从国家教会法走向宗教宪法——德国宗教治理的百年变迁

From Public Church Law to Religious Constitutional Law:100 Years' Evolution of the Governance of Religion in Germany

在宗教治理问题上,德国宪法学在过去20年经历了从“国家教会法到宗教宪法”的范式变迁。这一范式转换的核心在于对宪法宗教自由条款和政教关系条款之间关系的重新认识,具体表现为对政教关系条款(魏玛教会条款)的重新解释。魏玛教会条款是1919年魏玛制宪时妥协的结果,在1949年波恩制宪时,又因二次妥协而被纳入基本法。在基本法秩序下,魏玛教会条款经历了意义变迁。从政教关系到宗教自由、从宗教同质到世俗多元、从“国家”到“宪法”,构成了从国家教会法走向宗教宪法的三个动因。通过这一范式变迁,政教关系条款得以与宗教自由条款相连接,制度性条款实现了基本权利转向,魏玛教会条款生发出了新的生命力,从而因应时代发展和社会变迁,达致一种更为理想的宗教治理模式。

In the field of the governance of religion,German constitutional law has undergone a paradigm shift from public church law to religious constitutional law in the last 20 years.The essence of this paradigm change lies in the rediscovery of the relationship between the constitutional provisions on religious freedom and state-church relation,which is achieved through the reinterpretation of relevant provisions from the Weimar Constitution(the so-called Weimar church articles).The Weimar church articles were the result of a compromise reached during the constitution-making process in 1919;in 1949,they were incorporated into the Basic Law due to a second compromise.Under the new constitutional order,the meaning of the Weimar church articles has also evolved.Three developments,i.e.,the turn from state-church relation to religious freedom,from religious homogeneity to secular plurality,and from State to Constitution,contributed to the paradigm shift.Through this paradigm change,the state-church relation provisions became interlinked with the religious freedom provision,the institutional provisions turned towards fundamental rights,and the old Weimar articles gained new vitality,which,in response to social change,leads to a sounder and more up-to-date model for the governance of religion.