Religious Liberty in a Lockean Society
This book assesses the concept of religious liberty in the United States according to the political theory of John Locke. Protecting the individual freedom of religion without infringing on the rights of others or on legitimate political authority requires delicate balance. The work analyzes Locke’s...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Book |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
New York
Palgrave Pivot
2017
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| In: | Year: 2017 |
| Series/Journal: | Palgrave Studies in Religion, Politics, and Policy
SpringerLink Bücher Springer eBook Collection Political Science and International Studies |
| Further subjects: | B
Political Science and International Relations
B Political Theory B Political Philosophy B Political Science |
| Online Access: |
Presumably Free Access Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Parallel Edition: | Druckausg.: 978-1-137-58477-9 Printed edition: 9781137584779 |
| Summary: | This book assesses the concept of religious liberty in the United States according to the political theory of John Locke. Protecting the individual freedom of religion without infringing on the rights of others or on legitimate political authority requires delicate balance. The work analyzes Locke’s concept of religious liberty and, from it, derives nine criteria for locating that balance. The most important of these criteria requires government neutrality and equality before the law. The United States has historically struggled with providing this balance, particularly through Supreme Court decisions, resulting in the passage of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA). Application of Locke’s criteria for balancing religious liberty and government authority to three recent cases-a government employee, an employer, and a small business owner-reveal that RFRA legislation threatens this balance by undermining neutral government action and treats citizens unequally before the law 1. Balancing Religious Liberty in the United States.-2. John Locke and Religious Liberty -- 3. Religious Liberty, Free Exercise, and RFRA in the United States -- 4. 4. Assessing Religious Liberty in a Lockean Society |
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| ISBN: | 1137584149 |
| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1057/978-1-137-58414-4 |