ABSTRACT

What is the place assigned to religion in the constitutions of contemporary States? What role is religion expected to perform in the fields that are the object of constitutional regulation? Is separation of religion and politics a necessary precondition for democracy and the rule of law? These questions are addressed in this book through an analysis of the constitutional texts that are in force in different parts of the world. Constitutions are at the centre of almost all contemporary legal systems and provide the principles and values that inspire the action of the national law-makers. After a discussion of some topics that are central to the constitutional regulation of religion, the book considers a number of national systems covering countries with a variety of religious and cultural backgrounds. The final section of the book is devoted to the discussion of the constitutional regulation of some particularly controversial issues, such as religious education, the relation between freedom of speech and freedom of religion, abortion, and freedom of conscience.

part II|191 pages

National Experiences and Cases

chapter 11|18 pages

Religious Institutions and Fundamental Rights

Applicability, Interaction and Limitations in South Africa

chapter 15|18 pages

The Constitutionalization of Freedom of Religion in the European Union

What Changes Are the Charter of Fundamental Rights Expected to Bring About?

part III|97 pages

Open Issues

chapter 18|14 pages

Freedom of Religion and Freedom of Speech in the French Case Law

A Constitutional Dilemma

chapter 19|38 pages

Freedom of Religion, Freedom of Conscience and Education

A Nordic Example

chapter 20|16 pages

Religion and Education in the Council of Europe

Toward a “Soft” Constitutionalization of a Model of Religious Teaching? 1

chapter 21|18 pages

Competing Fundamental Values

Comparing Law's Role in American and Western-European Conflicts over Abortion

chapter 22|10 pages

Secular Human Rights, and Religious Pluralism

The British Debate