Confronting Secularism in Europe and India: Legitimacy and Disenchantment in Contemporary Times

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Can secularism continue to provide a foundation for political legitimacy It is often claimed that one of the cultural achievements of the West has been its establishment of secular democracy, wherein religious belief is respected but confined to the sphere of private belief. In more recent times, however, political secularism has been increasingly called into question. Religious believers, in numerous traditions, have protested against the distortion and confinement that secularism imposes on their faith. Others have become uneasily aware of the way in which secularism no longer commands universal assent in the way it once did. Confronting Secularism in Europe and India adds to this debate by staging a creative encounter between European and Indian conceptions of secularism with a view to continuing new and distinctive trajectories of thought about the place and role of secularism in contemporary times. Looking at political secularism, the relationship between secularism and religion, and religious and secular violence, this book considers whether there are viable alternatives to secularism in Europe and in India.

Reviews

In these searching, wide-ranging and thought-provoking essays, scholars from different disciplines and with expertise in different cultural traditions offer the reader a comparative understanding of the uses and challenges of secularism. The study of European and Indian contexts is illuminating, and an example of genuine intercultural discussion that is as rare as it is important. -- Chakravarthi Ram-Prasad, Professor of Comparative Religion and Philosophy, Lancaster University, UK, author of Divine Self, Human Self: The Philosophy of Being in Two Gita Commentaries
A fascinating set of essays exploring the interface between Indian and European thinking about secularism, politics, religion and violence. By investigating the unique character of Indian secularism, the authors of this collection develop new perspectives on European secularism, aiming to improve its capacity to accommodate deep religious diversity. This thought-provoking and visionary collection will be useful to students and scholars alike. -- Maria Dimova-Cookson, Lecturer in Politics, School of Government and International Affairs, Durham University, UK
Debates concerning secularism are often controversial, yet this volume does an excellent job of bringing clarity to arguments that are too often left implicit or obscure. Anyone interested in the future of secularism will find this a highly stimulating and rewarding book to engage with. -- Stuart McAnulla, Lecturer in Political Science, University of Leeds, UK

Author Bio

Brian Black is Lecturer in Religious Studies at the University of Lancaster, UK. He is the author of The Character of the Self in Ancient India (2007). Gavin Hyman is Senior Lecturer in the Department of Politics, Philosophy and Religion at the University of Lancaster, UK. He has published widely in contemporary philosophy and religious thought, and his most recent book is Traversing the Middle: Ethics, Politics, Religion (2013). Graham M. Smith is Lecturer in Political Theory at the University of Leeds, UK. He is the author of Friendship and the Political: Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Schmitt (2011).