Law and Religion in a Secular World: A European Perspective

Abstract

This article examines two interpretations of the process of secularisation that can be traced back through European legal and political thought, and a more recent trend that challenges both of them. It does this through the prism of the public sphere, because in today's Europe one of the most debated issues is the place and role of religion in this sphere, understood as the space where decisions concerning questions of general interest are discussed. The article concludes, first, that the paradigm through which relations between the secular and the religious have been interpreted is shifting and, second, that this change is going to have an impact on the notion of religious freedom and, consequently, on the recognised position of religions in the public sphere. 1

The Secular Realm as Interfaith Space: Discourse and Practice in Contemporary Multicultural Nation-States

“…Thirdly, it has been noted that the modern discourse of both secularism and also human rights, which gives substance to the freedom of religion concept, favours certain forms of religion. The forum internum is favoured over the forum externum (Ferrari 2012). In other words, if religion is a matter of private belief and morals, then, to the state and legal functions of the same, what an individual believes about it and considers correct is entirely a matter outside of its purview (Asad 2003, pp.…”

Além Da Dimensão Institucional, Ou Melhor, O Papel Do Indivíduo Na Diatribe Entre a Laicidade E a Liberdade Religiosa

“…Oportunamente, reporta-se a Jepperson (2002) para avaliar se uma sociedade é mais corporativa (para defesa dos direitos de grupos específicos) ou associativa (voltada a defender os direitos de todos) e também se é gerida de modo mais ou menos institucionalizado ou mais ou menos invasivo dos direitos individuais. A esse respeito, Diotallevi remete-se justamente a Silvio Ferrari (2012), mas negligencia outra contribuição fundamental como a de Francesco Margiotta Broglio (2011).…”

Multi-Faith Spaces Uncover Secular Premises Behind the Multi-Faith Paradigm

“…A different perspective was offered by Ferrari (2012), who argued that secularisation was not only a descriptive, but also a normative concept. It served as a purposeful policy of making the public sphere truly neutral and impartial, which could only be achieved by making it secular, that is, by making all public decisions on the basis of rational rather than religious principles (p. 356).…”