Irreplaceable Church Welfare in the Least Religious Country: The Case of the Czech Republic

Faith-based social service delivery in a country with low religious affiliation: The case of the Czechoslovak Hussite Church

“…All eight places I visited were started from scratch. This finding confirms the suggested absence of systematic and longitudinal efforts on the part of the churches as regards social service delivery (Nešpor and Hamplová, 2020). Despite this fact, the CEOs frequently used the Church’s historical social appeal as legitimization for their own work.…”

“…Furthermore, they focus on target groups with special needs rather than general public welfare. As a result, although FBOs play a crucial role in Czech social service delivery, the Czech public is mostly unaware of their activities (Nešpor and Hamplová, 2020). This is also the case for the Czechoslovak Hussite Church, which organizes a diaconia and gathers several FBOs under its watch.…”

“…Moreover, a certain 'religious illiteracy' is observed among the Czech population, constrained by the low role of religion in the public sphere (Václavík et al, 2018). Czechs tend to prefer private, individualized, and detraditionalized spiritual practices over institutionalized religion (Nešpor and Hamplová, 2020). This is made evident as the importance of institutionalized religion is continuously decreasing in Czechia.…”

“…This is made evident as the importance of institutionalized religion is continuously decreasing in Czechia. In surveys, Czechs usually rank the churches as among the lowest useful institutions, and they are only trusted by roughly 15% of the population (Nešpor and Hamplová, 2020). Simultaneously, church membership is continuously decreasing.…”

Veiling Religion: The Public Face of Czech Re-Entry Faith-Based Organizations

“…Rather than a totality of non-belief, limited belief in a personal God, unwillingness to identify oneself with any one religion, and low levels of involvement in religious rituals can be observed across the Czech population (Hamplová & Nešpor, 2009;Váně & Štípková, 2013). A historical explanation for this mindset has been rooted in the anti-nationalistic approaches related to Roman Catholic Church (Froese, 2005), and deepened by forty years of a strictly atheistic communist regime (Nešpor, 2010). As a result, churches are mostly expected to maintain religious landmarks and focus on charity, but not to interfere with public life otherwise (Lužný & Navrátilová, 2001;Nešpor & Hamplová, 2020).…”