A draft for a bill on churches will be presented to the cabinet within the next few weeks, Magyar Nemzet daily said on Monday.
The blueprint, discussed by justice ministry and church officials, declares that the Hungarian state has no right to establish any organisation to control or supervise the churches, Laszlo Szaszfalvi, state secretary of church affairs, told the paper.
The draft limits the definition of a church to communities primarily engaged in religious activities.
Activities such as data management, lobbying, psychical or parapsychology services, medical and business ventures will not qualify as religious activities. Neither will education, health care, charity, family and youth protection, cultural and sports activities or environmental protection fall within the scope of the law unless they are imbued with a religious content.
The draft defines nine churches which have played a major role in the history and culture of Hungary. These are likely to be defined as the “historic churches”: Catholic, Reformed and Lutheran, the Jewish religious community, the orthodox churches (with five denominations in Hungary), the Unitarian, the Baptist, the Methodist and the Pentecostal churches.
Further categories will include the “new Protestant churches”, including the Faith Church that has built up a large following in the past decades, the “religious communities recognised by Parliament”, and “churches with considerable public activities that can conclude an agreement with the government.”
The blueprint defines seven criteria for an organisation to qualify as a church: focus on religion, a creed that contains the essence of teachings, a past of over 20 years in Hungary, at least 1,000 members, approval of a founding document and internal rules, election of officials, as well as compliance with the constitution.
the Hungarian state has no right to establish any organisation to control or supervise the churches
…
seven criteria for an organisation to qualify as a church
…
approval of a founding document and internal rules, election of officials, as well as compliance with the constitution
—
Yes, no control or supervision there…
Viking nothing like distorting the text. Approval is by it’s
members. Non profits require that in most countries. You
have to define a church, defining doesn’t mean control. Nice
try. Amazing how polarizing and one sided you are
Always a good idea to keep the State out of
Religion, and for that matter – Religion out of the
State.
You’re wrong. Most countries do not have legislation defining religions or requiring religions to certify themselves as such.
It’s a ridiculous European custom.