Christian democracy is a political ideology that seeks to apply Christian principles to public policy. It emerged in nineteenth-century Europe under the influence of conservatism and Catholic social teaching. It continues to be influential in Europe and Latin America, though in a number of countries its Christian ethos has been diluted by secularisation.
In practice, Christian democracy is often considered conservative on cultural, social and moral issues (social conservatism) and advocates a social market economy in the economic field (crossing over with social democratic economics but based on the family). In Europe, where their opponents have traditionally been secularist socialists, Christian democratic parties are moderately conservative overall, whereas in the very different cultural and political environment of South America they tend to lean to the left.
Examples of Christian democratic parties include the German Christian Democratic Union (CDU), the Christian Democratic Party of Chile, the Christian Democratic People's Party of Switzerland, the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) in the Netherlands, and the historical Christian Democracy in Italy.
Read more about Christian Democracy: Political Viewpoints, History, Christian Democracy Around The World, Notable Christian Democrats
Famous quotes containing the words christian and/or democracy:
“O, I have passed a miserable night,
So full of fearful dreams, of ugly sights,
That, as I am a Christian faithful man,
I would not spend another such a night
Though ‘twere to buy a world of happy days,
So full of dismal terror was the time.”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)
“When an opinion has taken root in a democracy and established itself in the minds of the majority, it afterward persists by itself, needing no effort to maintain it since no one attacks it. Those who at first rejected it as false come in the end to adopt it as accepted, and even those who still at the bottom of their hearts oppose it keep their views to themselves, taking great care to avoid a dangerous and futile contest.”
—Alexis de Tocqueville (1805–1859)