It is not an easy time for democracies.[1] Hungary’s illiberal democracy moved closer to a de facto dictatorship with the recent reelection of President Victor Orbán.[2] With less than 50 percent of the vote, Orbán won two-thirds of the parliamentary seats and no longer needs coalition partners to govern.

The attacks on Hungary’s democratic institutions have been accompanied by violations of the rights of minorities and the revival of anti-Semitism. State oppression or persecution of ethnic minorities is not good news for religious freedom, for ethnicity and religion are often closely related. Pressures created by unlawful immigrants or terrorism can not only result in the resurgence of cultural nationalism but also the mobilizing of majority religion to counter the perceived threats, as I have shown in It’s Sunday in America.

In my previous post, I discussed the dangers of the recently legislated limitations of Sunday shopping in Poland for religious freedom. A special status for Sunday in Poland imposes upon the rights and freedoms of non-believers and some religious minorities and exposes them to hefty fines and even imprisonment for non-compliance. This is clearly the revival of religious heritage, despite efforts to promote the limitations on Sunday shopping as essential social legislation.

The common element in the disregard for the rights of minorities in Poland and Hungary is the trend away from the democratic institutions of these countries. As democracy declines, the rights of minorities will come under increasing pressure. When constitutionalism is eroded, historical hatreds can make a rapid comeback. The relegitimation of old ethnic and religious hatreds in Hungary will create the environment in which the religious heritage of Hungary will become more significant to the nation.

Now that President Victor Orbán has consolidated his power, it will be interesting to see where he takes the country in relation to its majority religious heritage, especially concerning Sunday. Like Poland, Hungary has a long historical attachment to Sunday sacredness.

[1] Diamond, Larry. “The Liberal Democratic Order in Crisis.” The American Interest, February 16, 2018. Accessed March 5, 2018. http://www.the-american-interest.com/2018/02/16/liberal-democratic-order-crisis/

[2] Sullivan, Andrew. “A Democracy Disappears.” New York Magazine, April 13, 2018. Accessed April 26, 2018. nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2018/…/andrew-sullivan-a-democracy-disappears.htm