2020 ICLRS Symposium: How Religions and Religious Organizations Contribute to the Common Good

Panelists:

Elizabeth Clark, Moderator

Associate Director at the International Center for Law and Religion Studies, BYU Law School

 Viva Bartkus, Panelist

Associate Professor of Management, Notre Dame University, who researches the social capital of communities that enables collaboration and a leadership approach most effective in solving complex business problems. Professor Bartkus has founded and worked extensively with international humanitarian and business organizations, including serving as one of the first lay members on the board of directors of Catholic Relief Services.

Sharon Eubank, Panelist

President of Latter-Day Saint Charities, the humanitarian cooperative of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, also serving as the first counselor in the general presidency of the Relief Society, the Church’s organization for its 6 million female members ages 18 and over.

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2020 ICLRS Symposium: Brett Scharffs’s Introductory Remarks

Brett G. Scharffs is Director, International Center for Law and Religion Studies and Rex E. Lee Chair and Professor of Law, BYU Law School

I had only been at the law school for three years when the International Center for Law and Religion Studies was founded in January 2000. Care was given to the creation of our mission statement which speaks of helping secure the blessings of freedom of religion and belief for all people in all places in three specific ways: (1) by expanding, deepening, and disseminating knowledge and expertise; (2) by facilitating the growth of networks of scholars, experts, and policymakers; and (3) by contributing to law reform processes. At the heart of any academic center is scholarly work. From 2000 to 2020 the Center and its scholars have produced 243 publications, including books, articles, and book chapters. This is a rate of more than a dozen publications per year.

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2020 ICLRS Symposium: Renata Uitz’s Speech

Renáta Uitz is Professor and Chair (Director) of the Comparative Constitutional Law at the Central European University

In addition to the theme of “Rights and Responsibilities,” the 2020 ICLRS Symposium gave tribute to W. Cole Durham, Jr., founder of ICLRS. Professor Uitz’s remarks were part of that tribute.

I have known Cole Durham for almost two decades. First, I met him in the classroom at Central European University that was still in Budapest. Over the years, we spent a lot of time together at conferences and workshops. And I also had the utmost privilege of seeing him interact with national and international civil servants who were preparing to draft or redraft legislation on church/state relations. I learned a lot from Cole over these years. More importantly, I learned an equally great deal from watching him interact with civil servants, activists, church leaders, and especially watch him when his audience did not want to hear what he said. The lessons I take away from these experiences are applicable amidst crises and across divides. They are, of course, relevant for issues of law and religion, but they are especially instructive for any work on resilience and resistance strategies at an age when illiberal and populist political actors are steadily on the rise. These political actors very often instrumentalize religion to sow the seeds of distrust and discord against minorities, and they use the law very often to demonize and stigmatize others, including religious minorities. Cole’s work allows us to study the law and the workings of the law in comparative perspectives. His work teaches us that we should focus not on a single event, no matter how dramatic or spectacular, but put legal rules into a broader context making sure that we understand the larger trends.

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