Die Aufhebung der konfessionellen Ausnahmeartikel, 1973. Vom "meterhohen Schutt konfessionellen Haders"

In 1973 the so-called Jesuit and Monastery Articles articles 51 and 52 of the federal constitution) were abolished in Switzerland by popular vote. The articles had been instituted in the 19th century by the Liberals and Radicals, the dominating political players, to keep conservative forces at bay. The Jesuits were prohibited from preaching and teaching and no new fraternities were allowed to be established in Switzerland. In the course of time, the so-called exceptional confessional articles appeared to be anachronistic remnants of a different era and discriminating towards the Catholic population. Although the integration of the Catholic minority had been accomplished in the Swiss federal state, the campaign and the result of the referendum showed that confessionally grounded animosities had outlasted as they came to the foreground during the campaign. The opponents of the revision led the political dispute with arguments reminiscent of the culture struggle. Furthermore, the voting behaviour of the Protestant population three-quarters voted against abolishing the articles) proved that numerous Protestants still regarded the Catholic part of the population with suspicion and distrust.