Are human rights universal or the product of specific cultures? Is democracy a necessary condition for the achievement of human rights in practice? And when, if ever, is it legitimate for external actors to impose their understandings of human rights upon particular countries? In the contemporary context of globalization, these questions have a salient religious dimension. Religion intersects with global human rights agendas in multiple ways, including: whether ''universal'' human rights are in fact an imposition of Christian understandings; whether democracy, the ''rule of the people,'' is compatible with God's law; and whether international efforts to enforce human rights including religious freedom amount to an illicit imperialism. This book brings together leading specialists across disciplines for the first major survey of the religious politics of human rights across the world's major regions, political systems, and faith traditions. The authors take a bottom-up approach and focus particularly on hot-button issues like human rights in Islam, Falun Gong in China, and religion in the former Soviet Union. Each essay examines the interaction of human rights and religion in practice and the challenges they pose for national and international policymakers.

This Handbook provides a cutting-edge survey of the state of research on religions and global development. Part one highlights critical debates that have emerged within research on religions and development, particularly with respect to theoretical, conceptual and methodological considerations, from the perspective of development studies and its associated disciplines. Parts two to six look at different regional and national development contexts and the place of religion within these. These parts integrate and examine the critical debates raised in part one within empirical case studies from a range of religions and regions. Different religions are situated within actual locations and case studies thus allowing a detailed and contextual understanding of their relationships to development to emerge. Part seven examines the links between some important areas within development policy and practice where religion is now being considered, including: Faith-Based Organisations and Development Public Health, Religion and Development Human rights, Religion and Development Sustainable Development, Climate Change and Religion Global Institutions and Religious Engagement in Development Economic Development and Religion Religion, Development and Fragile States Development and Faith-Based Education Taking a global approach, the Handbook covers Africa, Latin America, South Asia, East and South-East Asia, and the Middle East. It is essential reading for students and researchers in development studies and religious studies, and is highly relevant to those working in area studies, as well as a range of disciplines, from theology, anthropology and economics to geography, international relations, politics and sociology.

Now available online: The Global Politics of Human Rights: Bringing the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) into the 21st Century (2020), a publication from the Berlin Forum on Global Politics (BFoGP) in collaboration with the Institute for Global Dialogue and the RECLAIM! Universal Human Rights Initiative. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), even more than 70 years after its adoption, continues to provide the foundation for national and international laws concerned with human dignity and the universal and inalienable freedoms and claims of every person. A living document, the core principles enshrined in the UDHR are as relevant as ever to better the human condition and societies worldwide. This collected volume is an open knowledge publication, freely accessible under a Creative Commons license, which includes 24 articles written by numerous well-informed stakeholders from across the globe, who include human rights scholars and practitioners, experts and activists, researchers and members of civil society and non-governmental organizations. It addresses particular aspects of the history of the UDHR, the expansion and implementation of its Articles, its role in the prevention of violence, and its potential to address a changing world. As a whole, the publication serves two goals: on the one hand, it clarifies why the UDHR continues to be strongly relevant to the contemporary values, dynamics, and conditions of human rights in the 21st century; and, on the other hand, it illustrates how the UDHR and its Articles can be further adapted and implemented to uphold and safeguard human rights even in times when global politics often follow the siren songs of populism, authoritarianism, nativism, and extremism.

Religion and Global Politics: Soft Power in Nigeria and Beyond examines the deployment of religious soft power in African states and the potential it has for transforming perceptions of the continent. The contributors refocus the attention on religion away from the ‘misery’ discourse of conflict and violence towards the domain of international relations, diplomacy and foreign policy in Africa. Through this shift, the contributors analyze the ways in which religion has impacted the external relations of African states. Religion and Global Politics introduces the theme of religion to the discourse of African international relations and politics to provide a thorough examination of religion’s influence on politics in the daily lives of African people.

With respect to the countries of the world, this work addresses two basic questions: "How does religion affect politics in this country?" and "How does politics affect religion in this country?" Although there are many books on the topics of religion and politics, reference works that consider the two together are few, with those that do exist primarily addressing theory rather than trends. The present work does the latter, contextualizing them within regional and national boundaries. In so doing, it recognizes the power of political and religious ideas and movements on individuals, communities, and nations, making the work a valuable resource for several disciplines, among them political science, international relations, religion, and sociology. The work focuses on the interplay of religion and politics in countries around the world with an emphasis on the post-2000s. It is organized by global geographic regions including Africa, Central and South America, and the Middle East and presents countries alphabetically within those sections. Each region has a brief overview of the political-religious dynamics of the area so readers can compare and contrast the dynamics between and among countries in a region. The work also includes an introduction, sidebars, and a bibliography.

This comprehensive Handbook examines the relationship between religion and international relations, mainly focusing on several world religions – Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, and Judaism. Providing a timely update on this understudied topic, it evaluates how this complex relationship has evolved over the last four decades, looking at a variety of political contexts, regions and countries.

This innovative volume is focused on the relationship between religion on the one hand and political and judicial rights on the other. At a time when the so-called ‘checks and balances’ that guarantee the vulnerable equilibrium between legislative, executive and judicial branches of governance are increasingly under pressure, this book offers valuable insights. It presents empirical work that has measured young people’s attitudes and explains the variety found across their views. Readers will find answers to the question: To what extent do youths in different countries support political and judicial human rights and what influences their attitudes towards these rights? The political rights in this question include, among others, active and passive voting right, the right to protest, and the rights of refugees. Judicial rights refer in general to the right of a fair trial, and include principles like equality before the law; the right to independent and impartial judgement; the presumption of innocence; the right to legal counsel; and the privilege against self-incrimination. Expert contributing authors look at aspects such as religious beliefs and practices, personal evaluation of state authorities, and personality characteristics. The authors discuss contextual determinants for attitudes towards political and judicial rights, in both theory and empirical indicators. Numerous helpful tables and figures support the written word. This book makes an original contribution to research through the empirical clarification of factors that induce or reduce people’s support of political and judicial rights. It will appeal to graduates and researchers in religious studies, philosophy or sociology of religion, among other disciplines, but it will also interest the general reader who is concerned with matters of human rights and social justice.

Introduction to Global Politics, Fourth Edition, is an accessible, comprehensive, and well-written introductory textbook which emphasizes the evolution of major global issues from the past to the present. By integrating theory and political practice at individual, state, and global levels, students are introduced to key developments in global politics, helping them make sense of major trends that are shaping our world. This completely revised and updated edition includes new material on: the dramatic shift in US policies under President Donald Trump and the post-Trump moves to redo the global scene the coronavirus pandemic and its impact around the world Brexit, and its consequences for the European Union the rise of China and Russia in the international order technological developments in weaponry and the militarization of outer space the growing importance of the politics of identity, the environment, nationalism and populism while retaining much of the structure and many of the features of past editions, including a revised range of faculty and student aids– a test bank, flashcards, glossary, web links, PowerPoint slides, chapter outlines, suggested video clips, map exercises, cultural references, and boxed features Stimulating and provocative, the book is designed to appeal to students and instructors interested in international relations as a broadly defined, multidisciplinary subject encompassing politics, history, economics, military science, psychology, sociology, anthropology, and philosophy.

What could it mean, in terms of strengthening multilateral diplomacy, if the UN, the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), the European Union, and other regional diplomatic frameworks engaged more creatively with a religious perspective? In this ground-breaking volume it is argued that international organisations, backed by governments, can and should use their convening power to initiate new, multi-layered frameworks of engagement, inclusive of the representatives of religion. This can make multilateralism more fit for purpose and have a major impact over time on our planetary future. The book is divided into an introduction and six chapters: Towards a culture of encounter inclusive of the world’s religious traditions Structural questions in 21st-century diplomacy Knowing what we ought to know: the issues that face 21st-century diplomacy Towards the global objective of a common peace for humanity Understanding how change happens The diplomacy of the two standards The development of new frameworks of engagement A brief outline is offered of what an all-European initiative – an agora for Europe – might look like if, in the 2020s, there were the political will to inaugurate a European regional process reflecting the orientation and methodology proposed in the book. Combining cutting-edge research and reflection, with concrete recommendations for academics, religious actors, policy makers, and practitioners, this concise and accessible volume helps to build bridges between these oftentimes separated spheres of engagement. The Open Access version of this book, available at https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003053842, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 license.