Religious Accommodation and its Limits

Description

When does religious accommodation undermine the autonomy of others? On what grounds should religious accommodation claims be limited? This book offers an original model of religious accommodation which can be applied in practice in secular liberal democracies where religious diversity continues to pose various challenges. Firstly, the book makes a case for religious accommodation by addressing the key normative challenges raised by religious claims. Secondly, it offers a typology of how religious claims can be managed and limited through the careful balancing of competing interests. The author draws on case study examples from jurisdictions subject to the European Court of Human Rights and the European Union’s Court of Justice such as the UK, Germany and France. The result is a timely contribution to the debate on how a legal duty or policy approach in favour of religious accommodation can be applied in practice. Moreover, the proposed model offers criteria that can be used to guide the implementation of equality policies in contexts such as employment and education. The book will be of interest to academics, legal practitioners and policy-makers. Foreword Acknowledgements Contents Abbreviations Table of cases Table of legislation Introduction: Realising Religious Freedom I. The Problem of Pluralism in a Changing Landscape II. Law and Religion: Current Controversies III. The Purpose and Scope of this Book IV. An Outline of the Chapters PART I: THE CONCEPTUAL DIMENSIONS OF RELIGIOUS ACCOMMODATION 1. The Case for Religious Accommodation I. The Challenge of the Right to FORB II. The Scope of the Right to Freedom of Religion or Belief III. Conclusion 2. Exemptions and Religion's 'Special Cage' I. Introducing the 'Exemptions Debate' II. The Problem of Defining Religion III. The 'Preference-Choice' Argument IV. The 'Intensity-Cost' Argument V. The Rule of Law and Equality Argument VI. Is Religion Special? VII. Conclusion 3. Approaches to Limitations I. Practices Deemed to be against the Liberal Order II. The Duty of Neutrality III. Practices that do not Constitute a 'Core' Religious Belief IV. The Choice of Alternatives V. Conclusion PART II: RELIGIOUS ACCOMMODATION IN PRACTICE 4. 'Bridging the Gap': From Principle to Policy I. Secularism as a Constitutional Norm II. Thin and Thick Versions of Secularism III. Secularism and Religious Autonomy IV. Conclusion 5. A Model of Religious Accommodation I. Approaches to Limitations Based on Harm II. A Model of Religious Accommodation III. Addressing Some Complexities of the Model of Religious Accommodation IV. Conclusion 6. Harm in the 'Hard' Cases I. What Makes a 'Hard' Case? II. The Medical Context III. Religious Accommodation and Contesting Children's Autonomy IV. Religious Organisations V. Conclusion 7. Conclusion Appendix: Guidelines on the Limits of Religious Accommodation for Decision-makers Index