Calvinism in the Netherlands: more than a religion

Since the Second World War, Protestants are no longer in the majority in the Netherlands, where Catholicism is now the most widely practiced religion. Thus, while a quarter of the Dutch people claim to be followers of the various Reformed churches, Roman Catholicism still accounts for a third of the population. But, as the saying goes, "The Dutch, whether Catholic, Jewish, freethinker, communist or agnostic, are all Calvinists."

Calvinism takes its name from Calvin, the French theologian, reformer and pastor who was emblematic of the Protestant reformation of the 16th century. This trend spread first in Flanders and Hainaut. Calvinism was established in the republic of the United Provinces. The Reformed Church was founded in Friesland in 1571 and became the Church of the Republic a few years later. The Golden Age marked the spread of Reformed Protestantism while the following century coincided with the arrival of Huguenots from France following the abolition of the Edict of Nantes.

More than a religion, Calvinism designates the way of thinking and acting that characterizes the Dutch. In the Netherlands, sobriety and efficiency are the order of the day and for a long time, children were raised with the words "Act normally, that's crazy enough". The Dutch, nurtured by these values, are known for not spending without thinking, but rather investing. This sometimes exaggerated reputation for frugality has its roots in Calvinism.

To date, the Protestant Church has 2.6 million members (just under 15% of the population). The Catholic Church has 3.6 million members (about 20% of the population) and is traditionally located in the south of the country. The area of strict and conservative Protestantism that stretches from Zeeland in the west to the province of Overijssel is called Biblebelt. This area is characterized by a low vaccination rate and a high fertility rate of almost three children per household.

Festivals and popular traditions

The main religious holidays are Easter, Pentecost, Ascension and Christmas. Depending on the environment in which one lives, these holidays are celebrated with greater or lesser fervor. Carnival, in February, is a tradition in the southern regions of the Netherlands. These celebrations are held for three days in Limburg and Brabant. It is a costume party and often very well drank.

Easter and Christmas are synonymous with elaborate meals with family and sometimes friends. Note that Christmas is always celebrated during two days, December 25 and 26, the 26th is called "second Christmas Day". These two major religious holidays are also marked by various concerts in the country's major venues. The Concertgebouw in Amsterdam is famous for its performances of Handel's Messiah and Bach's St. Matthew Passion . The holidays of other major religions, including Ramadan, are reported in the press and communicated at work with great respect for religious freedom

Islam in the Netherlands

If historically, Muslims have been present in the Netherlands for a long time, it is especially since the 1960s that workers from Morocco and Turkey arrived and established mosques (about 300 to date for about 1 million Muslims) and started to celebrate Muslim holidays. The first Quran in Dutch with commentary was only published in 2005. The number of Dutch converts is about 15,000. Moroccans are the largest group of Muslims in the Netherlands, followed by Turks and Surinamese, Afghans and Iraqis.

9/11 as a crystallization of tensions. The attacks of September 11 have made many criticisms of radical Islam audible, also in the Netherlands. Many reports were made. Pim Fortuyn, who had embodied criticism of Islam in a flamboyant way, was murdered in May 2002 by a left-wing activist who feared the threat he posed to Dutch society. His criticism of Islam was taken up by the film-maker Theo Van Gogh, who was particularly virulent in his criticisms, and was also murdered in the street in Amsterdam.

Geert Wilders or the incarnation of the Dutch anti-Islam. This politician is the head of his own PVV party, whose basis is the criticism of Islam, which he associates with a fascist ideology. He wants to ban the Koran, which he associates with Mein Kampf. He wants to put in place a tax on Islamic headscarves to ban them from public spaces. His electoral results are mixed. In recent years, calm seems to have returned and Wilders' positions are becoming weary and the media circus around him is losing power.

The veil is not banned in the public space and it is present, also in administrations and supermarkets, without causing a problem. In recent years, the integration of Muslim minorities is progressing and girls are becoming more and more successful professionally. Ramadan is often an occasion for extensive exchanges between the different communities in the Netherlands and Iftar is often shared with non-Muslims. In recent months, while the internal climate in the Netherlands has become more tense (especially in connection with the farmers), the integration of minorities, especially Muslims, seems to be less of a challenge to living together

Judaism in the Netherlands

In the 17th century, the Jewish community settled in the Netherlands. This community was mainly composed of the descendants of Spanish and Portuguese refugees. It was also at this time that many Huguenots fled France to settle in the Netherlands. They settled there for the freedom of worship. The community gathered around the Portuguese Jews, the most numerous.

The Jewish community contributed greatly to the development of the country, especially during the Golden Age. At that time, 6,000 Dutch Jews lived in Amsterdam out of a total of 8,000 in the country. Most of them were Sephardic. Several personalities of the Jewish faith participated fully in the country's overall development. For example, Isaac Pinto, an eminent businessman

During this period the Esnoga, the incredible Portuguese synagogue, was built. In the 18th century, the Dutch Jewish community was the most affluent and played a central role in the global organization of the Diaspora, especially in the printing industry

The Netherlands and Amsterdam in particular enjoyed an illustrious reputation in the community as a welcoming place to live

In the 18th century, the Jews of the Netherlands were granted full rights and were now obliged to integrate into the Dutch community. Gradually, this community lost its influence in the diaspora. At the end of the 19th century, a wave of immigration from Russia and Lithuania arrived in the Netherlands.

The Holocaust in the Netherlands saw the disappearance of 75% of the country's Jewish community. As early as 1942, Jews were deported via the Dutch camp of Westerbork to Sobibor and Auschwitz where they were exterminated.

The Shoah is still, to this day, a huge trauma for the country. Indeed, the very low rate of survivors suggests an intense and complacent cooperation of the Dutch authorities with the Nazis. The inhabitants of Amsterdam in particular were few in number to help the Jews. Some also point to the orderly and highly efficient population registers as an explanation for the easy location and identification of Jewish communities. The Netherlands, however, was very slow to acknowledge its role in this crime against humanity. We will quote the poignant speech of King Willem Alexander who, in during the May 2020 commemorations, said, "Hundreds of people have, without any form of protest, watched the crowded streetcars, pass before them, under tight surveillance, through this city, through this country... Sobibor began in the Vondelpark with a sign 'No Jews Allowed'."

That speech still resonates to this day, and the Holocaust name monument finally pays tribute to the 102,000 victims in the heart of Amsterdam's Jewish Quarter, more than seventy years after the fact