A Principled Framework for the Autonomy of Religious Communities: Reconciling Freedom and Discrimination

It is a popular view that there is tension between religious freedom and equality. Both are essential to a free society but sometimes appear to pursue competing objectives. Against those who despair that conflict is intractable, many scholars from across the spectrum yearn for a resolution.
This book gives substantive content to such calls through applying theological virtues such as love, dignity, patience, humility, forgiveness and kindness. Among others, these virtues acknowledge the inherent worth of all humans while simultaneously cultivating a willingness to permit genuine difference, even profound moral disagreement.
Drawing on these virtues to analyse legal and theoretical approaches to religious freedom and discrimination in Australia, the US, and England, the book constructs a principled framework for reconciling religious freedom and discrimination. Based on this framework, the book provides specific theoretical and legal policy principles to create a peaceful coexistence of difference which values and upholds both religious freedom and equality.