Religious Commitment and Secular ReasonCambridge University Press, 2000 M03 13 Many religious people are alarmed about features of the current age - violence in the media, a pervasive hedonism, a marginalization of religion, and widespread abortion. These concerns influence politics, but just as there should be a separation between church and state, so should there be a balance between religious commitments and secular arguments calling for social reforms. Robert Audi offers a principle of secular rationale, which does not exclude religious grounds for action but which rules out restricting freedom except on grounds that any rational citizen would accept. The book describes the essential commitments of free democracy, explains how religious and secular moral considerations can be integrated to facilitate co-operation in a world of religious pluralism, and proposes ideals of civic virtue that express the mutual respect on which democracy depends. Audi offers a balanced and sophisticated treatment of the relations between religion and politics in a modern, secular society. |
Contents
| 3 | |
The Separation of Church and State | 31 |
ChurchState Separation and the Justification | 59 |
PART | 79 |
Toward Integration | 116 |
PART THREE | 143 |
Religious Conviction and Political Activism | 181 |
Ethics Religion and Democracy | 209 |
Notes | 217 |
Index | 253 |
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Common terms and phrases
abortion action adequate secular reason appropriate argue basic basis believe Chapter civic virtue clergy coercion coercive conception concern conduct conscientious consider constitutes discourse discussion evidentially facie obligation fetus free and democratic freedom gious governmental human ideals imply important individuals innocent instance institutions intuitionism issue John Rawls justified Kantian Kent Greenawalt kind laws or public least liberal democracy ligious major matter moral principles neutrality principle Nicholas Wolterstorff non-religious notion omnibenevolent one's personhood plausible position preference premises presumption presumption of innocence principle of secular public policy Public Reasons question Rawls relevant religion religious arguments religious citizens religious commitments religious considerations religious grounds religious obligation religious reasons require restrict Robert Audi role secular motivation secular rationale sense separation of church social sociopolitical standards tend theism theo-ethical equilibrium theological theory Thomas Nagel tion tradition utilitarian violence virtue ethics vote W. D. Ross