Keywords

Historically, Switzerland’s population and cantonal system have been characterised by mixed denominational distribution (Roman Catholics and Protestants). Even if the two main denominations have not always coexisted harmoniously, and despite internal differences, Switzerland is nowadays the most competitive (prosperous) country worldwide with well-recognised political, economic, and social stability. The Swiss case (Chap. 18) explored the nexuses of prosperity and of a religiously mixed society in which the Protestant Reformation played a prominent historical role in shaping federal institutions. Following the 1848 anti-clerical Constitution, many Conservative Catholics remained in mountainous and rural areas, in an attempt to maintain the old order, including the pervasive influence of the Catholic Church-State on education (also, to ensure the “maintenance of ignorance”) (Obinger, 2009; Head-König, 2017). In turn, liberals and Protestants mostly remained in flat areas that were subsequently industrialised. Currently, the historical Protestant cantons tend to be the most competitive, and the mountainous Roman Catholic cantons the least competitive, in the Swiss Confederation (UBS Switzerland AG, 2016) (see Figs. 18.2 and 18.4). Historically mixed confessional cantons (e.g. Thurgau and St. Gallen) perform in the middle of the cantonal ranking of competitiveness (11th and 13th, respectively, out of 26 cantons) (UBS Switzerland AG, 2016) (see Figs. 18.1, 18.2, and 18.4). As the case study has suggested, Protestantism in Switzerland may have also contributed to prosperity via democratisation, state secularism and the creation of trust and moral standards. Yet, the influence of Protestantism owes more to its accumulated historical impact on institutions than to the proportion of current followers. Institutionally, “Protestant churches were traditionally ‘canton churches’ and thus strongly enmeshed with every canton’s political structure” (Gould 1999 and Cattacin et al. 2003 as cited in Obinger, 2009, p. 180). In turn, the proportion of Protestants has been outnumbered by Roman Catholics since the 1970s in Switzerland, and Catholics are in the majority in most Swiss cities and cantons nowadays (FDFA, 2018; Federal Statistical Office, 2020) (see Tables 18.1 and 18.2).

In Uruguay, as well as in Switzerland, Protestantism has played a crucial role along with liberalism in introducing anti-clericalism (and religious freedom) in its constitution and therefore also in its institutions. Protestantism, then, has played a decisive role in shaping the trajectory of democracy, human capital, ethics, transparency, secularisation, and social progress.

The anti-clerical elements of the Revolution helped Cuba succeed in various indicators (e.g. education quality and coverage, equality, health). The Cuban regime seized, dismantled, and limited the institutional influence of Roman Catholicism on these areas of public life. However, a strong cultural influence of a highly syncretised Roman Catholicism persists in Cuba even if its institutional influence has been curbed. Also, the Communist regime, by adopting Marxism, “threw the baby out with the bathwater” through persecuting all types of religion, including Protestant liberals. Finally, the Cuban regime conveniently turned to Rome to legitimise itself after the collapse of the Soviet Union and to silence Protestantism with a corporatist strategy. The socialist legal tradition had an effect opposite to its claims (e.g. lack of freedom, corruption), even if its anti-clerical element was an advantage. Comparing the Cuban experience to other Latin American countries with leftist dictatorships (e.g. Venezuela) helps understand their failure to achieve the Cuban indicators (e.g. education). Evidently, there is much stronger polarisation and a younger, leftist government in Venezuela, but even there, the Catholic “Church has long had a bias in the use of its resources towards the middle and upper classes” (Smilde, 2018, p. 1; Levine, 1981). The crucial factor in this regard is whether or not the power and influence of the Roman Church-State are reduced.

In Colombia, liberal attempts failed repeatedly and resulted in violent conflicts in which the Roman Catholic Church-State closed ranks with conservatives and imposed a corporatist medieval-like state. A “Catholic and conservative hegemony” has existed in Colombia until 1991 (Figueroa, 2008). In the 1991 Constitution, Protestantism allied itself with liberal forces. This alliance made it possible to finally introduce religious freedom, among others, by removing most of the contentious articles from the Concordat (nevertheless, the Concordat remains valid, as does institutional corporatism).

Subnationally, the four cases studied here confirm the trend of Protestant versus Roman Catholic influence although under the national umbrella (e.g. Catholic areas in Switzerland are far more prosperous than liberal regions in Colombia). Swiss Protestant cantons are generally more prosperous than Roman Catholic ones. More conservative regions in Colombia tend to experience more violence and conflict than liberal ones. Uruguayan towns (e.g. in Colonia) tend to be perceived as more prosperous when under Protestant influence.

Although several theories were useful in the analysis of interviews, a common, salient notion in all four case studies was the theory of existential security (Norris & Inglehart, 2004, 2010) (see Sect. 7.2). After coding in relation to prosperity, the theory of existential security was sufficiently exemplified: in Switzerland, the non-practising Catholic stakeholder (l) claimed that religiosity runs in parallel cycles to the economy. In Uruguay, the Independent Free Protestant Believer (n) mentioned that after becoming prosperous (‘too well’), they forget God. In Cuba, the revival of religious activity was closely linked to the severe socioeconomic crisis after the collapse of the Soviet Union in the 1990s (Ramírez, 2009; Goldenziel, 2009). In Colombia, the Independent Protestant believer (n) mentions the book of Judges (King James Bible, 1769), in which Israel prospered after obeying God, but struggled and suffered after disobedience prevailed.

Finally, the textual analyses (theological) in the four cases revealed that Protestant stakeholders provided the closest direct references to biblical concepts as the moral foundation of prosperity. In contrast, Roman Catholic stakeholders do not consistently refer to the Scriptures as a moral foundation. Instead, they tend to refer to diverse theories and philosophical influences from secular sources. This finding, consistent in diverse geographical settings, corroborates Arruñada’s (2010) explanation that Protestants possess more homogeneous moral standards compared to the varied moral values in Roman Catholicism (Sects. 10.3; 10.4.1.1.1). Likewise, this outcome supports McSweeney’s (2015) argument that several kinds of Roman Catholicism might exist as philosophical currents and cultural backgrounds.