KATOLICY I MUZUŁMANIE FRANCUSCY WOBEC IDEI LAÏCISME I LAÏCITE
CATHOLICS AND MUSLIMS TO FRENCH CONCEPT LAÏCISME I LAÏCITÉ

Summary/Abstract: In spite of the fact that the Roman-Catholic Church still remains to be the biggest religious community, Islam has quickly become the second most dominant denomination practised by 4 to 6 million people. The intention behind the undermentioned study is to describe the contemporary condition of religious denominations in France, define the position and significance of Christianity (catholicism) and Islam and attempt to answer the question whether or not the French assimilation policy, regarding the Muslim minority, may be viewed as successful? As a consequence of the statutory church-state separation (laïcisme) in 1905, while becoming a secular state, France accepted the model of the so called sharp separation. After the Napoleon-era concordate had been invalidated, citizens were provided with the freedom of conscience and religious practices combined with the equation of all the cults (laïcité). In the French model an attempt was made to transform religion into a private issue, a case of conscience not to be discussed in a public forum. But was this actually guaranteed? The study concentrates on the evolution of the approach adopted towards the secularisation of the Roman catholics' public domain and discusses the standpoint taken by Muslims on the aforementioned issue. It was also explained why France, often referred to as ”the eldest daughter of the Church”, has currently become a common symbol of the agony of the Christian tradition.

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