Course

What role, if any, should religion play in politics? From the French system of the separation of church and state to the Vatican’s complete synthesis of the Catholic church and state, or from Indonesia’s Muslim-majority secular democracy to the Islamic Republic of Iran, there is a seemingly endless array of ideas and examples of how to relate religion and politics. Where does the relationship work best? Where does it fall apart and even lead to violent conflict? Using examples from around the world and a broad selection of world religions, this course will try to answer the eternally vexing question of when, if ever, politics and religion can fit together.