Impact of COVID-19 on Religions in Spain: Sociological Reflections on Religious Freedom and Practices

On 14 March 2020, the Spanish government declared a ‘state of alarm’ through Royal Decree 463/2020 to manage the health crisis derived from COVID-19. This happened only three days after the World Health Organization rated the public health situation as a pandemic. From that point on, different actions taken by the Spanish authorities directly affected religious freedom and worship activities. This chapter analyses how the legal situation impacted religious communities during the evolution of the pandemic in Spain. Moreover, it offers sociological reflections on the role of religious communities in legal and health care decisions and the specificities of religion–state relations. The absence of close communication between religious communities and the government led to paradoxical situations that impacted religious freedom. However, religious institutions had an active role in following measures and collaborated with the health authorities. This chapter also explores the impact that COVID-19 had on religious observation and the new challenges posed in ways of ‘lived religion’. Among other things, the new situation raised awareness of issues such as the use of digital platforms and the participation of young people.