About this Book

What is religious freedom? Does religion restrict freedom rather than create it? What is the relationship between religion and the state?

In this volume, Jay Newman takes as his starting-point the conflicting conceptions of the relation of religion to freedom that are at the heart of the disagreement between critics and defenders of religion. Whereas critics of religion see it as largely a hindrance to freedom, defenders of religion view it as a major source of freedom. Yet such expressions as "religious freedom," "religious liberty," "religious liberalism," and "liberal religion" suggest that there is a middle ground worth exploring. This philosophical investigation explores that middle ground in the hope of clarifying the more important relations of religion and freedom and, after considering the paradoxical aspects of religious liberty and religious liberalism, shows how a deeper understanding of the idea of accepting religious authority may help us to transcend the paradoxes.
The fourth in the author's series of studies on religious commitment and its social influences, this volume will engage philosophers, students of religion, and general readers interested in the relationship of religion and society.