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Religious Nationalism and Religious Freedom in Asia: Mapping Regional Trends in a Global Phenomenon

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 August 2021

Jaclyn Neo  and
Brett G. Scharffs
Jaclyn Neo*
Affiliation:
National University of Singapore
Brett G. Scharffs
Affiliation:
Brigham Young University
*
*Corresponding author. E-mail: jaclyn.neo@nus.edu.sg
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Abstract

In recent times, religious nationalism has emerged as a major basis for identity and mobilization. In Asia, religious nationalism specifically challenges existing pluralist approaches to constitutional government, which have generally been seen as necessary to ensure peaceful coexistence. The increasing alignment of religious and national boundaries has the worrying capacity to neutralize the “cross-cutting cleavages” that could otherwise vitiate the centrifugal tendencies of pluralistic societies. In the context of pluralistic Asia, therefore, religious nationalism is fundamentally anchored in a rejection of ethnic, religious, cultural, and even legal plurality. This has serious consequences for the freedoms of religious groups, particularly minority groups and minorities within dominant religious groups. This article introduces the Special Issue studying not only the phenomenon of religious nationalism in Asia, but also its impact on the rights of religious groups and their religious freedoms, broadly conceived.

Keywords

religious nationalismreligious freedomconstitutional lawpluralismrights
Type
Religious Nationalism and Religious Freedom in Asia
Information
Asian Journal of Law and Society , Volume 8 , Issue 1 , February 2021 , pp. 1 - 18
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Asian Journal of Law and Society

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