The interaction between church and state takes many forms around the world today. In the U.S. Constitution, the two are declared separate, while a number of countries where religion plays a significant role in government policy avoid defining the relationship altogether. Then there are the outright theocracies, where church and state are not only inseparable, but indistinguishable.

This timely and authoritative resource combines both topical and country-by-country coverage to help readers understand the coexistence of church and state in nations around the world today.

At a time when faith-based groups have become more politically active in the United States, and with religious conflicts at the epicenter of many of the world’s most dangerous hotspots, Religion and the State: An International Analysis of Roles and Relationships could not be more welcomed or timely. Country by country, faith by faith, it unravels the historic underpinnings and long-range effects of the relationship between religious principles and the operations of government in its many guises worldwide.

The work combines topical essays on significant developments in the confluence of religion and law throughout the world with short descriptions of each countries' current treatment of religion. Readers can investigate specific nations, compare situations across nations, and explore key issues in the pervasive, often controversial relationship between religion and government.

• 200 entries—a combination of issue-based essays and country-by-country coverage of the relationship between religion and government worldwide
• A chronology of key events in the history of interactions between church and state, from the origins of the conflict between Judaism and Islam, to the Spanish Inquisition and King Henry VIII’s break with the Catholic Church, to the growth of Muslim theocracies and rise of the Christian right in the United States
• An extensive bibliography of resources for further reading both in print and online
• A helpful glossary of terms and a comprehensive index