Cambridge University Press Religion in Legal Thought and Practice

This book examines moral issues in public and private life from a religious but not devotional perspective. Rather than seeking to prove that one belief system or moral stance is right, it undertakes to help readers more fully understand the effect of religious beliefs and practices on ways of conceiving and addressing moral questions, without having to accept or to reject any specific religious outlook. It shows how the similarities between religions and the differences within any one religion are more important than the reverse. The book asks • Where do moral imperatives come from, and how do the answers found in religion and law interact? • How does the fact that a moral norm is grounded in religion affect our thinking about it? • What is the significance of the differences (and similarities) between religious and secular sources of moral norms? Book Description This book examines moral issues in public and private life from a religious but not devotional perspective. About the Author Howard Lesnick has completed 50 years as a law teacher. Specialized initially in the law of the work relation - labor law, employment discrimination and welfare law - he has served since 1978 as Impartial Umpire under the AFL-CIO 'No-raiding' agreement. He has participated in litigation, training and consultative work related to the legal problems of poor people. He is a founder and past President of the Society of American Law Teachers - a group of law teachers committed to the public responsibilities of the Bar and the law schools - and has worked, with others, to develop methods by which law students, teachers and practitioners can make their work in law more fully integrated with their aspirations and values, and with the motivations that drew them to legal careers. His current teaching interests are religion, law and lawyering; legal responses to inequality; and professional responsibility. In recent years, he has published books and articles on ethical responsibility in law practice, religion and morality, and moral education.