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Netherlands - Religion

The mystery of light and gloom on Rembrandt's panels, the love of nature in Ruysdaet, Cuyp and Van Hooghc, with their luminously misty skies, silvery daylight and broad expanse of landscape, the interest in common life displayed by Ter Borch, Van Steen, Douw, Osfade and Tenicrs, the instinct for the beauty of animals in Potter, the vast sea spaces of Vanderbeck, the grasp on reality, the acute intuition into character in portraits, the scientific study of the world and man, the robust sympathy with natural appetites, which distinguish the whole art of the Low Countries, are a direct emanation from the Renaissance.

The vernacular in the Netherlands profited at first but little by the impulse which raised Italian, Spanish, French and English to the rank of classic languages. But humanism, first of all in its protagonist Erasmus, afterwards in the long list of critical scholars and editors. Lipsius, Heinsius and Grotius, in the printers Elzevir and Plantin, developed a itself from the center of the Leidein University with massive energy, and proved that it was still a motive force of intellectual progress. In the fields of classical learning the students of the Low Countries broke new ground chiefly by methodical collection, classification and comprehensive criticism of previously accumulated stores. Their works were solid and substantial edifices, forming the substratum for future scholarship. In addition to this they brought philosophy and scientific thoroughness to bear on studies which had been pursued in a more literary spirit.

The new light of the Reformation, which in his reign was dazzling or illuminating every corner of Europe, had early found its way into the Netherlands, and excited instant notice there. Foreign merchants, assuming the liberty of speech and action natural to persons of their situation, had already professed the new doctrines. Refugees from France and England were allured by the freedom of the Low Countries to escape from the pressure of domestic persecution; their mechanical skill or commercial capital was welcomed as a benefit; and their opinions were listened to with toleration or approval, by a people in whom an intercourse with remote aod dissimilar nations had softened the asperities of bigotry, — in whom the long possession of wealth and social comforts had developed a spirit of inquiry and comparison.

The Netherlands became the battlefield of Reformation and Counter-Reformation in even a stricter sense than France. Here the antagonistic principles were plainly posed in the course of struggle against foreign despotism. The bid ended in the assertion of political independence as opposed to absolute dominion. Europe in large measure owes the modern ideal of political liberty to that spirit of stubborn resistance which broke the power of Spain. Recent history, and in particular the history of democracy, claims for its province the several stages whereby this principle was developed n England and America, and its outburst in the frenzy of the French Revolution. It is enough here to have alluded to the part played by the Low Countries in the genesis of a motive force which may be described as the last manifestation of the Renaissance striving after self-emancipation.

In periods of crisis, the government’s call to its citizenry to pray and fast resulted in public devotions inside churches and in surrounding public squares. In calmer times, the church served as a site for a variety of sacred and secular purposes, such as funerals, baptisms, weddings, shelter, and tourism. Above all, churches symbolized the collective spiritual strength of the Dutch people and their awareness of the fleeting nature of life and possessions.

According to a September 2011 report issued by the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), the country has become progressively secularized over the past few decades. In 2008, 42 percent surveyed declared no church affiliation, 29 percent declared themselves to be Roman Catholic, 19 percent Protestant, 5.7 percent Muslim, and 2.3 percent other (Hindu, Jewish, or Buddhist). Many of those with some religious affiliation do not actively practice their religious beliefs.

In 2009 CBS estimated the number of Muslims at 850,000, 5.2 percent of the population. Most Muslims live in urban areas and are of Turkish, Moroccan, or Surinamese background. The Muslim population also includes large numbers of asylum seekers from Iran, Iraq, Somalia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. According to the Jewish Social Work organization, the country has approximately 45,000 Jews, but the Stephen Roth Institute and the Council of Europe estimated the number at closer to 30,000. Less than one-quarter of Jews belong to active Jewish organizations. According to the Scientific Council for Government Policy in 2008, there are between 100,000 and 215,000 Hindus, of whom approximately 85 percent originally came from Suriname and 10 percent from India. The Buddhist community has approximately 17,000 members, according to the Netherlands Institute for Social Research in 2007.

The constitution and other laws and policies protect religious freedom. The constitution permits the government to place restrictions on the exercise of religious beliefs on limited grounds, such as concern for health hazards, traffic safety, and risk of public disorder. It is a crime to engage in public speech that incites religious, racial, or ethnic hatred, and the government prosecuted several cases during the reporting period. Convictions were rare, however, because courts are reluctant to restrict freedom of expression, especially in the context of public debate when politicians or journalists make statements that “offend, shock, or disturb.”

Religious groups are not required to register with the government; however, the law recognizes the existence of religious denominations and grants them certain rights and privileges, including tax exemptions. Although the law does not formally define what constitutes a “religious denomination,” religious groups generally did not experience problems in meeting the definition.

The Diyanet (Turkey’s religious affairs directorate) is permitted to appoint imams for most of the roughly 200 Turkish mosques in the country. In this way, the government of Turkey exercises influence within the ethnic Turkish Muslim community. Lacking this formal arrangement, the government of Morocco does not exert direct influence over the 150 Moroccan mosques within the country, instead maintaining connections through a federation of Moroccan friendship societies.

To reduce undesired foreign influence, the government continued to subsidize universities providing training for residents interested in becoming imams. Selected universities cooperated with the principal Muslim organizations to design training programs for the purpose of ensuring fledgling imams have a basic understanding of local social norms and values. The government continued to require all imams and other spiritual leaders recruited in Islamic countries to complete a year-long integration course before permitting them to practice in the country.

A recent study by the Netherlands Institute of Social Research observed the Dutch in general have a great deal of faith in their institutions but have the least faith in religious institutions. The secular majority in public discourse is increasingly critical of what it perceives as the “privileges” of religious institutions, such as the selection policies of religious schools, the practice of religious slaughter, and the right of civil servants to refuse to marry same-sex couples for religious reasons.

A number of outspoken right-wing politicians continued to argue openly that Islam was incompatible with the country’s traditions and social values. Geert Wilders, leader of the Party of Freedom, advocated an anti-immigrant and anti-Islam platform with a primary focus on countering “Islamization” of Dutch and Western society. Wilders, who is not a member of the government, was the most prominent of several politicians seen as encouraging public disapprobation of Muslims by claiming Islam preaches violence and hatred. There were no government spokesmen who engaged in such action. On June 23, the Amsterdam District Court acquitted Wilders of offending, inciting hatred toward, and discriminating against Muslims. Although the court found some of Wilders’ anti-Islamic and anti-immigrant statements “rude and disparaging,” it did not regard them as “inflammatory” or inciting hatred and discrimination given the political context in which they were made. The court noted prevailing jurisprudence permitted criticism of a religion and the behavior of supporters of a religion.

Muslims continued to face societal resentment, attributable to perceptions that Islam is incompatible with Western values and that Muslim immigrants have failed to integrate within Dutch society. In a speech on June 28, Deputy Prime Minister Verhagen, speaking as the leader of the Christian Democratic Party and not on behalf of the government, declared the multicultural society “a failure” and stressed “the primacy of Western values,” focusing his rhetoric on the failure of non-Western immigrants to integrate into Dutch society.

Major incidents of violence against Muslims were rare. However, minor incidents, including intimidation, brawls, vandalism, and graffiti with abusive language, were common. The government consistently investigates such incidents but the National Police Service has difficulty identifying perpetrators. The Minister of Security and Justice stated that motivations could include xenophobia, wantonness, intoxication, or even conflicts over parking problems or building projects. The Minister of Security and Justice remarked local authorities invariably take supplemental security measures if necessary.

Anti-Semitic incidents, including verbal threats, cursing, and desecration of monuments and cemeteries, continued to occur. There were four incidents of physical violence (including two incidents where stones were thrown through the windows of private homes, and one incident in which a boy wearing a yarmulke was beaten by three other boys), 61 ‘real-life’ incidents (involving vandalism, desecration, verbal abuse, or telephone harassment), and 47 offensive e-mails. The incidents were committed mostly by native Dutch. The independent Center for Information and Documentation on Israel (CIDI) noted the incidents show not all anti-Semitism is “imported.”