State Control of the Church

The French Revolution (1789–1799) brought significant changes to the relationship between the state and the Church. One of the most notable events was the enactment of the Civil Constitution of the Clergy on 12 July 1790. This law aimed to reorganize the Roman Catholic Church within France and brought it under the control of the state. It declared the Catholic Church a part of the national government, thus reducing the power of the Papacy over French affairs.

Before the revolution, the Catholic Church held considerable influence and owned extensive lands. The revolutionary government, intent on reducing this power, confiscated Church lands under the decree of the nationalization of Church property passed in November 1789. These properties were subsequently sold off to fund the state. This move not only weakened the Church’s economic power but also endeared the new government to those who acquired the lands.

The Civil Constitution of the Clergy stipulated that bishops and priests would be elected by the citizens. This democratic method was a sharp departure from the previous system, where appointments were made by the Pope and king. Additionally, clergy members were required to swear an oath of loyalty to the government, rather than the Pope, creating a significant rift within the Church. Those who took the oath were called "jurors" or "constitutional clergy,” while those who refused were termed "non-jurors" or "refractory clergy.” This division led to widespread tension and violence, particularly in rural areas where traditional Catholicism held strong.

The Papacy, under Pope Pius VI, condemned the Civil Constitution of the Clergy in March 1791, leading to further conflict between the revolutionary government and devout Catholics. Many clergy and faithful who opposed the new laws faced persecution. The revolutionary leaders considered refusal to take the oath as counter-revolutionary activity, and it contributed significantly to the broader violence of the period, including the Reign of Terror from 1793 to 1794.

In the effort to secularize society, the revolutionary government also established the Cult of Reason and later the Cult of the Supreme Being. These were intended to replace Christianity with a new state-sponsored religion, though neither gained sustainable traction among the populace. The disestablishment of the Church and the creation of these new religions underscored the government's endeavor to break the traditional power structures and influence of the clergy.

This state control over the Church continued to impact French society long after the revolution. It laid the groundwork for the Concordat of 1801, an agreement between Napoleon Bonaparte and Pope Pius VII, which aimed to reconcile the Church with the revolution’s outcomes. Under this concordat, Catholicism regained some privileges, but the government retained significant authority over Church activities in France, demonstrating the long-lasting impact of the revolution on Church-state relations.

• The French Revolution marked a significant shift in the relationship between the state and religion; before this period, the Catholic Church held immense power and wealth, often rivaling that of the monarchy itself.
• In 1790, the Civil Constitution of the Clergy was enacted, which required clergy to swear an oath of loyalty to the state rather than the Pope (this led to a schism within the French Church).
• Notably, during the Revolution, the government seized church properties worth approximately 2 billion livres (a staggering amount, equivalent to several years of national revenue at that time).
• The state control of the Church was not just about property; it also aimed to reform the religious calendar; the Revolutionaries attempted to replace the Gregorian calendar with a new revolutionary calendar, beginning on 22 September 1792, marking the first day of the French Republic.
• The radical phase of the Revolution saw the de-Christianization movement, where symbols of the Church were destroyed, and churches repurposed or closed, signifying a strong stance against religious authority.
• Despite efforts to secularize society, the belief in a supreme being prevailed; in 1793, Maximilien Robespierre introduced the Cult of the Supreme Being, a form of state-sponsored deism that aimed to replace traditional Roman Catholicism.