The Challenge of Pluralism : Church and State in Five Democracies

Now in a thoroughly revised and updated edition, this essential text offers a rigorous, systematic comparison of church-state relations in the United States, Australia, the Netherlands, Germany, and England. As successful and stable political democracies, these five countries share a commitment to protecting the religious rights of their citizens. Yet as the book demonstrates, each has taken substantially different approaches to resolving basic church-state questions. Stephen V. Monsma and J. Christopher Soper examine the historical roots of those differences and explain how each state addresses contemporary church-state issues. The authors judge each government's success in protecting the religious rights of its citizens using a framework based on the ideal of governmental neutrality or evenhandedness toward people of all faiths and of none. Providing clarity on the little-understood, evolving relationship between church and state in the West, this book provides an invaluable comparative analysis of a topic that is increasingly a source of profound political and social conflict. Monsma and Soper conclude that the American conception of church-state separation, with its traditional emphasis on avoiding government establishment of religion, actually discriminates against religious groups by denying access to government services provided to other organizations. The authors persuasively argue that the United States can learn a great deal from other Western nations in promoting religious neutrality and the free exercise of religion.

Now in a thoroughly revised and updated edition, this essential text offers a rigorous, systematic comparison of church-state relations in the United States, Australia, the Netherlands, Germany, and England. Stephen V. Monsma and J. Christopher Soper examine the historical roots and contemporary strategies of the different approaches each government has taken. Providing clarity on the little-understood, evolving relationship between church and state in the West, this book provides an invaluable comparative analysis of a topic that is increasingly a source of profound political and social conflict. The authors persuasively argue that the United States can learn a great deal from other Western democracies in promoting religious neutrality and the free exercise of religion.

Ted G. Jelen

A marvelous book. The authors perform the rare and difficult feat of generating a genuinely cross-national analysis, while paying strict, detailed attention to the nuances of each country. After reading this book, no one will think about church-state relations in quite the same way. This book will change the manner in which church-state relations are contested in the United States, and is required reading for anyone, at any level.

This study compares and evaluates the nature of church-state relations in the United States, the Netherlands, Australia, Germany, and England. The authors conclude that the American conception of church-state separation, with its traditional emphasis on avoiding government establishment of religion, actually discriminates against religious groups by denying religious organizations, particularly schools, access to government services provided by other organizations. The authors persuasively argue that the United States can learn a great deal from these other nations in promoting religious neutrality and the free exercise of religion. Preface to the second edition Preface to the first edition Introduction The United States : strict separation under fire The Netherlands : principled pluralism Australia : pragmatic pluralism England : partial establishment Germany : partnership and autonomy Church and state in pluralistic democracy. Provides a comparative analysis of church-state issues in the United States, the Netherlands, Australia, England, and Germany, and argues that the U.S. is unique in the way it resolves religious freedom and religious establishment questions