Registering Faith: Recognition, Legal Personality, and Religious Freedom in the Caribbean

Brandon Reece Taylorian is a research fellow at the University of Lancashire (UK).

Introduction

Caribbean states have inherited—and reshaped—colonial approaches to governing religion. Since gaining independence, governments across the region have had to decide what it means to be “secular,” which communities the state treats as legitimate, and what legal steps religious groups must take to operate in public life. Those choices matter for freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) because recognition and registration rules shape who can manifest their beliefs and how, for example, by building places of worship or providing pastoral care in public institutions like hospitals, prisons, and the military.

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Voicing Sharp Religious Opposition to the War in Iran: A Case Study from the Roman Catholic Community

Thomas Massaro, S.J., is McGinley Endowed Professor of Religion and Society at Fordham University

As this essay is being written, it has been more than a month since the February 28 outbreak of hostilities between Israel and the U.S. (on one hand) and Iran (on the other hand). Public criticism of the war has been widespread. Political opponents (and even some normally supportive voices) have complained about the evident lack of planning, unclear objectives, and seeming disregard for the consequences of launching this “war of choice.” The shifting justifications for launching the war (including incoherent gestures toward the urgency of regime change and terminating Iran’s looming nuclear capability) have proven broadly unconvincing. The April 1 White House address of President Trump, broadcast in prime TV time, added little clarity.

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Freedom of / from Religion in Pubic Spaces? About New Law Proposal in Israel

Pablo Lerner is a professor of law at the Zefat Academic College and the College of Law and Business in Ramat-Gan (Israel). 

Last year a draft law was presented in the Israeli parliament[1] regulating a variety of issues regarding religion in public spaces. In particular, the law prohibits public authorities from interfering with the putting on of, or the helping of others put on, tefillim[2] (phylacteries) in public spaces. The draft law also prohibits public authorities from impeding the act of praying in a public space or public building. However, in a synagogue or educational institution, authorities may require that any prayer be conducted according to local Jewish custom. The draft law also establishes the duty to install a mezuzah[3] (scroll case) in public buildings.

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