main Features of the Dialogue
This dialogue is unique. No other public/state institution has a legal obligation to have an “open, transparent and regular” dialogue with religions AND non-confessional organisations. The Commission has had a coordinator in charge of the dialogue since the time of President Jacques Delors.
The dialogue uses multi-level instruments – highlevel meetings, regular dialogue seminars and bilateral meetings at all levels.
The dialogue is not inter-religious. The dialogue is with churches, religious and non-confessional organisations on EU policy, not inter-religious or inter-belief. It is not up to public institutions to organise civil society.
The dialogue is horizontal. It covers EU policies such as the future of Europe, migration/asylum, integration, education and inclusion as well as topics such as the fight against poverty, but also (in the context of external relations) freedom of religion and belief.
Dialogue Partners
The guidelines on Article 17 adopted by the Commission specify: “dialogue partners may be churches, religious associations or communities as well as philosophical and non-confessional organisations recognised or registered as such at national level and adhering to European values. There is no official recognition or registration of interlocutors at European level.”
All dialogue partners are encouraged to register in the EU Transparency Register (although this is not mandatory to participate in the Article 17 Dialogue). There are around 50 registered organisations in total, the vast majority of which are religious organisations.
Themes of the Dialogue
The themes chosen for the dialogue focus on issues related to fundamental values and the ethical dimension of EU policies. They should reflect both EU priorities and areas of concern for the Article 17 dialogue partners.
In recent years, the dialogue has addressed issues at the heart of the EU agenda (migration, integration, the future of Europe). In 2021, the dialogue focused on the Conference on the Future of Europe. In 2022, the war in Ukraine and its consequences for the European Union was the priority for the dialogue. In 2023, the Commission convened a high-level meeting with religious leaders dedicated to the situation in the Middle East and its impact on the European Union.
Issues discussed in the Article 17 dialogue also covered the fight against climate change, artificial intelligence, the “EU Guidelines on Freedom of Religion and Belief”; issues related to the fight against discrimination, anti-Semitism and racism; gender equality (including violence against women); the European labour market/ social model; the values dimension in education; the European Year of Cultural Heritage.
High-Level Meetings
The dialogue is currently organised around two annual high-level meetings chaired by the Vice-President of the European Commission, Margaritis Schinas (the European Parliament and the Presidency of the Council are also regularly invited): one with religious leaders and the other with philosophical and non-confessional leaders.
Bilateral meetings between the Commission and some representatives of religions and non-confessional actors are also organised on specific themes.
Targeted Consultations
As part of the process of developing the ethical guidelines by the High-Level Group on Artificial Intelligence, consultations were organised with Article 17 partners to inform them about the ethical guidelines and receive their comments and contributions. Further consultations were organised in 2013 and 2018 on the development and implementation of the “EU Guidelines on Religion and Belief”.
Disclaimer: The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Commission.
About the author
Vincent Depaigne is European Commission Coordinator for the dialogue with Churches, religious, philosophical and non-confessional organisations.
This article first appeared in EBU Magazine #13 – Buddhism & Modern Europe (Winter 2024). Download the full issue as PDF or browse all issues.