Religious Liberty and Human Rights

Edited by Mark Hill

‘The value of this research is outstanding and the authors and editor of this book should be congratulated for the undoubtedly high scientific level of their contributions. Bringing sociological, legal and theological backgrounds, together is a successful choice in a period in which interdisciplinary studies are so essential for an appropriate understanding of the twentieth century reality . . . ’ (Law and Justice) 

‘ . . . offers sound criticism of the Enlightenment and Kantian underpinnings of modern rights and an important insight into the conflict of contemporary rights jurisprudence with a Christian model of jurisprudence. . .’ (Crucible)

‘ . . . an important and timely contribution to the debate concerning the implications of the passing of the Human Rights Act for Religious Liberty.’ (Journal of Contemporary Religion)

This volume of essays by distinguished contributors presents a range of complementary perspectives on a subject of fundamental importance for the Christian churches and for contemporary society. It discusses, from international, historical and theological viewpoints, how the Human Rights Act 1998 falls to be applied to instances raising issues of religious liberty and highlights the importance of the Act for future decision making within faith communities. It includes the papers delivered at the Ecclesiastical Law Society’s residential conference in Trinity Hall, Cambridge in March 2001 (all of which have been substantially revised) together with four additional chapters specially commissioned for this volume.

Individual essays consider to what extent religious liberty has a distinctive nature which should be recognised in the context of state legislation on human rights and how both European and American law have sought to relate religious liberty to other conceptions of human rights. The development of theories of natural rights in political theology is given full treatment. Other major areas discussed include the effects of the Act on employment law and with regard to admission policies for state voluntary religious schools.

‘This collection of essays on the implications of the adoption of the Human Rights Act in relation to religious freedom could not be timelier . . . what is presented here provides a thorough examination of the underlying heritage and possible futures that the European Convention on Human Rights heralds.’ www.gwales.com

Contents

Foreword The Archbishop of Canterbury
Preface Lord Justice Sedley

1. A New Dawn for Freedom of Religion: Grounding the Debate Mark Hill
2. Theologians, Humanists and Natural Rights Roger Ruston (Fellow, Centre for Law and Religion, Cardiff University)
3. Human Rights, Divine Justice and the Churches Nicholas Sagovsky (William Leech Professorial Research Fellow, University of Newcastle)
4. The Challenge of Liberty for Religions in the USA Mark Chopko (General Counsel, National Conference of Catholic Bishops, USA)
5. Religious Liberty in European Jurisprudence Javier Martínez-Torrón (Professor of Law, Complutense University, Madrid)
6. Freedom of Religion: Public/Private, Rights/Wrongs Ian Leigh (Professor of Law, University of Durham)
7. The Development of the Law of Employment and Education David Harte (Senior Lecturer, Newcastle Law School)
8. Canonical Approaches to Human Rights in Anglican Churches Norman Doe (Professor of Law, Cardiff University)