Current Issues In Law And Religion

This volume focuses on issues that have only recently come to the forefront of the discipline such as freedom from religion, ordination of homosexuals, apostasy, security and fundamentalism, issues that are linked to the common themes of secularism and globalization. Although these subjects are not new to the academic debate, they have become prominent in law and religion circles as a result of recent and rapid changes in society. The essays in this volume present multiple points of view, facilitate scholars in understanding this evolving discipline and act as a stimulus for further research.This collection gives the reader a sense of the key topics and current debates in law and religion and is of interest to law, politics, human rights, and religion scholars.

This volume focuses on issues such as freedom from religion, ordination of homosexuals, apostasy, security and fundamentalism, issues that are linked to the common themes of secularism and globalization. Although these subjects are not new to the academic debate, they have become prominent as a result of recent and rapid changes in society. The collected essays present multiple points of view and give the reader a sense of the key issues and current debates at the forefront of the discipline of law and religion.

'Law and Religion' is a comprehensive treatment of an area that will stimulate and enlighten anyone interested in law and religion. Both common and civil law jurisdictions and a wide variety of cultural contexts are represented.

The book is unique in bringing together leading scholars and respected religious leaders to address contemporary issues in the relationship of law, religion and the state. The book highlights the interaction between secular law and religion with particular attention being given to the implications for law and society, religious tolerance and freedom. The book focuses on the practical and topical issues that have arisen in recent years in Australia. As one of the most ethnically diverse countries in the world, a pioneer of multicutural policies in immigration and social justice, Australia is a revealing site for contemporary studies in a world afraid of immigration and terrorism., issues that are affecting much of the globe.

In recent years, law and religion scholarship in Canada has grown significantly. This distinctive collection of 18 papers addresses, from a variety of angles, the jurisdiction and the limits of law ¿ an important but often overlooked aspect of settling the boundaries of church and state, religion and law. The volume draws the insights of 19 authoritative contributors of diverse background and examines changes in the role and meaning of religion in society, the dimensions of law and religion and finally, the conflicts between freedom of religion and other freedoms as looked upon as fundamental rights of a liberal society.

Despite the 1948 UN Declaration that freedom of thought, conscience and belief is a universal human right, contemporary political elites have resurrected the old Marxist idea that religion is a crutch for the weak. Contemporary political correctness would outlaw religious free speech whenever it offends. This collection of five research essays by Honour students, staff and friends of the University of Notre Dame's Sydney School of Law: - interrogates the philosophical idea of harm that underlies such offence, - tests whether religious free speech is entitled to the same protection as other speech, - notes the consequences of proscribing the free exercise of religion in totalitarian regimes, - identifies some of the ways in which new gender rights conflict with established freedoms, and - wonders why Singapore, the United States and Australia have all failed to implement the freedom of religion intended of religion in the 1948 UDHR and the 1966 ICCPR. The insights here are not all comfortable, but they confirm that human rights ideas do have consequences.

Law and Religious Pluralism in Canada seeks to elucidate the complex and often uneasy relationship between law and religion in democracies committed both to equal citizenship and religious pluralism. Leading socio-legal scholars consider the role of religious values in public decision making, government support for religious practices, and the restriction and accommodation by government of minority religious practices. They examine such current issues as the legal recognition of sharia arbitration, the re-definition of civil marriage, and the accommodation of religious practice in the public sphere.

This book brings together leading international scholars of law and religion to provide an overview of current issues in State-religion relations. The first part of the collection offers a picture of recent developments in key countries and regions. The second part is focused on Europe and, in particular, on the Nordic States and the post-communist countries where State-religion systems have undergone most profound change. The third and final part is devoted to four issues that are currently debated all over the world: the relations between freedom of expression and freedom of religion; proselytism and the right to change religion; the religious symbols; and the legal status of Islam in Europe and Canada. The work will be a valuable resource for academics, students and policy-makers with an interest in the interaction between law and religion.