“Unbelievers: An Emotional History of Doubt” by Alec Ryrie

Unbelievers: An Emotional History of DoubtAlec Ryrie Adapted from UNBELIEVERS: AN EMOTIONAL HISTORY OF DOUBT BY ALEC RYRIE, published by The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press (2019). Why,” the philosopher Charles Taylor asks, “was it virtually impossible not to believe in God in, say, 1500 in our Western society, while in 2000 many of

“Irreconcilable differences: Law, Religion, and Taiwan’s relationship with China” by André Laliberté

Taipei Sunrise by Chensiyuan (CC BY-SA 4.0). Historically, laws regarding religion in China and Taiwan differ considerably, and these differences have increased in recent years. Under Xi Jinping’s rule, China seeks to revert to an earlier period of intertwined political and religious authority under the uncontested leadership of the Chinese Communist Party. In contrast, Taiwan

Approaching the Vatican City, Rome, Italy Oil Painting

“Faculty Unions in Catholic Educational Institutions: A Disconnect between Church Teachings and Practice” by Charles J. Russo

Approaching Vatican City, Rome by Fenous (CC BY-SA 4.0). Speaking in the Vatican to a gathering of the Italian General Confederation of Labor on December 19, 2022, Pope Francis eloquently proclaimed “there are no free workers without unions.” Francis affirmed the long-standing labor teachings of the Roman Catholic Church, which began in 1891 with Pope

“Plessy, Prince, and Me: Law, Religion, and the Quest for Racial Justice” by M. Christian Green

Photo by Matthew Bedford on Unsplash. 1896. The year seemed to flash in glaring red lights from the text of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Plessy v. Ferguson decision as I was preparing my next lecture for “Law, Religion, and Social Change,” a course that I was teaching at Harvard Divinity School in the fall of

“How Is Eastern Christianity Affecting Pope Francis’s Priorities?” by Matthew Cavedon

Cloisters of Norwich Cathedral by Arjen Bax (CC BY-SA 2.0). Introduction: Easter with the Easterns? The Christmas season hadn’t even begun when Pope Francis announced a potential change to future Easters: if Eastern Christians unite around a single date for celebrating the holiday, he said, Catholics will adjust their calendars accordingly. This might be mistaken

“Comparing the Two Major Courts Systems in Europe on the Matter of Religious Dress” by James Richardson

“Towers of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) after fifth extension” by Laurent Verdier / Wikimedia (CC0 1.0). This article is part of our “Clothed in Religion: Law and Religious Attire/Garb” series.If you’d like to check out other articles in this series, click here. There are two major judicial systems currently operating within the

Does Clothing Make the Person: Reflections of the Rights of Public School Employees to Wear Religious Garb in the Workplace By Allan G. Osborne and Charles J. Russo

This article is part of our “Clothed in Religion: Law and Religious Attire/Garb” series.If you’d like to check out other articles in this series, click here. Introduction In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Polonius famously muses that “the apparel oft proclaims the man.” Yet, in today’s increasingly religiously diverse (and religiously unaffiliated) American society wherein about 30% are religiously

Does Religion Speak War; Why Use It As A Means? By Rackel Jackson Agara

Aso Rock in Abujo, Nigeria by Mike Fisher (CC BY-SA 2.0). “War is the greatest plague that afflicts humanity, it destroys states, it destroys families, and even religion…Any scourge is preferable to it,” observed Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Many people in the world have used religion to instigate violent conflicts but these religious roots

“The Blessings of Liberty: Human Rights and Religious Freedom in the Western Legal Tradition” by John Witte Jr.

The Blessings of Liberty: Human Rights and Religious Freedom in the Western Legal TraditionJohn Witte, Jr. The following is excerpted from John Witte, Jr.’s The Blessings of Liberty: Human Rights and Religious Freedom in the Western Legal Tradition, out now from Cambridge University Press. Read Nicholas Wolterstorff’s review of the book here. For the past

“The Polish Contribution to the Global Legal Culture Foreword” by John Witte, Jr.

The Polish Contribution to the Global Legal CultureJohn Witte, Jr. The following is excerpted from Law and Christianity in Poland: The Legacy of the Great Jurists, edited by Franciszek Longchamps de Bérier and Rafael Domingo and out now from Routledge. This volume is another signature title in the book series on “Great Christian Jurists in