Religion, State and the United Nations: Value Politics / Edition 1

by Anne Stensvold

Overview

This volume approaches the UN as a laboratory of religio-political value politics. Over the last two decades religion has acquired increasing influence in international politics, and religious violence and terrorism has attracted much scholarly attention. But there is another parallel development which has gone largely unnoticed, namely the increasing political impact of peaceful religious actors.

With several religious actors in one place and interacting under the same conditions, the UN is as a multi-religious society writ small. The contributors to this book analyse the most influential religious actors at the UN (including The Roman Catholic Church; The Organisation of Islamic Countries; the Russian Orthodox Church). Mapping the peaceful political engagements of religious actors; who they are and how they collaborate with each other - whether on an ad hoc basis or by forming more permanent networks - throwing light at the modus operandi of religious actors at the UN; their strategies and motivations. The chapters are closely interrelated through the shared focus on the UN and common theoretical perspectives, and pursue two intertwined aspects of religious value politics, namely the whys and hows of cross-religious cooperation on the one hand, and the interaction between religious actors and states on the other.

Drawing together a broad range of experts on religious actors, this work will be of great interest to students and scholars of Religion and Politics, International Relations and the UN.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781138938656
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	08/15/2016
Series:	Routledge Studies in Religion and Politics
Pages:	200
Product dimensions:	6.12(w) x 9.19(h) x (d)

About the Author

Anne Stensvold is Professor of History of Religions at the University of Oslo, Norway where she leads the Value Politics research group. She has written extensively on popular religion, Catholicism and political aspects of religion, and co-authored Lobbying for faith and family at the United Nations (2013). Her latest book is A history of pregnancy. From Original Sin to contemporary abortion debates. (Routlege 2015).

Table of Contents

Part I RELIGION AT THE UNITED NATIONS

Chapter 1: Engaging on global issues in a UN setting: Religious actors

[Katherine Marshall]

Chapter 2: The United Alliance of Civilisations and improved global dialogue

[Jeffrey Haynes]

Chapter 3: Hate speech and holy prophets: Tracing the OIC's strategies to protect religion

[Marie Juul Petersen and Heini Skorini]

Chapter 4: Negotiating traditional values. The Russian Orthodox Church

[Vebjørn Horsfjord]

Chapter 5: Internal affairs? Assessing NGO engagement for religious freedom

[Helge Årsheim]

Chapter 6: Religion, state and symbol politic. The Catholic Church

[Anne Stensvold]

PART II RELIGION AND STATE

Chapter 7: Emerging international subjects. The Royal 'Peel' Commission, Palestine partition and religious difference

[Maria Birnbaum]

Chapter 8: Religious voices: American faith perspectives as an example

[Katherine Marshall]

Chapter 9: Dynamic perspectives on defamation of religion among Jewish NGOs

[Gabriel Levy and Miriam Kyselo]

Chapter 10: Human rights and the Tunisian constitution

[Ragnhild J. Zorgati]

Chapter 11: Norway, religion and the United Nations

[Ingrid Vik and Cecilie Endresen]

Concluding remarks

[Anne Stensvold]

Editorial Reviews

'As the title suggests, Religion, State and the United Nations seeks to analyse the role that religion plays at the United Nations (UN), as well as its impact on the policies of the UN that flow down to the national level. It is a collection of 11 essays divided into two parts, ‘Religion at the United Nations’ and ‘Religion and state’, and forms part of a wider Routledge book series on the role of religion in various international fora.' - Paul Coleman, ADF, Vienna

From the Publisher