|
A.C.N - Aid to the Church in Need Italian Office |
Religious Freedom in
the Majority Islamic Countries |
|
Tunisia Population:
9,128,000
With the arrival of independence in 1956, the constitution established Islam as the state religion, but the government permits the practice of other religions. Proselytism is forbidden, as is the distribution of religious material. Catholics are a very tiny minority, the only diocese is that of Tunis, with 45 priests and 180 sisters. The Church runs schools, a clinic, libraries and cultural centres and is involved in various development projects in the country. In 1998 the journal of the IBLA (Institut des Belles-Lettres Arabes), edited by the White Fathers in Tunis and an important factor in mutual collaboration and understanding between Muslims and Christians, celebrated its 60th anniversary. The journal is produced by the institute of the same name, founded in 1926 by P.A. Demeerseman and at the origin of the foundation at Rome of PISAI (Pontifical Institute of Arab-Islamic Studies). IBLA, created to make known the cultural values of the Islamic world and of Tunisian society, has seen the number of its contributors grow over the years. Today over 220 Tunisian and Arab authors and 230 Europeans have published their articles in it. In addition to IBLA, the institute publishes books on Tunisian culture and has a university level editorial board. In the early 1950s, half of the inhabitants of Tunis were Catholics, but with the declaration of independence some 280,000 Tunisian Catholics were expelled. Today there are no more than a tenth of this number and most of the churches are closed or not in use. The danger of fundamentalism and the collapse of this "oasis of tolerance" is not far away. Tunisia, like Algeria, was originally an important centre of the Latin Church. The conquest of Carthage by the Muslims in 698 was the beginning of the end for the Church. The visit of Pope John Paul II to Tunisia has encouraged the defence of human rights, and religious liberty and culture for the 20,000 Catholics who still live in a society by now almost totally islamised. The Catholics are seeking a peaceful relationship with their Muslim brothers and sisters. |
|