Jewish Law Meets International LawMichael J. Broyde and Yehonatan Elazar-De Mota The following is an introduction to Michael J. Broyde and Yehonatan Elazar-De Mota’s new book, Jewish Law and International Law: Sovereignty and Exogenous Authority in a Transnational World (Oxford, 2025). In today’s interconnected world, legal traditions are constantly interacting across borders. Nations craft treaties…
The Village Lawyer by Pieter Brueghel (US-PD). The following essay is reprinted and adapted on Canopy Forum in collaboration with the journal Derecho en Sociedad, a biannual electronic publication that is free and open access. See other essays in this series here. Although constitutions are often overlooked in practice, making them unreliable indicators of actual religious freedom, the widespread…
In and Out of ChurchSteven Tipton The following is an adapted excerpt from Steven Tipton’s new book, “In and Out of Church: The Moral Arc of Spiritual Change in America.” With permission from Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2025. Freedom of conscience runs deep in the American grain of religious practice and belief all the way…
Photo of Kaifeng North Mosque by Windmemories (CC BY-SA 4.0) The following essay is reprinted and adapted on Canopy Forum in collaboration with the journal Derecho en Sociedad, a biannual electronic publication that is free and open access. See other essays in this series here. Since the establishment of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), the Chinese Communist Party…
Main chamber of Badshahi Mosque by User:Amjad.m (CC BY-SA 3.0) On January 16th, 2025, the government of Punjab, Pakistan’s most populous province, demolished a historic Ahmadi mosque in the city of Daska. This mosque was built by Zafrullah Khan (1893-1985), Pakistan’s first foreign minister and one of the founding fathers of the country. This is…
Baby Goats Resting on the Road by Amaury Laporte (CC BY-SA 2.0). If anyone unfamiliar with Judaism were to be introduced to the concept of a kosher kitchen for the first time, they would likely raise questions. Why does the family have different dishes and cutlery for meat and dairy foods? While that may be…
Wake: Why the Battle Over Diverse Public Schools Still Matters Karey Harwood This essay is an adapted excerpt from the third chapter of Karey Harwood’s recently published book, Wake: Why The Battle Over Diverse Public Schools Still Matters (Rutgers University Press, 2024). Reprinted here with permission from Rutgers University Press. When asked to talk about…
Jewish Wedding by Wincenty Smokowski (1858, US-PD). Throughout the Pentateuch and subsequently in the books of the Prophets and Writings, readers are confronted with the existence of polygamous relationships – Abraham, Jacob, David, and Solomon, to name a mere few – but as of the eleventh century CE, Jewish men have been prohibited from taking…
The “Temple of the Sun” of Ingapirca, Ecuador by Bernard Gagnon (CC BY-SA 3.0) The following essay is reprinted and adapted on Canopy Forum in collaboration with the journal Derecho en Sociedad, a biannual electronic publication that is free and open access. See other essays in this series here. As Latin America and the Caribbean face increasing challenges related to…
Photo of Kisumu Municipal Hall by (WT-fr) Omondi (CC BY-SA 3.0) Kisumu is a cosmopolitan city that lies on the shores of Lake Victoria in Western Kenya. The city is inhabited by the majority Luo ethnic group and other Kenyan ethnic groups as well as Arabs and Asians East Africa who work in the city…