Abstrakt
The Constitution of the Czech Republic guarantees freedom of religion in Articles 15 and 16 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights. Art. 15 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights protects the forum internum without restriction, only the expression of ideas or religion (forum externum) may be restricted by law, but within the framework of Art. 16 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights.
The Charter of Fundamental Rights also postulates the secularity and religious neutrality of the state. According to Art. 2 par. 1, the state is founded on democratic values and must not commit itself to an exclusive ideology or religion.
This constitutional framework limits the legislation and the courts, especially the Constitutional Court. This article begins with freedom of conscience, then it moves to freedom of religion stricto sensu, and finally it returns to the issue of the legal status of churches and religious communities, especially the consequences of the restitution of the Church's property and the financial separation of the churches from the state.