The EUREL project

The EUREL website aims to provide accurate and up-to-date information on the social and legal status of religion in Europe from an interdisciplinary perspective.
This website is intended for the international scientific community, public authorities and political forces, and gathers comparative information concerning the enlarged Europe (EU member states, candidates countries and other European countries). A specific headline is dedicated to Europe as a whole, from a institutional perspective (religious denominations and the European Union, or the Council of Europe...) and from a comparative point of view (treatment of a particular issue by various European countries).
Data are provided and checked by a network of correspondents, specialists of law or social sciences.

The EUREL website is constantly being updated and upgraded. It is important to underline nevertheless that the number of countries available, the information provided and the topics taken into account are not the result of an editorial choice, but depend highly on the availability of qualified people. The team tries its best to constantly enrich the website: new information is added, existing information is completed or updated, and new countries are taken into account. If you wish to contribute, please use the contact form to write to the managers.

For more precise information concerning the content of this website, please refer to the topics of Eurel page.

Who are we?

This project is carried out by PRISME - Société, Droit et Religion en Europe, in collaboration with Groupe Sociétés, Religions, Laïcités.

The research centre PRISME - Société, Droit et Religion en Europe:

It is a research unit of the CNRS and of the University of Strasbourg. It gathers specialists in law, politics and sociology of religions. It deals with the comparative study, at the European level, of the juridical status and the institutional and cultural situation of religions.

PRISME - Société, Droit et Religion en Europe (UMR 7012)
Director : Francis Messner
MISHA, 5, allée du général Rouvillois, 67084 Strasbourg Cedex
Tel. : +33 (0)3 88 41 63 15, Fax : +33 (0)3 88 41 64 80

The research centre Groupe Sociétés, Religions, Laïcités:

It is a research unit of the CNRS and the Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes.
The G.S.R.L. focusses on mutations of religions and laicism, to highlight general changes in societies.

Groupe Sociétés, Religions, Laïcités
Director: Philippe Portier
G.S.R.L. - IRESCO, 59-61, rue Pouchet, 75849 Paris Cedex 17
Tel : +33 (0)1 40 25 10 94, Fax : +33 (0)1 40 25 12 35

The management of the project:

• Scientific supervision:

Francis MESSNER (SDRE, Strasbourg), Jean-Paul WILLAIME (GSRL, Paris)

• Conception and management:

Françoise CURTIT and Anne-Laure ZWILLING (SDRE, Strasbourg)

• Members of the network:

• Austria: Wolfgang WIESHAIDER (Institut für Rechtsphilosophie, Religions- und Kulturrecht, Universität Wien)
• Belgium: Louis-Léon CHRISTIANS (Law of religions, Catholic University of Louvain)
• Cyprus: Victor ROUDOMETOF (Department of Social and Political Sciences, University of Cyprus)
• Czech Republic: Záboj HORÁK (Faculty of Law, Charles University in Prague)
• Denmark: Peter LÜCHAU (History of Religions, University of Copenhagen)
• Estonia: Ringo RINGVEE (Religious Affairs Department, Estonian Ministry of the Interior)
• Europe: Bérengère MASSIGNON (GSRL, Paris)
• Finland: Kimmo KÄÄRIÄINEN (Kirkon tutkimuskeskus / Church Research Institute, Tampere)
• France: Françoise CURTIT, Anne-Laure ZWILLING (SDRE, Strasbourg)
• Germany: Matthias KOENIG (Institut für Soziologie, Georg-August-Universität Göttingen)
• Greece: Nikos MAGHIOROS (Faculty of Canon and Ecclesiastical Law, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki)
• Hungary: Balázs SCHANDA (Peter Pazmany Catholic University, Faculty of Law and Political Sciences, Budapest)
• Ireland: Richard O'LEARY (School of Sociology, Social Policy and Social Work, Queen's University, Belfast)
• Italy: Marco VENTURA (Facoltà di Giurisprudenza, Università di Siena)
• Latvia: Ringolds BALODIS (Juridiskajā fakultātē, Latvijas Universitātē, Rīga)
• Poland: Piotr STANISZ (Katolicki Uniwersitet Lubelski)
• Portugal: Paulo Jorge Soares PINTO (Universidade Lusófona, Lisboa)
• Romania: Laurentiu TANASE (Universitatea din Bucuresti)
• Slovakia: Michaela MORAVCIKOVA (Ústav pre vztahy štátu a cirkví, Bratislava)
• Slovenia: Blaž IVANC (Faculty of Health Sciences – University of Ljubljana)
• Spain: Claude PROESCHEL (GSRL, Paris)
• Sweden: Jonas BROMANDER (Swenska kyrkan)
• Switzerland: Melina BREDE (Observatoire des Religions en Suisse, University of Lausanne)
• Turkey: Samim AKGÖNÜL (SDRE, Strasbourg)
• United Kingdom: David VOAS (Institute for Social Change, University of Manchester)

• Other contributors:

• Brenda E. BRASHER (Department of Sociology, University of Aberdeen)
• Fernando BRAVO LÓPEZ (Taller de Estudios Internacionales Mediterràneos, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid)
• José Carlos CALAZANS (Universidade Lusófona, Lisbon)
• Constanin CUCIUC (Universitatea din Bucuresti, Bucarest)
• Irene DIETZEL (University of Erfurt)
• Patrick DE POOTER (Church-State Department of the International Institute Canon Triest)
• Roberto DE VITA (Università di Siena)
• Irene DIETZEL (Université d'Erfurt)
• Nora DIM (Institut für Rechtsphilosophie, Religions- und Kulturrecht, Universität Wien)
• Achilles EMILIANIDES (Cyprus Institute of State and Church Relations)
• Simão Daniel FONSECA DA SILVA (Universidade Lusófona, Lisboa)
• Stavros FOTIOU (Department of Education, University of Cyprus)
• Katharina FRANK (Religionswissenschaft, Universität Zürich)
• Puerto GARCĺA ORTIZ (Taller de Estudios Internacionales Mediterràneos, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid)
• Delphine GEX-COLLET (Ecole d'études sociales et pédagogiques, Lausanne)
• Manuela GHEORGHE (Academia româna, Bucarest)
• Irene GONZÁLEZ GONZÁLEZ (Taller de Estudios Internacionales Mediterràneos, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid)
• Hans Michael HEINIG (Juristischen Fakultät, Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf)
• Annika HVITHAMAR (University of Copenhagen)
• Iulian ISBASOIU (Universitatea Ovidius, Constanta)
• Hans Raun IVERSEN (Faculty of Theology, University of Copenhagen)
• Ansgar JÖDICKE (Chaire de science des religions, University of Fribourg)
• Alessandra MARCHI (Ecole des hautes études en sciences sociales, Paris)
• David McCLEAN, emeritus professor, (School of Law, University of Sheffield)
• Siobhan MCANDREW (Institute for Social Change, University of Manchester)
• Luís Seabra MELANCIA (Universidade Lusófona, Lisbon)
• Miriam SCHADER (Institut de Sociologie, Georg-August-Universität Göttingen)
• Mallory SCHNEUWLY PURDIE (Science des religions, University of Fribourg)
• Ataullah SIDDIQUI (Islamic Foundation, Leicester)
• Harris STAVRIDIS (Kykkos Cultural Foundation )
• Lucretia VASILESCU (Universitatea din Bucuresti, Bucarest)
• Michael J. WEIL (Jewish People Policy Planning Institute, Jerusalem)

• Former contributors:

• Laurent AMIOTTE-SUCHET (Observatoire des Religions en Suisse, Université de Lausanne)
• Claude BOVAY (Ecole d'études sociales et pédagogiques, Lausanne)
• Lars FRIEDNER (Swenska kyrkan)
• Philippe GILBERT (Observatoire des Religions en Suisse, Université de Lausanne)
• Lina MOLOKOTOS (Centre for European Studies, University of Exeter)
• Michal RYNKOWSKI
• Jörg STOLZ (Observatoire des Religions en Suisse, University of Lausanne)
• Joëlle SANCHEZ (Observatoire des Religions en Suisse, Université de Lausanne)
• Carole WYSER (Observatoire des Religions en Suisse, University of Lausanne)

Downloadable documents for the Eurel correspondents:

• Guidelines for the redaction of Eurel (pdf, 31 Ko)

• Presentation of the Eurel website (pdf, 140 Ko)

• Leaflet of advertisement for Eurel (pdf, 31 Ko)