Acts on Churches from 14 October 1949 and the Abolishment of Church Autonomy in Czechoslovakia in 1948-1950
2015
Abstract
The article discusses the first steps that the communist dictatorship in Czechoslovakia took toward churches and religious societies after it came to power in February 1948 and analyzes the reasons for the resolute opposition of the communist regime to churches and religious beliefs. The article outlines the consequences of the October 1949 acts on churches and subsequent measures that seemingly did not follow the acts but introduced mandatory civilian marriage and abolished church education, male religious orders, the Greek Catholic Church, and most theological studies in Czechoslovakia.