The thesis deals with the concept of a secular state from a perspective of comparative constitutional law and theory of state. The concept is in various forms part of almost all constitutional systems in Europe. With focus on European area the whole idea of secular state is exclusively designed and evaluated within the structure of the normative requirements of the liberal democratic state. The aim of the thesis is to reveal the guiding principle determining the content of secular state and to rethink its application on all imaginable interactions between state and religion. The result is presented as a state theory model called as "classical model of secular state", which is subsequently used as a tool for evaluation of relevant phenomena on level of selected constitutional systems. The first chapter discovers the principle of state neutrality with respect to religion as an essential principle guiding the content of secular state. Applying this principle to the deeply complex relationship between state and religion in the real world leads to a definition of all theoretical implications of the principle, which in sum create the "classical model of secular state". Their modifications preserving the dominant application of the principle of neutrality lead to an analytic differentiation of religious...

In Argentina, Pentecostalism had a breakthrough in the early 1980s, and today more than 10 per cent of the population are Pentecostals. The revival coincided with a socio-political transformation of Argentinean society. After half a century of dictatorships and Peronism, democracy was restored, and structural changes paved the way for a certain “autonomisation” of politics, law, economy, science and religion. The "new" form of society that developed resembles what in this study is called a Western model, which to a large degree is currently being diffused on a global scale. This work examines the new religious sphere and how Pentecostals relate to society at large, and the political and judicial sphere in particular. Social systems theory and an idea of communication as constitutive of social spheres, such as religious, political and judicial ones, form the theoretical foundation for the study. Methods that have been used are fieldwork, interviews and analyses of written material. It is concluded that evangelisation and transformation are of major concern to Pentecostals in contemporary Argentina and that this follows a global trend. Evangelisation has always been important to, even a hallmark of, Pentecostalism. What has become as important is the urge for transformation, of the individual, the family and society. This leads to increased socio-political engagement. However, Pentecostals do not have a “fixed” idea of how society should be organised, i.e., they do not yet have a full-fledged political theology, a public theology or what could be called a Pentecostal ideology. This is mainly because they experience a lack of “compatibility” between the Pentecostal and the political communication. Their approaches to socio-political concerns seem to be based on an understanding of certain “values” as the fundamental building block of society.

Conducting research on the influence of religion on politics is nowadays a growing tendency as various authors seek to explore why and how the spiritual element affects the natural world of politics. The purpose of this study is to discuss the influence of the Christian religion on education in Europe. The exact research case is the Orthodox sphere and in particular the Greek state. The selection is not random. It has been observed that in the Orthodox part of Europe, the church - state relations are quite close to an extent that, especially in Greece, it makes many authors wonder whether such a relationship may be against the model of the liberal, European state. As an example of the church - state relationship, the study also extends to the human rights field where cases of religious freedom competence in the Greek, public school are reviewed. By applying a mix of case study and content analysis under the prism of liberalism, the thesis argues for a potential transition to a post-secular epoch in Europe

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Název disertační práce, abstrakt a 3 klíčová slova v anglickém jazyce Title: Religious Freedom in Democratic Rule of Law State Abstract: The dissertation deals with the topic of religious freedom in a democratic rule of law state, namely from the perspective of constitutional theory and human rights theory as well as it reflects selected current problems of religious freedom protection in the context of Western societies. It thus contributes to the domestic legal discourse which traditionally focuses on religious freedom issues rather marginally. In the area of constitutional theory, it attempts to answer the question of general link between the modern state and religion, and the concept of a democratic rule of law state and religion. It seeks answers through a system theory conceiving both the state and religion as social systems whose fundamental differentiation is between sacred and profane. Their extreme conflict is conceived as a dispute over sovereignty, which is, in the reality of a democratic rule of law state, settled primarily through the institute of religious freedom. Based on this the thesis maps the development of modern constitutionalism and its relation to religion and formulates the basic position of religion in the system of a democratic rule of law. The second part of the thesis focuses...

The Russian-Ukrainian tensions have recently sparked greater debates on an international scale, particularly since the Russian attack on Ukrainian independence in 2014. For the purpose of being able to contribute to these, my thesis explores the underlying problems causing this most recent conflict in the modern history. The research will demonstrate that the freedom of religion and the freedom of the media are being held hostage for the political purposes, while causing a deeper social trauma in a form of polarization and identity crisis. The international actors, particularly the EU and NATO are examined along with their efforts, as the blame for the responsibility of the conflict is often put on them. The questions of sovereignty, territorial integrity and unity of the nation are challenged in the chapter overseeing the legislative framework of the parties to the conflict. The methodology used for this research is the analysis of texts and reports with the aim to challenge the Western and Eastern prerogatives, respectively. The findings of the research show a clear and deep relation between the issues of identity, religion and language, while proving their undoubtable influence over the conflict and the struggle between Ukraine’s path forward, specifically choosing between the Western path towards modern democracy or Eastern return to traditional values. The results show that the connection between the national identity and the conflict is important and can bring us to further understand not just the roots of the conflict, but also the possible way out of it.

The dispute over the place, accommodation and tolerance of religion and religious expression in South African public schools, as well as globally, has been vehement. This is, to some extent, because public schools reflect the multicultural and religious societies in which they are found. In addition to their diverse backgrounds, public schools in South Africa and elsewhere are dominated by Christianity, with most people claiming allegiance to it and, sometimes, discriminating against the other minority religions. This has led to governments developing a plethora of legislation, policies and regulations to redress the dominance, unequal treatment and discrimination of the dominant religion. This study was undertaken to answer the question: “How do public schools promote the learners’ right to freedom of religious expression?” This interpretive multisite case study explored the experiences of the SGB chairpersons, principals, Life Orientation educators and learners at three public secondary schools in the Bohlabela District of the Mpumalanga province of South Africa. The research used interviews, document analysis and observations to elicit the participants’ views and understandings of how their various schools’ religious observance policies promoted the learners’ right to freedom of religious expression. The findings revealed that most schools have not changed the way they conduct religious observances since the promulgation of the National Policy on Religion and Education of 2003. Moreover, learners still experience religious intolerance and religious discrimination because schools promote single-faith religious observances. / Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria 2021. / pt2021 / Education Management and Policy Studies / MEd / Unrestricted

The free exercise of religion as a basic human right is considered essential by those who are concerned about protecting and maintaining each person?s capability to live a good life. Unfortunately, in protecting this right the fundamental rights of women are often violated or overlooked. In order to grant religious freedom, liberal states often permit discriminatory and oppressive practices. Martha Nussbaum maintains that a balance must be struck between the protection of individual rights and the protection of religious freedom. She suggests the liberal state should not take a stand on disputed non-political issues concerning the good. The state should adopt political liberalism, thereby refraining from espousing religious or other ?comprehensive? views such as the view that men and women are innate moral equals. By doing so, Nussbaum says the political liberal state shows full respect for its citizens, and protects their ability to lead a good life. This thesis presents the argument that the liberal state need not, and should not, go as far as political liberalism in order to protect and show full respect for its citizens. Although the state should not pressure or force religious groups to change their doctrines to fall in line with liberal principles, the state may assert the truth of some non-political liberal values that are essential to maintaining the liberal political system. Political liberalism ties the hands of the liberal state, leaving it handicapped in its ability to protect individual rights, especially the rights of women and minorities. / Master of Arts

There is long held belief by many jurists and academics in the United States that religious liberty cannot be fully protected without a vigorous application of the Establishment Clause. To non-Americans, especially from countries whose Constitution does not expressly contain a similar non-establishment clause, this idea that religious freedom cannot be fully protected without express non-establishment principles in either a written constitution or the jurisprudence interpreting it might seem to be at best foreign and at worst condescending. The purpose of this work is to determine how a country without an express equivalent of the Establishment Clause in its constitution protects those religious liberty interests that are most associated by Americans with non-establishment principles. Germany provides an example opportunity for such a comparison as its constitution arguably has no equivalent to the Establishment Clause, and the vast majority of its jurists and academics have rejected the idea of strict separation between church and state. The comparison here will be conducted in three stages. The first stage seeks to explain that while the history of institutional church/state relations in the United States and Germany is without a doubt different, the same cannot necessarily be said for the historical foundations of the individual religious liberty doctrines that have developed in both countries. The second stage will provide an overview of these doctrines and show that despite some similarities in the role religion has historically played in both societies, the doctrines of these two countries have indeed developed in a manner that stresses different aspects of religious liberty. In this stage, it will also be shown that many of the purposes served by the Establishment Clause are also interests that German courts take into consideration when applying German individual religious liberty doctrine. In the final stage, it will be shown that courts in both jurisdictions use non-establishment principles as a means of placing limits on actions taken by the government regarding religion, but these limits operate within two entirely different individual religious liberty schemes, and as such, the impact of these non-establishment principles varies. In this stage it will also be shown that while there is some transatlantic convergence taking place in specific areas of the individual religious liberty doctrines, these convergences will likely never be absolute because of the different religious doctrines into which courts in each country have incorporated non-establishment principles.

This goal of this project is to assist liberals and progressives who are reluctant to speak out publicly on religious questions so that they can advance their moral values and protect their religious liberties by encouraging and educating them to use legal protections under the First Amendment. Rights to religious freedom in the American legal system are reviewed on the federal, state, and local levels. The denominational history of and theological evolution within Unitarian Universalism, the target group being studied, are examined. This examination has a particular focus on shifting historically strict intradenominational attitudes on the separation between church and state and using legal protections to advance progressive moral values and social justice objectives. Through a nonprofit legal foundation, the author seeks to educate and to support religious groups seeking to pursue religious projects and ministries that may face legal challenges and government opposition. The project also reviews metrics for assessing attitude change in response to educational workshops presented to Unitarian Universalist audiences.