France,the Veil and Religious Freedom

Abstract

In 2004 France banned ostentatious religious symbols – most notably the Muslim veil – from state schools across the country. French lawmakers believed this ban would encourage integration and help the country understand itself in the light of increasing religious and ethnic diversification. As the riots in the autumn of 2005 so aptly demonstrated, however, tensions remained high. Not only does this call the purpose of the law into question from a social standpoint, but once again forces us to question it in the light of human rights law. In the first part of my article I examine the history of the debate around religious symbols in state schools and look at the deliberations of the Commission called to study laïcité in a ‘new France’, the same Commission that recommended a law be crafted. On the basis of ethnographic observations, I argue that the veil is but a symbol of a larger complex of issues that have to do with the dynamics of areas of low income and high crime that are bounded spaces. In the second part of my article I look at the law banning religious symbols within the framework of human rights. I show that the right to religious manifestation is a longstanding and consistently articulated norm that has in the last ten years been limited in its scope through a wide understanding of the limitations clause. Since France based its decision on the advice and judgments of the European Court I look at, and ultimately call into question, two decisions, Refah Partisi v Turkey and Sahin v Turkey. I argue that states are given too wide a margin of appreciation and that the judgments have been driven by a narrow and incorrect view of Islam.     

宽容:宗教自由及宗教对话的前提

"宽容"(tolerance)出现于16 世纪,即在宗教教派分裂的历史语境下,从拉丁语和法语中借用而来.在此种生成语境下,这个词最初的含义比较狭窄,意味着对异己信仰的容忍.在16 和17世纪,宗教宽容渐渐变成了一个法律概念,各国政府颁布了倡导宽容的法律条文,规定官员和守法的信徒们在与宗教少数派的交往中,必须采取宽容态度.这样,从执政者颁布的、要求对另类信仰者及其实践采取宽容态度的法令中,逐渐衍生出一种普世的道德心态与行为准则,它允许一定条件下的充分自由和不同观点的共存,这种道德心态与行为准则就是我们通常所理解的"宽容".     

Managing Religion and the Judicialization of Religious Freedom

Religious freedom is a highly valued goal for many citizens and political leaders around the world, especially in Western‐oriented nations. Much ink has been spilled in defense of religious freedom and many have waxed eloquent about the virtues of promoting religious freedom. Most constitutions and other international documents around the world guarantee religious freedom even if those guarantees are sometimes honored in the breach. Why this focus on religious freedom is occurring and how it is being addressed are the focus of this article.     

Ethics, Academic Freedom and Academic Tenure

Universities can and have existed without academic freedom and academic tenure. But academic freedom is necessary for a university dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge in a democratic society. Both academic freedom and academic tenure are not only rights but also carry with them moral obligations. Furthermore academic tenure is the best defense of academic freedom that American universities have found. Academic tenure can be successfully defended from the many contemporary attacks to which it is being subjected only insofar as it is necessary to defend academic freedom, and only if all involved in the system of tenure observe the ethical requirements that the system demands.     

Religious Freedom in Transition: Spain

Abstract

After a peaceful and well-conducted transition towards democracy (1975–78), the Spanish Constitution was enacted in December 1978. This article starts with the events which led to the Civil War (1936–39) and studies the relationship between the Spanish state and the Catholic Church throughout Franco's dictatorship. This background is necessary for a proper understanding of the current legal framework on religion, which is the main aim of this article. In the light of the pronouncements of the Spanish Constitutional Court (SCC), I analyse the various paragraphs of Article 16 of the Constitution, especially with regard to the position of individuals and communities. I also deal with the relationship between religious freedom and ideological freedom. I offer a critical judgment on the position of the Catholic Church and the other religious denominations which concluded agreements with the Spanish state in 1992. Finally, I highlight current trends, particularly the difficult relationship between the socialist government and the Catholic Church in the last few years. Although the situation had significantly improved by 2007, there are still occasions on which tension between the two institutions is manifest.     

历史变迁中的宗教传统与宗教学术研究

宗教与宗教研究,在人类历史中一直关涉到人类如何生存的重大问题。本文首先讨论宗教与人类自身反思的两种方式的关系,特别讨论了在现代化进程中人类对宗教问题反思方式的改变;其次,讨论现代性与宗教学术研究必备条件之间的关系;第三,讨论在现代学术形态的宗教研究中,必然出现的对宗教意义理解的两重性矛盾。本文强调,当前的宗教研究,只有正视这个矛盾,宗教与人类的关系及其对人类生活的意义,才能被正确看待。     

Articles of Faith: Freedom of Expression and Religious Freedom in Contemporary Multiculture

ABSTRACT

This article examines the relationship between freedom of religion and freedom of speech and expression within contemporary multicultural liberal democracies. These two fundamental human rights have increasingly been seen, in public and political discourse, in terms of tension if not outright opposition, a view reinforced by the Charlie Hebdo killings in January 2015. And yet in every human rights charter they are proximate to one another. This essay argues that this adjacency is not coincidental, that it has a history and that, in illuminating this history, it is possible to explore how the contemporary framing of these two rights as being in opposition has come about. Looking back to the framing of the First Amendment of the US Constitution, the essay offers an historical perspective that, in turn, facilitates a reappraisal and re-evaluation of these two liberties that is the necessary, albeit insufficient, predicate to the task of addressing the problematic of multicultural ‘crisis' in the contemporary liberal democracies of Western Europe, North America and Australasia, in which the presence of certain religious communities (Muslims, in particular) and the role of religion in public and political life more generally (and, conversely, of secularism) has assumed a central importance.     

自由主义的宗教信仰自由的困境与危机

如何理解"宗教"与"宗教信仰自由"?前提是需要重新分析和审视时代背景与社会生活的变化。西方自由主义的政治哲学和道德伦理赋予"宗教"、"宗教信仰自由"的问题西方历史与语境下的含义,并成为这一含义的理论基础。而在全球化时代,自由主义对"宗教信仰自由"的解释不再无懈可击。本文意在区分我们所身处的时代与此前时代,自不同的维度理解既有概念,视"宗教信仰自由"为一个探寻的概念,丰富与发展"宗教信仰自由"的内涵,以增强其适应性。     

Free to Be Happy: Economic Freedom and Happiness in US States

While the measurement of subjective well-being and its usefulness as a policy objective is a matter of contention, a burgeoning field of happiness economics is emerging. This paper examines the relationship between the institutions of economic freedom and happiness as reported by respondents to the Generalized Social Survey (GSS) in the United States. GSS responses are matched via geocode to state of residence. This allows individual responses in the GSS to be matched to institutional characteristics of the state of residence. A novel contribution of this study is that analysis of the effect of economic freedom on reported happiness is conducted both at the individual level and using state averages. It is found that the level of economic freedom in US states has a positive effect on both individual reported happiness and state average happiness. Dynamic panel analysis is also conducted both as a robustness check and in an effort to control for endogeneity. This confirms the relationship as positive and is suggestive of a causal positive impact of economic freedom on average state happiness.     

试看《1998年国际宗教自由法案》中的“宗教自由”

有些学者高调主张宗教进入社会所有公共领域,"宗教自由"是主要的法理依据,赋予宗教一厢情愿的功能则是它的理论基础。本文仅就法理而言,这类主张来自美国《国际宗教自由法案》宣扬的宗教无政府主义,实质在搅乱舆论,干涉他国内政。它驾凌于他国的法权和主权之上,也违背美国的建国宗旨和宪法原则——政教分离。所以这一《法案》在其本国无效,我们的响应者也到了该打住的时候了。     

Stability of Religious Orientation and Academic Dishonesty

This study examines the probable influence of individual religiosity on academic cheating among a group of Seventh-day Adventist youth, grades 6 through 12. A multiple-regression analysis was used to determine the relationship between academic beliefs or behaviors and academic dishonesty. The following research questions were investigated: (1) Is there a relationship between students' religious experience or religious activities and academic honesty? (2) What religious variables influence academic honesty? and (3) What is the correlation between the stability of religious orientation and academic honesty? Although the final model proved to be statistically significant, the findings suggest no direct impact on academic honesty. The implications of this study and the influential factors are discussed.     

南非宗教自由权利的宪法保护探析

南非现行宪法通过之前,由于种族歧视和种族隔离政策的推行,宗教自由权利的法律保护范围和力度都存在许多不尽如人意之处;从南非临时宪法到现行宪法通过之后,宗教自由权利的保护获得更加充分的保障;在宪法中确立宗教自由权利条款能够使宗教自由权利有力地抵御来自公共权力的侵害,宗教自由权利只有在宪法这种"高级法"的保护下,才能真正实现;南非在宪法中确立宗教自由权利的保护有着非同寻常的意义。     

给美国"国际宗教自由委员会"的信

为加强中美两国宗教界的相互了解,国家宗教局邀请英国国际宗教自由委员会代表团干2005年8月来华访问。访问期间,中方按照双方商定的日程,安排了许多会见和参观活动。离华前,代表团对访问和中方的安排表示满意。但令人不解的是,该委员会在日前发表的《中国政策报告》中,竟然不顾事实,颠倒是非,攻击和诬蔑中国的宗教政策和宗教状况。对此,中国基督教海外联络部发表了——     

从《无神论——绪论》看宗教自由和反无神论观念

《无神论》是美国马丁(MICHAEL MARTIN)教授写的一部名著,副标题《哲学的合理性证明》,1990年出版。书前有一篇颇长的《绪论》,针对一些有神论者的批评,作了扼要的回应,从中可以看出当代西方宗教神学是如何抨击无神论的,以及他对这些抨击所作的逻辑反驳和对无神论的合理性证明。我特别感兴趣的问题,还有作者无意中透露出来的美国的意识形态和宗教自由问题。作者回忆说,他幼年受家庭影响,倾向无神论,但同时知道,无神论在美国民众的心目中是很坏的,因为“他们大多数人都信仰上帝”。记得“三年级的一天,我向一个有同情心的指导顾问透露…