ABSTRACT
On one view the relevance and urgency of debates concerning the freedom and equality of churches in Europe seem to have faded over the past century. The tensions that existed among churches and between religious movements and ‘humanist’ circles appear to have ceased to be the cause of major political conflicts. Social and political developments, such as secularisation and the embracing of liberal democratic principles by the Second Vatican Council, have taken the steam out of the old conflicts. And the creation of Europe-wide legal standards has lowered the stakes by increasing uniformity across the continent.
