Philip Jenkins reports on an interesting turn in France:
Something quite unexpected is happening in France: in what has long been regarded as one of the world’s most secular societies, Catholics are now reemerging as a potent force in public life…
Still more remarkable is the role of Catholic belief in the current presidential election. The initial favorite in this contest was center-right candidate François Fillon, who explicitly proclaimed his Christian faith. But Fillon is not alone. As a stunned Nouvel Observateur asked, reporting on the five leading contenders for the presidency—from the far right to the far left—“Why the devil are all the candidates Cathos?”…
What awoke les Cathos from their political slumber? The same-sex marriage issue had some effect, but mainly among the hard core of faithful practitioners. Far more significant for the larger population has been the issue of Islam and its place in French life. Some believers are overtly anti-immigrant or Islamophobic, but even those who reject prejudice are disaffected by the double standard applied to Muslims and Catholics. Catholics had spent decades following the rules laid down by secularism and laïcité, however much they resented the exclusion of Christian symbols in public places. But when Muslims forcefully asserted their religious identity, it seemed that most media outlets and many politicians accepted this as a necessary part of multiculturalism.
Long-standing resentment found a focus in one event above all, which occurred in the parish of Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray on July 26, 2016. On that day, two Muslim jihadis claiming loyalty to ISIL attacked the church and cut the throat of the 86-year-old priest, Jacques Hamel. A broad range of Christians (and non-Christians) immediately declared Father Hamel a martyr, and he is soon likely to be canonized. Beyond the horrible quality of the particular act, the murder drew attention to the frequency of Islamist attacks on French churches, few of which received media coverage at the time…
For decades, many French Catholics have increasingly felt like exiles in their own country. Following the slaughter of Father Hamel, it was difficult to resist the language of “taking the country back.”
