Religious Freedom and Peacemaking

Knox Thames is a senior fellow at Pepperdine University and a senior visiting expert at the U.S. Institute of Peace. The following post comprises his remarks during a panel on “Understanding Religious Freedom: Why Does It Matter?” at the ICLRS 31st Annual International Law and Religion Symposium, 7 October 2024. Portions of his remarks were drawn from his book Ending Persecution: Charting the Global Path to Religious Freedom (Notre Dame Press 2024).

Introduction

There can be no durable peace without religious freedom. There may be the cold peace of a cessation of hostilities. However, lasting peace will not come until people can live together, recognizing the rights of their neighbors to pursue truth as their conscience leads without fear of discrimination or violence.

(more…)

Continue Reading Religious Freedom and Peacemaking

Webinar: Ukraine’s Law Banning Russian Orthodox Church and Affiliated Organizations: Legal and Juridical Aspects

October 29, 2024, 11am – 2:30pm EST / 4pm – 7:30pm CET (Zoom)

Hosted by ICLRS Blog “Talk About: Law and Religion”

and Orthodox Christianity Studies Center – Fordham University

Registration link

The workshop (webinar) will discuss legal aspects of Ukraine’s recent law No 3894 banning the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) and religious organizations affiliated with the ROC. The workshop will consist of six units each of which starts with two short inputs (5 minutes), then 20 minutes moderated discussion. After three units, there will be a 20 minutes break.

(more…)

Continue Reading Webinar: Ukraine’s Law Banning Russian Orthodox Church and Affiliated Organizations: Legal and Juridical Aspects

FoRB Podcast: The Russian World Narrative and the Russian Aggression in Ukraine

In Episode 3 of The FoRB Podcast, Dmytro Vovk and Merilin Kiviorg invite Catherine Wanner and Thomas Bremer to discuss the Russian world (Russky mir)—a narrative utilized by the Russian government and the Russian Orthodox Church to justify Russia’s aggressive war in Ukraine and to portray Russia as an “anti-Western civilization.” They touch on the ideological origins and content of the Russia world, the Russian Church’s involvement in the war, political and legal responses to the Russky mir narrative by Russia’s neighboring states (Ukraine and Estonia), and debates over these issue in the United States and Europe. 

(more…)

Continue Reading FoRB Podcast: The Russian World Narrative and the Russian Aggression in Ukraine