Problem of Legal Status of Catholic Church in Polish Law in 1944-1989

Abstract

As contrasted to the declarations made by communists that in Poland everyone has liberty of religion, legal status of Catholic Church - the most common religion in Poland - in practice was never defined. On September 12^th, 1945 Temporary Government of National Unity decided that Polish Concordat from January 10^,h, 1925 stopped to be obligatory until May 17^th, 1989, when Polish Parliament passed a bill: about relations between the State and the Catholic Church in Poland. During the last 45 years Polish government and parliament failed in making any complete regulation of legal status of Catholic Church. Articles from concordat from May 10^th, 1925 lost their legal power and this situation gave rise to complications and had its impact on Catholic Church’s property rights.

In the years 1944-1989 states and party authorities’ opinion was not based on law and sometimes against the Constitution from 1921 valid till 1952. Gaps in the law try to repair Polish Supreme Court’s verdict (April 18^th, 1963) - admitted that: parish, diocese and diocese theological seminaries have the personality of law. In practice this verdict interfered in the organic structure of Catholic Church.

This article considers the legal status of Catholic Church and its organisations in Polish law system in the years 1944-1989. The author tried to make a brief analysies of the relations between the State and the Catholic Church in Poland after the Second World War, at the same time he tried to prove that Polish People’s Republic was a state sui generis religious state.