Although we have developed modes of governance of religious diversity to accommodate the weak level of religious pluralism which characterized Western societies until recently, it is not clear that these modes of governance can meet the challenges raised by the new and deeper form of religious diversity characterized by a growing gap between the self-understandings of religious and secular citizens as well as by an increasing number of religious groups due to contemporary patterns of immigration. Freedom of conscience and equality between the adherents of different churches have historically been secured by a separation between state and religion. However, contemporary political theorists disagree about the shape that this separation should take. Some defend a model of institutional pluralism which requires the state to equally support and recognize different religious groups by providing them with the means to set up their own pervasively religious social institutions. Others put forth a restrictive secularist model according to which religion should be privatized. There should be a strict separation between the public and the religious spheres to ensure that no religion is privileged or disadvantaged by the state. However, I argue that both approaches fail to meet the challenges raised by the arrival of new religious minorities within Western societies. Accommodation of religious diversity through separate institutions is not required by equality and freedom of conscience. Moreover, since it favours institutional segmentation along religious lines, it fails to provide favourable conditions for the integration of new immigrant groups. Strict secularism requires that religious expressions be severely restricted in the public sphere and thus heavily limit freedom of conscience. Moreover, since the public sphere is never fully neutral, strict secularism fails to equally protect the freedom of new religious groups. How can we then achieve the two apparently irreconcilable goals of integrating new minorities and of protecting their freedom and equal status? The thesis that I defend is that these goals can be reconciled by an approach of open secularism based on the reasonable accommodation of religious diversity within shared public institutions. / Thesis (Ph.D, Philosophy) -- Queen's University, 2012-09-26 10:50:03.663

A comparative study of the development of places of worship in Sydney was conducted primarily through the collection of data from development applications to construct or to use premises as a place of worship over a five year period from 2000-2005. The data indicated that a greater and disproportionately higher number of applications by religious minorities were rejected. The significance of the findings does not lie exclusively in identifying the likelihood of development applications gaining approval. The process of determining development applications and the impacts of the outcome of the process were also important. This is why the content of the objections raised to development applications was analysed. The underlying themes in the opposition to development applications related strongly to citizenship, particularly how the boundaries of local forms of citizenship are negotiated. In establishing places of worship religious groups seek to have their citizenship claims recognised. These citizenship claims include: the right to access, mark and use space (Dunn 2005), equality of citizenship with local residents and with other religious groups, and importantly, the right to freedom of worship. One of the main assertions made in this thesis is that by restricting access to sites that people can worship and by restricting the practice of religion, the right to freedom of worship is compromised. Churches dominate the religious landscape of Sydney. This dominance can be partially attributed to the significant levels of historical assistance from the state with the building of Churches. This included access to land, free labour, support for clergy and income support which assisted in the development of early Churches. The appropriateness of giving this type of assistance is not debated in this thesis. However, the assistance itself is significant for two main reasons. Firstly it is emblematic of the privileged relationship between the Church and the state in Australia, and secondly, it raises questions over the lack of privileges afforded to religious minorities. In responding to the question of whether secularism is likely to assist religious minorities, the establishment of places of worship demonstrates how pluralising the Church state link may be of greater utility to religious minorities than strict forms of secularism. The examination of this issue introduces the importance of an equal relationship between the state and religious groups to equality of citizenship for religious minorities. The extent to which multicultural citizenship can assist religious minorities in realising their right to freedom of worship was critically examined in this thesis. The adequacy of the institutional responses to religious diversity was assessed. This included an examination of local government, courts, the media, heritage programs and the planning profession. The planning process demonstrates how a supposedly neutral or colour-blind approach can generate uneven outcomes, which discriminate against religious minorities. The broader policy and legislative responses to religious diversity were examined in order to identify how deficiencies in the multicultural framework contributed to difficulties for religious minorities establishing places of worship.

This thesis investigates the problem of analysing religion in the study of international relations (IR), answering the need to build an IR framework that accommodates coexisting evidence for secularisation (the decreasing influence of religion) and sacralisation (the increasing influence of religion) in world politics. Part One lays a conceptual foundation, presenting three arguments. Firstly, three discourses of religion are inscribed across the general discourse of IR: the secular, sacral and integrated discourses. Second, together the discourses comprise the religious structure of IR. This construction encourages a situative approach (asking ???where is religion????) rather than a normative one (which asks ???what is religion????). Third, the religious structure and the situative question combine to form the dynamics of religion model, a heuristic framework that meets the present need in IR to accommodate and differentiate secular, integrated and sacral elements of religion. Part Two operationalises the model via a study of religion in international development, occurring at three levels. At the level of discourse, ???orthodox??? and ???critical??? schools of development are situated within a religious structure, revealing the pervasive nature of religion throughout development theory. At the institutional level, the model is applied to analyse how religion entered the operational sphere of the World Bank Group (WBG). This application differentiates secular, integrated and sacral interests at work within and upon the WBG in the 1980s and 1990s, highlighting in new ways the ubiquity of religion in the development sphere. At the policy level, the model is applied to critically compare three ???faith and development??? partnerships initiated by the WBG in the period 1998-2005. The model is then applied to a partnership between the WBG and the World Faiths Development Dialogue (WFDD), an initiative that began as an integrated vision of religion and development but gradually disintegrated. These studies highlight the significant challenges that exist to incorporating religious dynamics into development orthodoxy. Finally, the model is used to situate religious actors into critical approaches toward the WBG, highlighting the dynamics of inclusion and exclusion of religious actors in the global development agenda. Overall, a new integrative model of religion is thus employed as an organising force in the study of IR and development.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--York University, 2007. Graduate Programme in Sociology. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 315-358). Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://gateway.proquest.com/openurl?url_ver=Z39.88-2004&res_dat=xri:pqdiss&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:dissertation&rft_dat=xri:pqdiss:NR29347

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Baylor University, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 322-335).

Thesis (M.A.)--Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, 1991. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 117-126).

Thesis (M.A.)--York University, 2007. Graduate Programme in Social Anthropology. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 185-196). Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://gateway.proquest.com/openurl?url_ver=Z39.88-2004 & res_dat=xri:pqdiss & rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:dissertation & rft_dat=xri:pqdiss:MR31984.

Proefschrift--Rijksuniversiteit te Utrecht. / Vita. Bibliography: p. 195-198.

Thesis (D.D.)(Science of Religion and Missiology))--University of Pretoria, 2001. / Summary in English. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--UCLA, 2009. / Vita. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 522-552).