Compared to the rest of Europe, Catholicism underwent a distinctive historical development in the Low Countries. Whereas it had previously enjoyed the status of a de facto state religion as part of the universal Church, it became a minority religion as a result of the Reformation and the Dutch Revolt. How did Dutch Catholics cope with the changing status of their faith amidst the major political and social upheavals of the early modern to modern Netherlands?
16th to 18th century
The Dutch Revolt against Habsburg Spain, which began in the 1560s, soon came to be characterised (in part) as a struggle between Protestants and Catholics. In the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands, the Dutch Reformed Church was treated as the ‘true religion’ and thus as a privileged church, but it never attained the status of a state church. Thus, the Dutch Republic developed into a multi-denominational society, in which Catholics, as a minority church, were able to maintain their position to a reasonable extent, although they had to incur high costs to obtain exemptions from anti-Catholic measures (known as the ‘plakkaten’). Nevertheless, the number of Catholics gradually dwindled, as they were effectively excluded from high public office and, moreover, benefited only sparingly from the poor relief funds.
The ecclesiastical province of Utrecht (the area north of the River Waal) had barely been established when, in 1592, Rome once again declared it a mission territory. The so-called Dutch Mission came under the leadership of an apostolic vicar. At that time, the southern regions fell under the ecclesiastical province of Mechelen. Around 1700, the Dutch Mission suffered a serious internal crisis centred on the apostolic vicars Neercassel and Codde, who were accused of Jansenism. This led to the formation of the Old Catholic Church (Old Episcopal Clergy) in 1723. After the Apostolic Vicar was definitively banished from the country by the States-General (the parliamentary assembly of the Dutch Republic) in 1717, this role was henceforth fulfilled by the papal nuncio in Brussels.
Catholicism and the revival, 1795 -1890
In 1795, after the French invasion, the Batavian Republic was proclaimed. Catholics were now officially granted freedom of religion. In 1815, the unification of the Northern and Southern Netherlands under King William I even gave Catholics a majority. However, the Belgian Revolt in 1830 led to the division of the kingdom into the modern nations of the Netherlands and Belgium. Catholics now accounted for around 38% of the Dutch population, a significant proportion of whom lived in Brabant and Limburg.
Reestablishment of the episcopal hierarchy
In 1801, the Apostolic Vicariates of Breda, 's-Hertogenbosch, Megen and Grave were established between the Belgian ecclesiastical province of Mechelen and the Holland Mission in the Northern Netherlands; in Limburg, the diocese of Roermond was divided between the dioceses of Liège and Aachen until 1840. Catholics were now able to replace their clandestine churches (in Dutch known as 'schuilkerken') with new ones; institutions for the training of priests were founded, and monastic life could be rebuilt. It was also during this period that the first Catholic daily newspapers and magazines appeared. In 1853, Pope Pius IX established the ecclesiastical province of Utrecht, comprising the Archdiocese of Utrecht and the dioceses of Haarlem, ‘s-Hertogenbosch, Breda and Roermond.
This ‘reestablishment ’ of the episcopal hierarchy was met with a storm of protests from the Protestant side (the April Movement). In the early years, the new bishops devoted much attention to reorganising their dioceses and establishing a sound infrastructure of parishes. The provincial council of 1865 symbolically brought these years of restoration to a close. The religious orders and congregations played a key role in the Catholic revival. In addition to new Dutch foundations, German and French congregations also established themselves in the Netherlands, having fled anticlerical measures in their own countries (in Germany known as Kulturkampf). The religious orders built up a network of Catholic schools, hospitals and care for the poor. Towards the end of the nineteenth century, they also laid the foundations for the remarkable missionary zeal among Dutch Catholics.
Catholic cultural revival
The Catholic revival was also reflected in the cultural sphere. The Amsterdam merchant and writer J.A. Alberdingk Thijm was its eloquent spokesperson, whilst the most striking expression of this revival was to be found in the Neo-Gothic style of church architecture (P.J.H. Cuypers) and ecclesiastical art (the goldsmith Brom). Until the mid-1850s, Dutch Catholicism was characterised by an influential liberal movement. However, following the introduction of the episcopal hierarchy, Dutch Catholics became increasingly conservative and ultramontane (oriented towards Rome). This development was partly due to the liberal politicians, who continued to refuse to subsidise private education and thus enable Catholic education to exist alongside state education. This ‘school struggle’, initiated by the anti-liberal encyclical Quanta Cura (1864) and the episcopal Mandate on Education (1868), was ultimately won by a Catholic-Protestant coalition. In 1888, a new law on primary education was enacted, and in 1917, state and private education were placed on an entirely equal footing.
The development of the Catholic 'pillar', 1890–1940
Catholicism in the Netherlands during the first half of the 20th century was characterised by a growing sense of self-awareness. Defending the faith gave way to spreading the faith (the Petrus Canisius Apologetic Society (1904), the ‘For God’ Campaign (1936)). However, missionary energy was directed primarily towards countries outside Europe: an intensive ‘missionary movement’ got under way, and in terms of both funding and personnel, the Dutch Catholic community made such a significant contribution to the Church’s missionary work that it was held up as an example by the Pope under the motto ‘Hollandia docet’. Among Dutch Catholics during these years, there prevailed a strong sense of community and effective social control. In addition to Catholic education, the Church authorities had at their disposal a wide range of social, cultural and recreational organisations to guide the daily lives and work of Catholics. The most effective means, however, was the confessional. The rules regarding morality, sexuality and married life were constantly instilled. The fact that the Church succeeded in this to a great extent is evident, amongst other things, from the high birth rate among Dutch Catholics. This way of top-down social organisation and control is referred to as 'pillarisation'.
Establishment of the Roman Catholic State Party
In the political arena, Catholic politicians began to work together within the Catholic Parliamentary Group ('Katholieke Kamerclub'), on the initiative of Herman Schaepman. In 1904, a Federation of Catholic Electoral Associations ('Bond van R.K. Kiesvereenigingen') was established, which in practice was already known as the Roman Catholic State Party ('Rooms-Katholieke Staatspartij'). This party was officially founded in 1926. In the 1918 elections, in which the system of proportional representation was used for the first time and universal suffrage for men was in force, the Catholics won 30 of the 100 seats in the House of Representatives. This made them the largest party. For the first time, the Netherlands had a Catholic Prime Minister (Ch. Ruijs de Beerenbrouck).
Catholic labour movement
A Catholic labour movement emerged in the late 1880s. The encyclical Rerum Novarum played a highly stimulating role in this regard. For a long time, the development of workers’ organisations was hampered by a debate over whether they should be trade organisations or professional organisations. Since 1909, the trade unions had been organised at national level within the Bureau for the Roman Catholic Trade Union ('Bureau voor de R.K. Vakorganisatie'). The trade associations, on the other hand, were organised at diocesan level. In 1916, the bishops settled the matter by stipulating that workers’ organisations should, above all, be trade associations. Thus, in the first decades of this century, organisations such as the Dutch Roman Catholic Middle-sized Business Union ('Nederlandse R.K. Middenstandsbond') (1915), the General Roman Catholic Employers’ Organisation ('Algemene R.K. Werkgeversorganisatie') (1915) and the Roman Catholic Workers’ Union ('R.K. Werkliedenverbond') (1925) were established.
Catholic education
Meanwhile, the development of Catholic education continued steadily. A network of primary schools was established that provided almost universal coverage, and – partly thanks to the efforts of various religious orders (Jesuits, Augustinians, Franciscans, Dominicans) – a network of secondary schools was also established. In Tilburg, the Roman Catholic Education Programs ('R.K. Leergangen') (1912) and the Catholic Business School ('R.K. Handelshogeschool') (1927) were founded, whilst in Nijmegen, the establishment of the Catholic University (1923) (now: Radboud University) marked the ‘crowning achievement’ of these efforts.
Second World War, 1940-1945
The Dutch bishops warned against both right-wing and left-wing radicalism at an early stage. In statements issued in 1934 and 1936, severe ecclesiastical penalties were imposed on both fascist and communist activities. Led by Archbishop J. de Jong, the Dutch bishops offered as much resistance as possible to the German occupiers. In doing so, they worked closely with Protestant church leaders within the Inter-Church Consultative Committee ('Inter-Kerkelijk Overleg'). The ‘standardisation’ of Catholic associations, organisations and institutions was often rendered practically impossible by a mass exodus of members or their timely dissolution. Under the guise of the Catholic Action ('Katholieke Actie'), organisational tasks were continued as far as possible, and a Special Needs Fund ('Fonds Bijzondere Noden') took care of the numerous officials who had now become unemployed.
Restoration and skepticism, 1945–1960
During and immediately after the Second World War, attempts were made within the so-called ‘breakthrough movement’ to radically reform political and social life. The bishops and leaders of the Catholic pillar, however, sought to restore the pre-war situation as fully as possible. In their view, this restoration was, after all, also a restoration of justice. The founding of the Catholic People’s Party ('Katholieke Volkspartij') in 1945 marked the end of the breakthrough movement, and the entire Catholic associational and organisational life was rebuilt in 1945–1946. In this way, the Church sought to counter the disintegrating and secularising effects of the rapid modernisation of Dutch society.
On the face of it, they seemed to have succeeded. Well into the 1950s, the degree of religious polarisation in Catholic Netherlands continued to rise. However, a critical undercurrent, rooted in the breakthrough movement, remained present. Not only the intellectual elite, but also ordinary parish priests began to feel that a traditional, insular form of Catholicism was failing to meet the needs of modern society. The 1950 publication of the collection Onrust in de zielzorg (translated: Unrest in Pastoral Care) epitomised this discontent. The division of the Diocese of Haarlem and the Archdiocese of Utrecht in 1956 was intended to improve the manageability of these large dioceses.
The episcopal mandement of 1954
During the celebrations marking the centennial of the restoration of the episcopal hierarchy (1953) and in the episcopal mandement De katholiek in het openbare leven van deze tijd (translated: The Catholic in Public Life Today) (1954), the bishops once again made a strong case for a strong Catholic unity as a foundation of society. However, the pastoral letter had a boomerang effect: Catholics became all the more aware of their need for openness.
In the second half of the 1950s, the first signs of a turbulent reform movement began to emerge. Ecclesiastical discipline, which had always been heavily focused on (sexual) morality, was called into question within the emerging field of mental health care (the Catholic National Bureau for Mental Health Care ('Katholiek Nationaal Bureau voor Geestelijke Gezondheidszorg'), led by A. Bartels and C. Trimbos, and the monthly magazine Dux with editor-in-chief Han Fortmann), and an increasing number of Catholic organisations began to voice their doubts about the meaning of their 'Catholic' label. The broad Catholic social programme that the bishops had advocated in 1954 eventually appeared in 1960–1963 in a modest form as ‘a Catholic perspective on Dutch society’ (subtitle of the five-volume work Prosperity, Well-being and Happiness).
Conciliar reforms, 1960-1970
The aggiornamento of the Church announced by Pope John XXIII and the Second Vatican Council (1962–1965) fell on fertile ground in the Netherlands. The introduction of Dutch in the liturgy and a decline in adherence to the moral principles were the first notable features of the reforms. These developments were furthered by the outspoken stance of the popular Bishop W. Bekkers of Den Bosch.
Through the publication of the New Catechism (1966) and the convening of the Pastoral Council of the Dutch Ecclesiastical Province (1969–1970), the episcopate, under the chairmanship of Cardinal B. Alfrink, sought to encourage and guide ecclesial renewal. In fact, these initiatives contributed to the emergence of an autonomously developing renewal movement, which attracted international attention in the late 1960s. Critical groups emerged on the left (Septuagint, Amsterdamse Studentenekklesia) and on the right (Confrontatie, Waarheid en Leven) of the Church.
The momentum of the renewal movement initially masked the simultaneous rise in secularisation. There had been a blurring of religious beliefs (the ‘God in Nederland’ surveys, 1967, 1979) and church attendance fell from 64.6% in 1966 to 46.3% in 1970. This trend continued in the decades that followed (13.1% in 1991).
Ecumenical dialogue had already begun during the Second World War, but until the mid-1960s it took place exclusively on an informal basis in numerous discussion groups. However, Princess Irene’s conversion to the Catholic Church in 1964 and the outrage over her ‘conditional rebaptism’ led to exchanges at an official level. In 1968, the Council of Churches was established, and in 1967–1968, mutual recognition of baptism took place between the Catholic Church and various Protestant churches.
The reform movement was accompanied by a dramatically rapid process of secularisation within Dutch society. The majority of Catholic organisations became non-denominational through dissolution or mergers with Protestant or non-denominational organisations. This secularisation was also reflected in voting behaviour. In 1963, the Catholic People's Party still attracted 31.9% of Dutch voters; by 1972, this had fallen to just 17.7%.
Polarisation and response, 1970-1993
The reform movement caused serious concern in Rome, which was reflected in the appointment of a number of very conservative bishops. These events triggered a sharp rise in polarisation within the Catholic community in the Netherlands, which was to continue into the 1990s.
Various attempts were made to put a stop to this polarisation, but neither the Commission on Pluralism, established by the bishops in 1973, nor the conciliatory gesture of appointing Cardinal J. Willebrands as Cardinal Alfrink’s successor to the See of Utrecht had the desired effect. Even within the Bishops’ Conference itself, there appeared to be no unity and relations had become strained. In 1980, Pope John Paul II personally attempted to bring the bishops into line through a Special Synod of Bishops, but with little success.
Visit of Pope John Paul II, 1985
The Pope’s visit to the Netherlands in 1985 was not an entirely successful one. It did, however, prompt a large-scale demonstration by progressive Catholic associations and organisations in The Hague under the slogan: ‘The other face of the Church’. This demonstration gave rise to the 8 May Movement ('Acht Mei Beweging') as a ‘platform’ for, amongst others, Open Church ('Open Kerk') (1972), the Mariënburg Association (1983), the Federation of Associations for Pastoral Workers (1987), Pax Christi, various religious orders and congregations – a total of around 200 organisations. Since 1985, the 8 May Movement has held a major annual events.
A year later, the more conservative Catholics organised themselves into the Contact Rooms Katholieken (1986). Furthermore, a newspaper called the Katholiek Nieuwsblad ('Catholic Newspaper') has been published for this group since 1983.
Fusion and reinvention
Around 1980, the trend towards secularisation also reached the major organisations. In 1980, a broad-based Christian Democratic political party was formed (Christen Democratisch Appèl, CDA); in 1981, the Dutch Catholic Trade Union Federation merged with the socialist Dutch Federation of Trade Unions to form the Federation of Dutch Trade Unions (FNV).
In the second half of the 1980s, the remaining Catholic organisations began to focus more on their identity. On the initiative of the Catholic Council for Church and Society (founded in 1975), a meeting of chairpersons was held in 1986 (the All Saints’ Day Consultation) and the Federation of Catholic Social Organisations was established in 1988.
Church attendance amongst Dutch Catholics has continued to decline in recent decades. Since 1960, the proportion of Catholics has fallen from 40.4% to around 35%; of these Catholics, approximately 13% attend church every week. On the other hand, however, this relatively small group demonstrates a very high level of commitment to the Church.