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UMI® CHANGING CONTEXT, CHANGING OPPORTUNITIES: THE EFFECT OF POLITICAL OPPORTUNITY STRUCTURES ON THE POLITICAL EVOLUTION OF THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH IN POLAND AND SLOVENIA, 1992-2005 by Krista Frances Baker A thesis submitted to the School of Graduate Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Department of Political Science Memorial University of Newfoundland May 2009 St. John's Newfoundland Library and Archives Bibliotheque et 1*1 Canada Archives Canada Published Heritage Direction du Branch Patrimoine de I'edition 395 Wellington Street 395, rue Wellington OttawaONK1A0N4 Ottawa ON K1A 0N4 Canada Canada Your file Votre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-55150-9 Our file Notre riterence ISBN: 978-0-494-55150-9 NOTICE: AVIS: The author has granted a non­ L'auteur a accorde une licence non exclusive exclusive license allowing Library and permettant a la Bibliotheque et Archives Archives Canada to reproduce, Canada de reproduire, publier, archiver, publish, archive, preserve, conserve, sauvegarder, conserver, transmettre au public communicate to the public by par telecommunication ou par I'lnternet, preter, telecommunication or on the Internet, distribuer et vendre des theses partout dans le loan, distribute and sell theses monde, a des fins commerciales ou autres, sur worldwide, for commercial or non­ support microforme, papier, electronique et/ou commercial purposes, in microform, autres formats. paper, electronic and/or any other formats. The author retains copyright L'auteur conserve la propriete du droit d'auteur ownership and moral rights in this et des droits moraux qui protege cette these. Ni thesis. Neither the thesis nor la these ni des extraits substantiels de celle-ci substantial extracts from it may be ne doivent etre imprimes ou autrement printed or otherwise reproduced reproduits sans son autorisation. without the author's permission. In compliance with the Canadian Conformement a la loi canadienne sur la Privacy Act some supporting forms protection de la vie privee, quelques may have been removed from this formulaires secondaires ont ete enleves de thesis. cette these. While these forms may be included Bien que ces formulaires aient inclus dans in the document page count, their la pagination, il n'y aura aucun contenu removal does not represent any loss manquant. of content from the thesis. 1+1 Canada ABSTRACT CHANGING CONTEXT, CHANGING OPPORTUNITIES: THE POLITICAL EVOLUTION OF THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH IN POST-COMMUNIST POLAND AND SLOVENIA, 1992 - 2005 Krista F. Baker The sweeping social, political, and economic changes that occurred over the period from 1992 to 2005 in Poland and Slovenia tested the Roman Catholic Church with a new structure of opportunities for and constraints upon political activity. The aim of this study was to discover how this shifting political opportunity structure affected the Church's ability to take part in the post-Communist political process. The relatively volatile nature of Polish politics, combined with a religiously adherent, yet somewhat skeptical, society presented the Polish Church with a political opportunity structure that was often variable, yet predominantly favourable for the Church. This allowed the Church to make considerable political gains. In contrast, the Slovene Church faced a remarkably different context than its Polish counterpart. A relatively stable political system and openly skeptical Slovene society presented few openings to the Church to attain a significant influence in politics and, aside from a few state concessions in the early 2000s, the Church was shut out of politics. n ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This thesis would not have been possible without the financial assistance provided by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC), which awarded me the Canada Graduate Scholarship in 2003, and the School of Graduate Studies, which provided me with fellowship funding from 2003 to 2005. These funds allowed me to pay for education and living expenses during the majority of my Master's program. Valuable advice about issues related to my academic program, this thesis, and other matters was provided by two key individuals. First, Dr. Bill McGrath, my thesis supervisor, displayed endless patience during the somewhat tumultuous development of my topic and my life. Although I often encountered obstacles which appeared insurmountable Dr. McGrath never failed to remind of my abilities or the options which existed to overcome these difficulties. Also, during the editing process Dr. McGrath provided valuable advice about improvements to the final text. Second, I would also like to thank Dr. Close for his guidance during the entirety of my time at the Political Science Department. Dr. Close encouraged me to explore new ideas and pursue new directions as I developed my thesis. He also helped me to sustain the motivation to continue with my program, even when I was unsure about my present or future. Thank you both. Many other people helped me to achieve the level of intellectual and personal development required to persist to this level of study. I owe great thanks to the multitude of teachers and professors whom I have encountered since I began my education at the tender age of four. Although some of these individuals may not remember me from the thousands of students that they have taught over the years, I am grateful to each and every one for the knowledge and skills which they imparted to me that have taught me to think critically and find solutions to problems. My greatest gratitude is reserved for those closest to me - my parents, Howard and Netta, who have encouraged me to continue with my education and to reach my full potential, often at considerable financial and personal cost. I appreciate your many sacrifices and your undying faith in my abilities. Unfortunately, my Dad, who passed away in 2008, is not here to see the completion of this thesis and my degree, but I know that he would be proud at this moment. This work is dedicated to my Dad, Howard Baker (1942 - 2008), as a thanks for his unconditional love and undying faith in my abilities. I miss you. in CONTENTS ABSTRACT ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS iii LIST OF TABLES vii LIST OF FIGURES viii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ix CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION 1 A Preview of the Analysis 4 Summary 5 CHAPTER 2. REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE 7 The Power of Churches in Politics 8 The Roman Catholic Church as a Political Actor 11 Confronting Change: The Roman Catholic Church in Post-1989 Poland 16 Independence and Democracy: The Roman Catholic Church in Contemporary Slovene Politics 45 Comparative Works 62 Political Opportunities and Constraints 65 Conclusion 70 CHAPTER 3. METHODS 72 Research Hypotheses 72 Research Design 74 The Church as a Unit of Analysis 74 The Roman Catholic Church as an Interest Group 75 The Context of the Roman Catholic Church 77 The Utility of Comparative Analysis 85 Data Collection 89 Organization of the Analysis 92 Summary 93 IV CHAPTER 4. THE POLISH AND SLOVENE CHURCHES: CONFRONTING A NEW SOCIETY 94 The Power of Roman Catholicism 95 History in the Construction of National Identity 96 Roman Catholicism Through History up to the Communist Period .... 96 The Politics of Resistance and Change: Fomented by the Church or Leaving the Church Behind? 99 Society 105 The Church's Religious Dominance 106 Evaluating the Church as a Public Institution: Confidence and Trust . 121 CHAPTER 5. POLITICIZING THE CHURCH 130 Poland: Resistance to a Political Church 130 Slovenia: Rejection of a Political Church 140 Summary: Linking History, Society, and Politics 149 CHAPTER 6. POLITICAL PARTIES: FRIENDS OR FOES? 152 Crowded Landscape: Parties as Competitors 152 The Instability of Party Development in Poland 152 The Stability of Party Development in Slovenia 157 Political Parties as Collaborators 161 The Weakness of Compatible Allies: The Fragmented, Ineffective Polish Right 162 Consistent Dependable Allies: The Slovene Right 166 Political Parties as Opponents 169 Serious Challenger: The Former Communists Reincarnate Themselves in the SLD 169 Continuity in Power: Slovenia's Liberal Democrats 174 Summary 178 CHAPTER 7. ELECTORAL POLITICS: CHANGING THE FORTUNES OF POLITICAL PARTIES 180 A Work in Progress: The Effects of Ongoing Electoral Reform 181 Election Trends: Winners and Losers in the Electoral Arena 186 Poland: A Trend of Continuous Change 187 Slovenia: A Trend of Consistency 192 Elections as a Venue for the Church to Influence Democratic Choice 195 v CHAPTER 8. GOVERNMENT DYNAMICS: THE ART OF COALITION GOVERNMENT 200 The Instability of Coalition Governments in Poland 201 Perfecting the Art of Coalition Government in Slovenia 209 CHAPTER 9. LEGAL AND CONSTITUTIONAL DIMENSIONS: EXCHANGING DIVINE LAW FOR HUMAN LAW 217 The Polish Church: Security in the Polish Constitution 217 Separating Church and State 219 Setting the Church Apart from Others: The Concordat 220 The Durability of Constitutional Arrangements 225 Laws and Regulations 227 Slovenia: Subjugating the Church to the Democratic Polity 228 The Constitution: Closing Out the Church 229 Unofficial Privilege: The Stipulations of the Religious Communities Act 233 Distinguishing the Church from Others: The Vatican Accord 235 Summary 240 CHAPTER 10. TRANSNATIONAL DIMENSIONS: JOINING THE WEST 242 Impetus to Join 242 Becoming a Full Member 247 Summary 252 CHAPTER 11. CONCLUSION 254 Summary of the Analysis 255 Conclusions and Implications 259 Directions for Further Study 262 REFERENCES 264 APPENDIX A. ELECTION RESULTS: REPUBLIC OF POLAND, 1991-2005 .... 285 APPENDIX B. ELECTION RESULTS: REPUBLIC OF SLOVENIA, 1992-2004 .. 293 vi TABLES 1. Poles' Feelings of Membership in Their Local Church Parish (percent) 112 2. Attendance at Religious Services in Slovenia (percent) 119 3. Slovenes' Links to Church, 1998 (percent) 120 4. Confidence in Selected Public Institutions in Poland, 1992-1994 (Cumulative) ... 123 5. Poles' Confidence/Trust in the Church, 1991 to 2004 124 6. Retrospective Reflections on Slovenes' Trust in the Catholic Church and its Officials in 1990 and 1997 (Compared) 129 7.