MACMILLAN Citizenship and Religion: A Fundamental Challenge for Democracy

This book explores the relationship between religion and citizenship from a culturally diverse group of contributors, in the context of the developing tendency towards fundamentalist and conflicting religious beliefs in European, North African, and Middle Eastern societies.    The chapters provide an alternative narrative of the role of religion, presenting diverse ‘lived shades’ of citizenship, as well as accounting for issues of gender equality, minority rights, violence, identity, education, and secularisation. As the renewed role of religious institutions is increasing in Europe and elsewhere, the contributors interrogate the experience of belonging, public policy, welfare services and religious education, highlighting how cooperation between citizenship and religion is necessary in a democratic regime. The research will be of interest to students and scholars across sociology, international relations, and religious studies. Review "This book offers novel, invigorating insight into our relationship with religion, exploring the ambiguities of seeking the reassuring comfort of established cultural norms and 'common sense' of religions (exclusive and often discriminatory), and the quest for liberation from their constraints. How can we deal with this paradox? Through comprehensive intercultural dialog, this work reveals promising perspectives to tackle the challenge of citizenship." ― Josiane Stoessel-Ritz, Professor of Sociology, University of Haute-Alsace, France From the Back Cover This book explores the relationship between religion and citizenship from a culturally diverse group of contributors, in the context of the developing tendency towards fundamentalist and conflicting religious beliefs in European, North African, and Middle Eastern societies.   The chapters provide an alternative narrative of the role of religion, presenting diverse ‘lived shades’ of citizenship, as well as accounting for issues of gender equality, minority rights, violence, identity, education, and secularisation. As the renewed role of religious institutions is increasing in Europe and elsewhere, the contributors interrogate the experience of belonging, public policy, welfare services and religious education, highlighting how cooperation between citizenship and religion is necessary in a democratic regime. The research will be of interest to students and scholars across sociology, international relations, and religious studies. About the Author Maurice Blanc is Emeritus Professor of Urban Sociology at Strasbourg University, France.   Julia Droeber is Assistant Professor of Islamic Pedagogy at Ludwigsburg University of Education, Germany. Tom Storrie (†) was Principal of Colleges of Further and Higher Education in the UK and Associate Professor of the UNESCO Centre for Human Rights and Development at An-Najah University, Nablus, Palastine.