From the Church Law Society

Successful Presentations of New Books

On 14 November 2011 the 63rd lecture evening of the Church Law Society took place at the Law School of Charles University in Prague. The following books were presented during the evening:

J.R.Tretera–Z.Horák: Church Law Dictionary, 2011;

Z. Horák: Churches and the Czech Education System, 2011; and

S. Přibyl: Czech Law on Churches since 1989, 2010.

The authors introduced their books and a discussion followed.

The following publications that were published in the past two years were also presented:

M. Hanuš (ed.): Collection of the Current Legal Norms of the Apostolic Exarchate of the Greek Catholic Church in the Czech Republic, 2011;

A. I. Hrdina, H. Kuchařová: The Heresy Trial of Count Špork in Legal-Historical and Theological Context, 2011;

A. I. Hrdina: Canon Law – The History of Sources, Theory, and Current Law, 2011;

A. I. Hrdina, Z. Masopust: Chrestomathy of the Study of the Philosophy of Law, 2011;

M. Čeplíková: State Law on Churches in the Slovak Republic, 2011;

J. Kříž: The Law on Churches and Religious Societies, Commentary, 2011;

D. Němec: Concordats of the Holy See with Post-Communist Countries (1990–2008), 2010 (an English edition is being published in Trier thanks to Professor G. Robbers);

M. Kolářová: A Collection of Legal Norms of the Prague Archdiocese 1945–2009, 2009.

More than 30 participants attended the event, including the authors of some of the above-mentioned books and representatives of Grada Publishing, a.s.

The Website of the Church Law Society

The Church Law Society website at http://spcp.prf.cuni.cz is updated and now includes the following documents:

2 November 2011

1. Proposal of Deputies Vojtěch Filip and others for a constitutional law on a referendum on settlement with churches and religious societies and an amendment of constitutional law No. 1/1993 Coll. of 26 October 2011.

2. Agreement on participation of the clergy in providing post-traumatic interventional care, concluded on 6 October 2011 among the Ministry of the Interior of the Czech Republic, the Ecumenical Council of Churches in the Czech Republic and the Czech Bishops’ Conference.

13 November 2011

Decision IV. ÚS 3597/10 of the Constitutional Court of 20 October 2011 on the right of a church to administer its affairs independently, and judgment 28 Cdo 2082/2010 of the Supreme Court of 8 October 2010, which was overruled by decision of the Constitutional Court.

Information on the proposal for a law on settlement of property disputes with churches and religious societies.

Congratulations to the Members of the Church Law Society

Doc. JUDr. Jiří Kejř, DrSc., a prominent Czech legal historian and expert on canon law history, celebrated his 90th birthday on 28 August 2011. He is one of the founding members of the Church Law Society.

The Premonstratensians’ Teplá Canon elected P. Zdeněk Filip Lobkowicz Opraem as the abbot of the Premonstratensians Abbey in Teplá at Toužim. To date, P. Zdeněk Filip Lobkowicz Opraem has served as a parish priest in Mariánské Lázně and as the district vicar of the vicariate in Cheb. His brother, Mons. František Václav Lobkowicz Opraem, the Bishop of Ostrava and Opava, administered his benediction as abbot in the Teplá Abbey on Saturday, 26 November 2011.

The Diocesan Bishop in Hradec Králové confirmed on 1 November 2011 that A. R. D. ICLic. Karel Moravec, a judge of the Diocesan Church Court in Hradec Králové, was elected Dean of the Collegiate Canonry at the Church of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross in Litomyšl.

Professor JUDr. ThDr. Miroslav Zedníček, who for many years has lectured on church law at the Catholic Theological School of Charles University, celebrated his 80th birthday on 4 November 2011.

Ing. Stanislav Hruška, a colleague in the secretariat of the Church Law Society in Prague, celebrated his 70th birthday on 5 November 2011.

Mgr. Stanislav Přibyl, CSsR, the General Vicar of the Roman Catholic Diocese in Litoměřice, celebrated his 40th birthday on 16 November 2011.

Doc. JUDr. Stanislav Přibyl, Ph.D., IC.D, a lecturer of church law and state law on churches and religious societies at the Theological School of South Bohemian University, and a judge of the Metropolitan Church Court in Prague, celebrated his 45th birthday on 18 November 2011.

Obituaries

Mrs. Ludmila Bačinová from Prague-Vršovice, passed away on 29 July 2011. She worked as an attorney assistant, after 1990 as a secretary of Czechoslovak Province of the Dominican Order. She regularly took part in lectures of our Church Law Society.

Mr. Jan Krigl, a publisher in Prague 4, passed away on 14 October 2011 at the age of 80. It is with sincere gratitude that we remember Mr. Krigl, who was a great friend and companion. In his publishing house he published our three basic textbooks – Church Law (1993), Synagogue and Church Then and Now (1994), and State Law on Churches and Religious Societies and Church Law (1997). By publishing these books he contributed significantly to the development of the academic areas of church law and state law on churches and religious societies in the Czech Republic.

P. ICLic. JUDr. Pavel Forgač, OT, passed away on 8 December 2011. He was born on 20 January 1950 in Ostrava and was graduated from the Law School of Charles University. Until 1989 he worked as a lawyer for the Czech State Railways. In October 1989 he emigrated to prepare for service in the clergy. He obtained a licentiate of canon law at the Pontifical Lateran University in Rome and went through the priest’s formation program at the Archdiocesan Priest Seminary in Cologne. On 23 February 1997 he became an oblate of the Order of the Virgin Mary in Jerusalem; he was ordained a priest on 29 June 1998 in Vienna. After being ordained he led the German spiritual administration in Prague. On 1 October 2001 he was appointed president of the Ostrava-Opava Diocesan Charity and an episcopal vicar for matters of the Charity in the Diocese.

Requiescant in pace!

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XXIII Congress of the European Consortium for Church and State Research, Oxford 2011

Congress on Religion and Discrimination Law in the European Union

On 29 September – 2 October 2011 the European Consortium for Church and State Research organized its XXIII congress in Oxford, United Kingdom; the topic of the congress was Religion and Discrimination Law in the European Union. The congress took place in St. Stephen’s House, the seat of the Anglican Theological College of the University of Oxford.

Several months before the congress reporters from every member state of the European Union submitted responses (in English or French) to previously prepared questions; the responses were distributed to all participants.

Professor JUDr. J. R. Tretera and JUDr. Z. Horák, Ph.D., submitted a joint report for the Czech Republic and presented the report in the discussion. The congress was attended by 28 delegates from 19 European Union member states.

The primary host, Professor Mark Hill, QC, from London, opened the congress on 29 September 2011. Sir Nicolas Bratza, the President of the European Court of Human Rights, delivered the lecture “Article 9 Jurisprudence in Strasbourg.”

On Friday, 30 September 2011, and on Saturday, 1 October 2011, three discussion sessions took place. The first session, concerning Historical, Cultural and Social Background, was introduced by Professor Lisbet Christoffersen from Copenhagen; the discussion was led by Professor Francis Messner from Strasbourg. The second session, on Duty Not To Discriminate, was introduced by Professor Lars Friedner from Uppsala; the discussion was led by Professor Marco Ventura from Siena. The third session, on The Right To Discriminate, was introduced by Professor Agustín Motilla from Madrid; the discussion was led by Professor Merilin Kiviorg from Oxford, who represented Estonia. Professor Norman Doe from Cardiff provided the summary and conclusions.

At the end of the congress, Professor Matti Kotiranta of the University of Eastern Finland presided over the General Assembly. Professor Mark Hill, QC, from London, was elected president for the upcoming term. The next congress will be organized in Budapest in November 2012; subsequent congresses will take place in Innsbruck and Strasbourg.

The proceedings of the Oxford congress will become available after language editing. On Saturday afternoon the delegates visited several renowned colleges of the University of Oxford, including Christ Church, and the cathedral. The congress concluded with a dinner at Magdalen College.

J. R. Tretera