Contenuti per la categoria: Arrangements, understandings and other agreements

About the Modification of the Choice to Attend or not Attend Teaching of Catholic Religion. A School Point of View

ABSTRACT: A recent judgement of the Judicial Administration has authorized the free modification of the choice to attend or not attend teaching of Catholic Religion in Italian schools, against the Concordat between Italian Republic and Holy See. The article discusses the judgement formally (highlighting a lack of jurisdiction) and on the substance (a confusion between a cultural and a cultic meaning of the teaching). In addition to institutional relations between State and Church, there are epistemological consequences on the nature of the same teaching.

SOMMARIO: 1. Attualità del problema - 2. La normativa sulle iscrizioni e la scelta di avvalersi o non avvalersi dell’insegnamento della religione cattolica (Irc) - 3. Il caso in giudizio - 4. Sul difetto di giurisdizione - 5. Le motivazioni della sentenza: il richiamo alla libertà di culto - 6. Un Irc culturale o cultuale? - 7. Un bilanciamento poco equilibrato - 8. L’Irc come disciplina scolastica - 9. In attesa di revisioni.

SOMMARIO: 1. La nozione di ministro di culto nell’ordinamento italiano - 2. Origini storiche della figura civilistica del ministro di culto - 3. Principi ispiratori dell’attuale normativa sui ministri di culto - 4. La normativa sui ministri di culto: le fonti - 5. Disposizioni restrittive sui ministri di culto - 6. I ministri di culto nel diritto penale - 7. I ministri di culto nella legislazione pattizia - 8. Ministri di culto e giurisdizione confessionale, tra autonomia e tutela dei diritti - 9. Il sostentamento dei ministri di culto - 10. La remunerazione del ministro di culto: natura della prestazione e tutela giurisdizionale - 11. Le molteplici attività socialmente rilevanti dei ministri di culto - 12. Problemi, vecchi e nuovi, e prospettive di riforma - 13. Osservazioni conclusive.

The ministers of religion in Italian law

ABSTRACT: This contribution analyses the status of ministers of religion in the Italian legal system. It starts from a description of the historical foundations, which lies in Nineteenth-century liberal legislation, and arrives at a synthetic representation of the regulations currently in force in the unilateral State law and in the Concordat and Treaty legislation. The regulatory evolution, which is still in progress, describes the transition from a uniform and homogeneous concept of minister of religion, inspired by the Catholic priest and placed at the basis of a mostly restrictive legislation, to a more articulate and comprehensive one, reflecting the growing confessional pluralism of Italian society and the assertion of the right to religious freedom. This new approach represents the premise for a legislation that increasingly aims at protecting and promoting the status and the manifold activities of ministers of religion, particularly in the context of the strong enhancement of the Welfare State and of the Third sector. Finally, the article focuses on some problematic issues of the current legislation and on the apparent paradox that, in the face of a more favorable State legislation, nowadays the status of the minister of religion, and in particular that of the Catholic priest - who still represents the main reference for Italy’s legislation - is undergoing a strong identity crisis in the ecclesial order, thus posing a series of problems also for society at large.

SOMMARIO - 1. L’ente ecclesiastico: una figura soggettiva complessa - 2. Il diritto speciale nella disciplina dell’ente ecclesiastico - 3. La specialità derivante dal carattere bilaterale della normativa sugli enti: il caso emblematico della responsabilità amministrativa derivante da reato - 4. L’espansione del diritto comune nella disciplina dell’ente ecclesiastico - 5. La specialità di regime degli enti ecclesiastici nell’evoluzione dell’ordinamento - 6. Diritto speciale e diritto comune nella riforma del Terzo settore.

 Ecclesiastical bodies between special rules and general law

ABSTRACT: This contribution examines the relationship between special law rules of a treaty nature and general law in the Italian discipline of civilly recognized ecclesiastical bodies, in particular those of the Catholic Church, which still represents most part of these entities. This aspect is examined with respect to the latest regulatory evolution, in particular the reform of the Third sector, which tends to confirm the duplicity of regime of ecclesiastical bodies. It also highlights the growing attention and protection of the normative peculiarities of this category of legal entities by the State legislator.

SOMMARIO: 1. Introduzione: tre domande sulla difficile costruzione di una società pluralista. Dalla Costituente ai fatidici anni ’70 - 2. La fase applicativa delle norme costituzionali in materia di libertà religiosa: fra tentennamenti politici, violazioni della legalità costituzionale e complessità sociale - 3. La “governance” nelle relazioni tra sfera pubblica e fenomeno religioso - 4. Il “cantiere Europa”: le possibilità di una democrazia (in crisi) - 5. Conclusioni.

It ought to be necessary a new Italian governance for religious freedom

ABSTRACT: This work highlights, in a descriptive fashion, some of the critical aspects of the relationships between the State and religious groups in Italy. Concrete legal policy proposals are suggested, within the applicable constitutional framework, taking into account the changed social, cultural and religious context of the country.

SUMMARY: 1. Introduction - 2. The temporal goods of the Church and the principle of subsidiarity - 3. The notion of common goods in Italy - 4. Some practical cases of ecclesiastical heritage as common goods in Italy- 5. A comparative perspective with Belgium: the strategic plans for the future of churches in Flanders - 6. Future perspectives and conclusions.

ABSTRACT: According to recent studies, there are about 600,000 places of worship and several thousands of monasteries and convents in Europe. The process of secularization, the decrease and displacement of the population, the reduction of vocations to the sacred life can be held responsible for the redundancy of the assets of the Catholic Church. These buildings represent an impressive heritage of faith, work and creativity of the communities which made them over the centuries. Most of them are considered as “cultural heritage” by the legislation of the European States, because of their historical, cultural and artistic values. Up to now, the main solution to this phenomenon has consisted in the alienation of these properties. However, the selling and the disposal of these goods by ecclesiastical bodies cannot always be the only and preferable solution. Drawing from the analysis of some case studies in Italy, this paper aims to investigate the role of civil society participation in the regeneration process and the possibility of applying “collaboration pacts” for the management of “common goods”. In the light of the European scope of the phenomenon, a comparison is proposed in line with the legal instrument of “strategic plans”, drawn up by the diocesan bishop and local authorities in Flanders (Belgium).

SOMMARIO: 1. Premessa - 2. La forma: la qualificazione dell’Intesa come accordo di natura internazionalistica - 3. La ratifica e l’esecuzione dell’Intesa nell’ordinamento dello Stato, con le relative norme di adeguamento: l’esito paradossale di una disciplina “duplicata” - 4. Le ondivaghe “vicissitudini” dell’art. 17 C.O.M.: un “termostato” delle tensioni sociali e giuridiche riguardanti la materia e l’esigenza di una riforma - 5. Politica concordataria della Santa Sede e attribuzioni alle Conferenze episcopali nazionali. Alcune considerazioni sulla polarizzazione del dibattito pubblico in Italia - 6. I contenuti dell’Intesa; 7. Le norme di adeguamento dell’ordinamento interno: novità e rilievi critici - 7.1. La direzione e il coordinamento del Servizio di assistenza spirituale: una titolarità giuridica diretta in capo all’Ordinario militare per l’Italia - 7.2. L’introduzione della figura dei Cappellani militari coordinatori, in luogo degli Ispettori: alcuni problemi di sicurezza per le istituzioni militari dello Stato- 7.3. Il concetto canonico di “sede vacante” entra nell’ordinamento militare - 7.4. La procedura di individuazione e di determinazione delle sedi per i cappellani militari - 7.5. L’art. 1533-bis C.O.M.: il divieto di corresponsione di emolumenti accessori e la materia “spirituale e pastorale” - 7.6. La nomina dell’Ordinario militare e del Vicario generale - 7.7. Il regime di assimilazione ai gradi gerarchici per i cappellani militari: nella sostanza non cambia nulla - 7.8. Altre novelle legislative: l’organico dei cappellani; la procedura di nomina; la dismissione dallo stato clericale - 8. Prime tensioni tra Ordinariato militare e amministrazione della Difesa sull’applicazione della legge - 9. Perché nell’Intesa non c’è alcun riferimento alle donne consacrate che operano negli stabilimenti militari? - 10. Conclusioni: il Capo I della legge n. 70 del 2021 come “caso-studio” del decadimento normativo e della crisi del Parlamento.

Some comments on the agreement between the Italian Republic and the Holy See for spiritual assistance to the Catholic members of the Armed Forces

ABSTRACT: Through the application of the Italian Law no. 70/2021, we see the long-awaited revision of the institute of religious assistance to Catholics within the Armed Forces, with the authorization of the ratification of the Exchange of Letters between the President of the Council of Ministers and the Secretary of the Vatican City State (on February 13, 2018) and the related rules for the adaptation of the internal legal system. The new aspects, however, are very limited in scope.

SOMMARIO: 1. La direttiva 1999/70/CE del Consiglio del 28 giugno 1999 relativa all’accordo quadro CES, UNICE e CEEP sul lavoro a tempo determinato e i meccanismi di definizione della politica sociale europea - 2. Cenni sulla disciplina generale del rapporto di lavoro a tempo determinato risultante dal decreto legislativo 6 settembre 2001, n. 368, attuativo della direttiva 1999/70/CE, e dal decreto legislativo 15 giugno 2015, n. 81 - 3. La posizione ricoperta dall’insegnante di religione nell’ambito dell’ordinamento del personale docente della scuola - 4. La vertenza riguardante gli insegnanti di religione cattolica e le questioni pregiudiziali sottoposte alla Corte di giustizia - 5. L’eventuale incidenza dell’impegno dell’Unione a salvaguardare lo status previsto per le confessioni religiose dal diritto nazionale (art. 17 TFUE) - 6. La tutela antidiscriminatoria degli insegnanti di religione: a) l’assenza di una discriminazione per motivi di religione rispetto alla posizione degli altri supplenti della scuola pubblica - 7. (segue) b) L’inapplicabilità della clausola 4 dell’Accordo quadro - 8. La prevenzione degli abusi della successione dei contratti a tempo determinato per gli insegnanti di religione: in particolare le “ragioni obiettive” che possono giustificare il rinnovo - 9. Conclusioni.

The Employment Relationship of Religious Education Teachers in Italian State Schools before the Court of Justice of the European Union

ABSTRACT: The Italian legislation excludes the transformation of successive fixed-term contracts into contracts of indefinite duration in the teaching sector. This also applies to Catholic religious education teachers. The present paper analyses the decision of the Court of Justice of the European Union in case C-282/19, which dealt with the issue of the compatibility of such a rule with the framework agreement on fixed-term work concluded by ETUC, UNICE and CEEP (annexed to Council Directive 1999/70/EC of 28 June 1999) and with the prohibition of discrimination on grounds of religion (Article 21 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union; Council Directive 2000/78/EC of 27 November 2000). According to the Author, the Court’s final indication for the referring court, to verify whether an interpretation of the national provisions which is consistent with the framework agreement is possible, is not easily practicable, because the “obligation on a national court to refer to the content of a directive when interpreting and applying the relevant rules of domestic law […] cannot serve as the basis for an interpretation contra legem”, as noted by the Court.

SOMMAIRE: 1. Introduction: paradigmes de relations et droit à la liberté religieuse, de l’identité à la tension - 2. Des paradigmes des relations État-Églises au droit à la liberté religieuse - 3. La force attractive des paradigmes dans le scénario européen contemporain - 4. Les paradigmes des relations État-Églises dans la nouvelle arène internationale - 5. Conclusion: une citoyenneté inachevée.

The “European Right” to Religious Freedom and Paradigms of State-Religion Relations in Contemporary Europe: a thorny cacophony

ABSTRACT: The article examines the dialectic between European national models of religious freedom and the paradigm of religious freedom shaped in the international order and in particular by the human rights discourse. The analysis of the relationship between the modern - national-centered - and the contemporary - individual-centered - paradigm of religious freedom reveals, on the one hand, the difficult but inevitable osmosis between legal systems in a multilevel system of rights protection and, on the other hand, the deep transformation of religious freedom in contemporary Europe.

SOMMARIO: 1. Una “nota verbale” non senza precedenti - 2. Le garanzie offerte dal diritto interno - 3. La preferenza ecclesiastica per la via diplomatica - 4. L’ingerenza secondo il trattato lateranense - 5. L’art. 4 del d.d.l. - 6. L’art. 7 del d.d.l. - 7. Il self-restraint sulle criticità della tutela dell’identità di genere - 8. Cause ed effetti della “nota verbale” - Appendice.

The Holy See and the Zan Bill on the subject of LGBTQ Defence

ABSTRACT: The diplomatic “parol note” by which the Holy See participated on the Zan bill is a formally incorrect deed but substantially reduced the protest only to the freedom interests of the Church, without interfering more in the full legislative power of the State in order to give also penal importance to the LGBTQ antidiscriminatory defence.

SOMMARIO: 1. Introduzione - 2. La confessione dei Testimoni di Geova e il nodo dei principi religiosi tra politica e diritto - 3. Il nodo dell’intesa. Le tappe del negoziato - 4. L’impasse e le difficili vie d’uscita.

On the State-Christian Congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses agreement

ABSTRACT: To date, the State-Christian Congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses agreement is waiting to complete the procedure within the meaning of article 8, paragraph 3, of the Italian Constitution. The latest statements by the government refer to the need for further information on health matters, evoking the issue of refusal of blood transfusion treatments. On a legal level, there are difficulties in overcoming the impasse in which the agreement is, also because there isn't a legislative discipline of the procedure prefigured in the article 8 of the Constitution; furthermore the statements made in 2016 by the Constitutional Court on the political nature of the government's choices regarding the agreements can be an obstacle. The paper deals with these points, also taking into account the application to the ECHR presented by the Christian Congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses against the Italian Republic.