‘Today a Christian Nation, Tomorrow a Muslim Nation’: a Defence of Rotating State Religions

Ethical Theory and Moral Practice 24 (1):301-316 (2020)
  Copy   BIBTEX

Abstract

In more than 20% of countries, a single religion is recognized in the constitution. This article argues that there are good reasons for opposing such ‘mono-recognition’ as it fails to show due concern to members of constitutionally unrecognized religions. Yet rather than opting for disestablishment as Sweden did in 2000, I show that there may be a better alternative in many cases: To constitutionally recognize a variety of religions. After distinguishing synchronic forms of plural recognition whereby multiple religions are constitutionally recognized simultaneously from diachronic forms whereby state religions are rotated, I defend the latter option. On this approach, a multi-religious state might have Catholicism as the state religion during the first part of the year, then Islam, then Judaism, and so on, whereby I argue that there ought to be differences in the amount of time that religions are recognized depending on differences in the strength of their claims to constitutional recognition. Besides being fairer than mono-recognition and synchronic plural recognition, I show that when some religious groups are marginalized, diachronic plural recognition has significant advantages over non-recognition of any religion as constitutionally recognizing these groups’ religions sends valuable signals that their members belong to society.

Links

PhilArchive



    Upload a copy of this work     Papers currently archived: 90,593

External links

Setup an account with your affiliations in order to access resources via your University's proxy server

Through your library

Similar books and articles

Statul national si politicile multiculturale/ The Nation-State and Multicultural Policies.Sandu Frunza - 2003 - Journal for the Study of Religions and Ideologies 2 (5):48-72.
Barry and Kukathas as Inspiring Sources for a Fair Church-State System in Belgium.Leni Franken & Patrick Loobuyck - 2011 - Journal for the Study of Religions and Ideologies 10 (28):3-20.
The World Religions paradigm Time for a change.Suzanne Owen - 2011 - Arts and Humanities in Higher Education 10 (3):253-268.
Religion after Naturalism.Eric Steinhart - 2017 - In Paul Draper & J. L. Schellenberg (eds.), Renewing Philosophy of Religion: Exploratory Essays. Oxford, United Kingdom: Oxford University Press. pp. 63-78.
Dyscivilization, Mass Extermination and the State.Sallie Westwood - 2001 - Theory, Culture and Society 18 (2-3):247-264.

Analytics

Added to PP
2020-12-07

Downloads
8 (#1,138,312)

6 months
1 (#1,040,386)

Historical graph of downloads
How can I increase my downloads?

Author's Profile

Bouke de Vries
Ghent University

Citations of this work

No citations found.

Add more citations