Increasing Religious Diversity in a Society Monopolized by Catholicism

Abstract

There is a new, increasing, religious diversity in Italy. The Italian religious landscape is a good example of how, and to what extent, a society historically monopolized by Catholicism has been transformed exogenously, in particular by unprecedented and unexpected religions. Mapping the new worship places—belonging respectively to Islam, Orthodox Christians, Sikh, Buddhist, Hindu, Neo-Pentecostal Churches—the author focuses on the impact of the new cultural and religious geography on both the self-representation of the Catholic Church as pivotal system of belief in the public sphere, and on the politics, unsuited so far, for overcoming the traditional hegemony of the Catholic church. The new self-representation adopts a selective strategy in the face of religious diversity, adopting a new stance of co-operation and dialogue and abandoning confrontation and marginalization. Up to now Italian politics framed religious pluralism according to the rules established since 1929, and revised in 1984, that recognize the prevalent role of Catholicism. The Catholic monopoly is still supported by a peculiar normative regime (Concordat) that provides a unique position for the Catholic Church over the religious minorities, who are legally required to apply for recognition by the State.