This book provides a concise historical outline of religion in Poland up until its entry into the European Union in 2004, together with a longer presentation of contemporary religious issues. Albeit largely mono-ethnic and overwhelmingly Catholic after the loss of its large Jewish population to the Holocaust, and subsequent post–World War II border shifts, traces of an historic diversity remain in Poland to date, playing a greater role than mere numbers would suggest. Poland’s fairly robust religious life is affected by the country’s continuing modernization and its various institutions, and this is discussed within a broad context. One of the unfortunate legacies of decades of communism is a stunted civil society; while at different levels there are conflicts involving religion, at the grassroots it is one of the few forces building much needed trust in present-day Polish society.

Christopher Garbowski is an associate professor in the department of English at Maria Curie-Skłodowska University, Poland. He is the author of co-editor of several books and has contributed articles and reviews to a number of academic journals.

Christopher Garbowski
Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 308
Bibliographic Info: notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2014
pISBN: 978-0-7864-7589-6
eISBN: 978-1-4766-1245-4
Imprint: McFarland

Table of Contents


Preface and Acknowledgments 1

Introduction 5

Part I: “From the Union of Lublin to the European Union”: A Historical Overview
1. From the Beginnings of Christianity to the Twentieth Century 12

2. Inferno, Purgatory and Beyond: Religion from World War II to the European Union 49

Part II: The Varieties of Polish Religious Experience
3. From Popular Religion to Religion’s Role in Civil Society 88

4. Diversity and Dialogue 140

5. Poland and the European Union: Toward Secularization or Postsecularization? 183

Epilogue: John Paul II’s Polish and European 241

Chapter Notes 253

Bibliography 277

Index 293

“fills a void in scholarship on religious life in Poland…valuable”—Catholic Library World.