The relationship between law and religion has traditionally been analysed according to two basic paradigms. One has focused on the relationship between religious communities and the State (the Church/State paradigm), while the other has concentrated on the relationship between the State and the individual (the liberal-individualist or civil liberties paradigm). This book enriches the analysis of law and religion in society by emphasising a third and complementary analytical dimension involving the relationship between religious communities and religious individuals. In particular, the contributors explore the various facets of the multiple tensions that exist in the legal relationships between religious organisations, State and adherents in the period leading up to the third Christian millennium. Against the background of the complex and sometimes contradictory responses of religious organisations and the State to the Human Rights Act, this interdisciplinary collection draws on contributions from leading scholars active in the field of religious rights and the interaction of law and religion based in the UK, USA, Canada, New Zealand and elsewhere, and makes a timely and significant contribution to international debates in a variety of academic disciplines. Contributors explore international concerns over religious liberty, focusing particularly on the boundaries of ethnicity and religious community, the status of the 'established' Churches in the UK, and the proper place for religious organisations under generally applicable legal regimes of non-discrimination. Themes discussed are closely related to wider interests within legal and socio-legal studies involving gender, discrimination, equality, community and the nature and limits of individualism and individual legal rights.
'The content of the book is excellent with all the authors delivering interesting and informative discourses in their specific areas...a very valuable addition to the lamentably small amount of work in this increasingly important area of study.' Journal of Contemporary Religion '... this is a very useful book that contains some timely contributions to the emerging debates about religion, law, and human rights...this volume is welcomed as a very relevant contribution to the field.' Culture and Religion 'This is a scholarly and valuable contribution to the literature on religion in contemporary society... it will provide much useful material for specialists in the field of religion in society, especially those concerned to explore issues of law, justice and equality.' World Faiths Encounter '... of interest to scholars of comparative law and judicial politics, including those searching for case studies of the interaction of law and pluralism or the role of the international human rights movement in the legal politics within individual nation-states.' The Law and Politics Book Review
