Jacques Delors, the Single Market and the Failed Attempt to Give a Soul to Europe

Abstract

This working paper is concerned with the informal institutionalization of contacts between European institutions and religious organizations launched by Jacques Delors and its aftermath: the formal institutionalization of these contacts started by Jose Manuel Barroso. It was with Jacques Delors that the relationship between religion and the European project gained in importance. As president of the European Commission he recognised the social role of European religions by inviting them to the project “A Soul for Europe,” which aimed to find a more robust source of legitimacy for the European project. Subsequently, I describe the incorporation of Art. 17 in to the Lisbon Treaty obliging dialogue with churches, religious and philosophical organizations, which is in my opinion a direct aftermath of the “Soul for Europe.” It is my argument in this paper that the “religious” project of Jacques Delors in many respects failed, as he did not find a meaningful role for religion in European integration in the way he was hoping for, nor did he find the robust source of legitimacy for the European project.