Immigration & religious

diversity in Spain

Josep Buades Fuster SJ

THE SPANISH SOCIETY AFTER THE LAST IMMIGRATION WAGES

Composition of the Spanish societyMunicipal registers 01/01/2013

TOTAL Born in SpainBorn in other

countries TOTAL 47.129.783 40.489.247 6.640.536

Spaniards 41.583.545 40.019.665 1.563.880Aliens 5.546.238 469.582 5.076.656

20 main countries of nationality and birth at the Spanish society

Municipal registers 01/01/2013

Country of nationality

Country of birth

Country of nationality

Country of birth

Romania 870.258 797.378 Portugal 129.079 111.381

Morocco 792.158 643.240 France 117.829 98.232

United Kingdom 385.179 362.008 Peru 110.156 111.268

Ecuador 263.498 248.324 Argentina 98.351 150.829

Colombia 222.542 222.978 Dominican

Republic 92.981 89.499

Italy 192.431 98.753 Brasil 91.828 96.125

Germany 181.900 164.519 Ucrania 89.351 82.815

China 181.701 150.697 Paraguay 83.386 82.114

Bolivia 173.702 164.672 Pakistan 81.365 76.304

Bulgaria 168.997 158.118 Poland 79.009 72.186

ALLOWED TO IDENTIFY NATIONALITY AND RELIGIOUS BELONGING?

Basic question

• A common place: Spaniards as being Catholic or “priest-eater”

• Similar common places for other nationalities: Romania, Pakistan, Ecuador, Colombia, China, France...

• A simple observation: religious diversity has become much more visible in Spain while increased residential and labour immigration

• Some places of worship directly related to other countries religious establishment: Saudi mosques, National Protestant Churches chaplaincies..

• According to the Constitution, religious communities duly inscribed at the Ministry of Justice have Spanish nationality, whatever be the nationality of their members

• The public management of religious diversity is a constitutional duty, can be an excellent tool to build up an intercultural society and in a lesser degree implies diplomatic intervention

RELIGIOUS IDENTIFICATION AT THE SPANISH SOCIETY

Sociological barometer. CIS October 2013

How do you define yourself in religious matters?

• Catholic 70.4%

• A faith other than the Catholic 2.4%

• Unbeliever 15.9%

• Atheist 10.1%

• Do not answer 1.3%

DISPLAY OF RELIGIOUS TRADITIONS IN SPAIN

Christian Catholic Church• Roman Catholics:– Roman rite– Hispanic rite

• Greek Catholics – Ukrainese – Romanian

• Oriental Catholic Churches:• Maronite• Coptic Catholic• …

Christian Orthodox Churches

• Patriarchate of Romania: Diocese of Spain and Portugal

• Patriarchate of Moscow and all Russia: Diocese of Querosene

• Patriarchate of Bulgaria: Diocese of Western Europe

• Patriarchate of Serbia, diocese of France and Western Europe: patronizing the so called Spanish Orthodox Church

Christian Protestant Churches

• Anglican Communion:– The Church of England’s chaplaincies– The Spanish Episcopal Reformed Church– The Traditional Anglican Communion (seeking the

full communion within the Catholic Church)• Lutheran Churches: – Swedish, Norwegian, Finnish... chaplaincies– Spanish Lutheran Church

Christian Protestant Churches

• Reformed, Presbyterian, Calvinist Churches:– Dutch, Chinese, Korean... Chaplaincies– Spanish Evangelical Church (Presbyterian and

Methodist background)

Christian Evangelical Churches

• Baptist Churches:– UEBE (Spanish Evangelical Baptist Union)– FIEIDE (Spanish Independent Evangelical Churches

Federation)– Fully independent Churches of Baptist background– Some Romanian Baptist congregations

• Brother’s Assemblies (Plymouth)

Christian Evangelical Churches

• Pentecostal Churches: – Asambleas de Dios– Iglesia Evangélica Filadelfia– Iglesia Cuerpo de Cristo– Forthsquare Gospel– United Pentecostal Church in Europe– Many others– Messianic

Christian Evangelical Churches

• Salvation Army• Interdenominational Churches• Charismatic Churches• Other Evangelical Churches

Other Churches identified as Christian

• The New Apostolic Church• The Christian Adventist Church of the Seventh

Day• The Church of Jesus Christ of the Saints of the

Last Day• Jehovah’s Witnesses

Jewish communities

• Orthodox• Masorti• Lubavitch• Reformed

Islamic communities

• Sunna• Chi’a• Ahmady Community of Islam• Sufi tariqat: Boudchichiya, Tijaniya, Murid…

Eastern religions

• Baha’i• Bhuddist: – Northern Mahayana: vajrayana, Nyigmapa, Kagyu,

Sakyapa and Gelupka.– Eastern Mahayana: Zen and Soka Gakkai– Theravada– Western Bhuddist Order

• Hindu: Advaita vedanta, vaisnava…• Sikh

Other faiths

• Odinist• The Church of Guanche’s People• Lectorium Rosacrurcianum• Kimbanguists• Scientology• Gnostic groups

A DIACHRONIC OUTLOOK ON RELIGIOUS DIVERSITY IN SPAIN

XVIIIth-XXIst Centuries

XVIIIth Century

• British rule over Minorca: an exception to the Catholic identity of Spain? Anglican chaplaincies for British militaries. Some complains of the Spanish Crown about the presence of some Jewish merchants and the construction of a Greek Orthodox chapel.

XIXth Century• Liberalism and constitutionalism: end of the Holy

Court of the Inquisition• Constitutional waves: Roman Catholicism as official

religion, diverse degrees of tolerance, a single Constitution allowed freedom of worshipping.

• Protestant missionaries and colporteurs: British, Swedish, American

• British firms and engineers (mining...) at the origin of some Protestant communities

• Evangelical Churches settled in Spain: Episcopal, Presbyterian-Methodist, Baptist, Brothers

XXth Century 1/3

• Very few immigrants: first Hindus at the Canary Islands, Ceuta and Melilla

• Spanish protectorate on Northern Morocco and other territories (Sidi-Ifni, Western Sahara): Muslim and Jewish subjects.

• Some Anglican chaplaincies for tourists and residents• General Primo de Rivera: 1st recognition of Spanish

citizenship to Sephardic Jewish. Very few cases• Alphonse XIII: official Catholicism and religious tolerance• II Republic: constitutional laicism + freedom of

worshipping; public commitment of some Evangelical leaders.

Franco’s dictatorship - I (1936-1953)

• Moorish support to Franco: religious respect toward them at the Moroccan territories and at the Peninsula.

• First return of Sephardic Jews to Spain from Northern Africa and refugees from II WW

• Political harassment on Evangelicals and other religious minorities: “national-Catholicism”, + Republican and freemason background of some prominent Evangelicals.

Franco’s dictatorship – II (50s)

• Military agreements with the USA: freedom of worshipping recognised to American militaries on shared bases; discreet pressure on the Spanish authorities to leave alone religious minorities (Evangelical, Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Baha’i)

• Independence of Morocco: more Sephardic Jews return to Spain

Franco’s dictatorship- III (60s-1975)• Bigger wage of tourists and European residents• Foreign residents: “Pied-noirs” from Algeria (French

citizens of Spanish origin or Sephardic)• II Vatican Council: Christian Ecumenism and Religious

Freedom. First development of collaboration between the Catholic Church and some European Protestant Churches, not with Spanish Evangelicals.

• Franco’s Regime, as Catholic, obliged to recognise religious freedom: 1967 Law.

• Openness to Arab students from Palestine, Egypt and Syria (mainly after 1967): later on, leaders of Islamic communities

• First Evangelical gypsies: Iglesia Evangélica de Filadelfia

Democracy (70s-80s)

• More tourists and European residents• From restraint to full religious freedom:

Constitution (1978) and the Religious Freedom Organic Law

• Growth of Jehovah’s Witnesses

1990-2014

• Immigration• 1992 Agreements between the State and:

Israelite, Islamic and Evangelical federations.• 2004: creation of “Fundación Pluralismo y

Convivencia” to promote religious freedom, sponsor initiatives undertaken by religious communities other than Catholic and to know religious diversity in Spain.

• Many new religious communities and entities Registered at the Ministry of Justice

SOME QUESTIONS FOR FURTHER REFLECTION

• Cosmopolitan vs. ethnic communities• Dealing with “the usual” and newcomers• Economic crisis, management of community

premises and other communities• Mixed families• Religious community, social services, cultural

integration, intercultural relations, intercultural mediation

• Interfaith relations