I amsterdam - Religion & Spirituality

‘City of Freedom’
In the Middle Ages, Amsterdam was a pious, Catholic city with a chapel on Heiligeweg. On 26 May 1578 the Roman Catholic magistrature, led by the mayor, deserted the city in two boats, and Amsterdam fell into Protestant hands. Following this revolution, known as the 'Alteration', 21 convents and most other Roman Catholic buildings were taken into public use or taken over by the Calvinists. From 1580 onwards, only the beliefs of the State Church could be practised in public. In spite of this, the city fathers tolerated in practice what was forbidden on paper. This tolerance avant-la-lettre drew people with other beliefs, including many Jews, to Amsterdam. The prediction of the Prince of Orange quickly became reality: 'Amsterdam shall come to prosper above all cities.' The city was mentioned in the 17th-century Europe 'Eleutheropolis' as the city of freedom. The social policy of today's city administrators follows on directly from this.

Hidden Churches
After the Reformation, Protestantism was the State's church; therefore non-Protestant churches were not allowed to have the appearance of churches on the outside and were also not allowed to bear the name of a Saint. This led to the creation of the conventicles, or ‘hidden’ churches, in residential homes or warehouses and carrying a secular name, for example:

• 'De Papegaai' (St. Joseph) dating from 1672, on Kalverstraat.
• 'De Rode Hoed', from 1630 on Keizersgracht, then a Remonstrant conventicle, now a cultural centre.
• 't Haantje', which bears the nickname 'The Church of Our Lord in the Attic', now the Amstelkring Museum.

Moses and Aaron Church
The Moses and Aaron Church on Waterlooplein, which was reopened in 1991, was dedicated in 1841 as a conventicle for two thousand 'tolerated' Catholic churchgoers. The church forms part of the Roman Catholic City Church and has been a meeting place for alternative Amsterdam since 1970, alongside music temples such as 'Paradiso' on Weteringschans and the 'Melkweg' (Milky Way) behind Leidseplein.

De Rode Hoed
The Amsterdam 'Studenten-ecclesia' held ecumenical services in De Rode Hoed in the 1960s and 70s. Its leading figures, including Father Jan van Kilsdonk and the poet-priest Huub Oosterhuis, had a strong influence on the struggle for independence of the Catholic Netherlands against the Vatican. They came into conflict with the Bishop of Haarlem, the episcopal authority under which Amsterdam falls, and went their own way. The Rode Hoed is now used as space for lectures and other events.

Synagogues
While the once vibrant Jewish population was practically wiped out of the city during the second world war, several Synagogues are still active as places of worship. One complex of synagogues now acts as the Jewish Historical Museum located on the Jonas Meijerplein. The complex complex consists of four synagogues. Over the years, the expansion of the Jewish community created a need for new buildings. The oldest building is the Great Synagogue, consecrated on 26 March 1671 (15 Nisan 5431), the first day of Pesach (Passover). Elias Bouman (1636-1686) was the contractor and architect; he was later to design the Portuguese Synagogue. The Obbene Shul was built in 1685-1686. It was originally built above a meat market (hence the name) which was later replaced by a mikveh. This synagogue could seat around 400. The Dritt Shul, the third synagogue, was constructed in around 1700 where a house had once stood. It now contains the museum administration and is not open to the public. Finally, the New Synagogue was consecrated in 1752. The design of the New Synagogue is attributed to city architect G.F. Maybaum (d. 1768). Originally, this was the site of a small synagogue (1730) and three houses. The New Synagogue could seat almost a thousand people.

Museum History
While the synagogue has not acted as a place of worship since 1945, museum itself was established nearly 70 years ago. First housed in in the medieval Weigh House on the Nieuwmarkt, where the café Waagschaal stands, from 1932 until 1987, the Jewish Historical museum was then moved to the restored complex of synagogues at the Jonas Daniël Meijerplein. In 1945 the individual buildings were found to have been ransacked and the furnishings of the synagogues removed. Only after thorough restoration did they become suitable accommodations for the Jewish Historical Museum. On 3 May, 1987 Her Majesty Queen Beatrix performed the opening ceremony.

Wherever possible the old components were restored to their late 18th-century state. The colours of that era were used as well. The four buildings were connected with modern materials, such as glass, steel and concrete, to show that the transition from a synagogue to a museum was not a gradual process. In fact, it followed a break in history.  In 1989 the museum received the Council of Europe Museum Prize for its modern adaptation of the historical architecture, which has given rise to a museum that is unique throughout the world. The museum's contents have also received great praise.

A memorial plaque across the street commemorates the day on 24 February 1941 when 200 Amsterdammers came together here to protest against the deportation of 400 Jewish citizens of the city. The February Strike broke out the next morning.

Historic Churches and Synagogues

• The medieval Oude Kerk which represents six centuries of urban history. The church contains the tomb of Jan Pieterzoon Sweelinck (1562-1621) whose fame as an organist and composer quickly established Amsterdam's reputation as a city of music.
• The Nieuwe Kerk dating from 1490 on Dam Square, which is run by a national foundation as a meeting and exhibition centre.
• The Westerkerk with its much-vaunted tower topped by an emperor's crown dating from 1631 and the (as yet unlocated) tomb of Rembrandt. It was here on 10 March 1966 that the marriage took place of HRH Princess Beatrix (the Queen since 1980) and HRH Prince Claus der Nederlanden von Amsberg.
• The Zuiderkerk (1603-11), the first church to be built in the city after the Reformation; since 1988 it has served as an information centre for urban development.
• The Noorderkerk dating from 1620-23.

The Carillons
The Municipality owns four carillons from the Golden Age; these instruments of bells hang in the towers of the Westerkerk, the Oude Kerk, the Zuiderkerk and in the Mint Tower (Munt-toren). The fifth is the property of the State and is located in the roof cupola of the Royal Palace on Dam Square. In addition, Amsterdam possesses 17 historic church organs, the oldest of which, with 5,005 pipes, is in the Nieuwe Kerk.

Spirituality
Amsterdam is a spiritually vibrant place although the Church has lost many members in recent decades: in a survey in 2000, 60% of the adult population of Amsterdam stated that they had no affiliation with any Church community or other religious or ideological movement. The largest religion in Amsterdam is still Christianity (17%, of which Roman Catholics form the majority, with 10%), though Islam (currently 14%) is rapidly growing in popularity and is predicted to be the largest religious group within a few years. There were 88,000 adult Islamic inhabitants in Amsterdam in 2000; 40% of them visit a mosque at least once a month, while 28% attend a religious service each week. Three ethnic groups - Moroccans, Turks and Surinamese - contain a much higher percentage of people who feel affiliated to a particular religion than the urban average.

The First Mosque
Many churches have been abandoned, converted or have acquired a secular function. In May 1977, almost four centuries after the conversion of Roman Catholic Amsterdam to the Reformation, the first mosque in the city was opened in an originally Catholic chapel on Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal. Amsterdam forms a pantheon of world religions, sects, salvationist movements and New Age gurus. A library situated on Bloemgracht, the Bibliotheca Philosophica Hermetica, contains the largest collection of hermetic and mystical works in Europe, the life's work of a manufacturer of disposable articles.

Temples 
Two new temples have joined Amsterdam's array of religious institutions. In 2000, the Netherlands' first purpose-built Hindu temple opened its doors, the result of a 17 year-long planning process. Marked by two impressive towers, the Radha Krishna Mandir Hindu temple is adorned with images of gods especially imported from India. The opening of this temple has given Hindustanis their own venue for religious gatherings and for the celebration of feast days. The temple will also serve as an information centre on Hinduism, and lessons on religion and courses in Hindi will be given there. The temple is owned by the Shri Sanatan Dharm Amsterdam Foundation.

2000 also brought with it the inauguration by Queen Beatrix of a new Chinese Buddhist temple in the city's China Town on the Warmoesstraat near the Nieuwmarkt. The Fo Kuang Shan Buddhist temple accommodates monks and nuns, a library and classrooms with Internet connections. Fo Kuang (or Guang) Shan temples are the centre of Chinese culture. With the building of this temple, the Dutch capital has become the site of the first genuine Buddhist temple in Western Europe.

From Minority to Diversity
The major developments in the Amsterdam community has brought with it inherent changes, requiring once again that cultures learn to get used to each other, new lifestyles, varying norms and values, different forms of dress, and other forms of behaviour. Since the 70’s, the City has promoted a specific policy for various groups: ethnic minorities, women, homosexuals, children, disabled, and the elderly.