Religion and the State: Secularism, Identity, and the Politics of Exclusion

Dear Colleagues,

We invite proposals for a Special Issue of Religions on the theme Religion and the State: Secularism, Identity, and the Politics of Exclusion. This Special Issue seeks to examine how religion and secularism are mobilized by states in ways that shape national identities, define political boundaries, and legitimize forms of inclusion and exclusion.

From the ideal of state neutrality to the assertion of dominant religious or secular ideologies, the relationship between religion and state power remains a central terrain of contestation in both liberal democracies and authoritarian regimes. In recent years, the rise in religious nationalism, the securitization of religion, and the growing appeal of post-secular critiques have challenged conventional understandings of secular governance and pluralism. Moreover, even the idea of laicism, which implies a democratic, inclusive, egalitarian public sphere, is reported to have been implemented to exclude Muslim citizens.

This Special Issue invites critical reflections on the changing configurations of religion and the state, particularly as they relate to citizenship, identity politics, and the management of difference.

Core Questions Include the Following:

• How is secularism constructed and contested in different political contexts?
• In what ways do states use religion (or secularism) to define national identity or marginalize minority groups?
• How do legal, cultural, and institutional frameworks regulate the role of religion in public life?
• What are the implications of these dynamics for democratic inclusion, freedom of belief, and minority rights?

Topics of Interest May Include (but are not limited to) the Following:

• Competing models of secularism (e.g., laïcité, multicultural secularism, post-secularism)
• Religion, nationalism, and state-sponsored identity
• Legal and constitutional boundaries between religion and the state
• Religion and the securitization of public space
• Postcolonial critiques of secular governance
• Minority religious rights and the politics of recognition
• Gender, sexuality, and religious regulation
• Religious populism and authoritarian secularism
• Case studies from the Global South and Global North

We welcome interdisciplinary contributions from religious studies, political science, sociology, anthropology, law, history, and related fields. We are particularly interested in articles that engage with both empirical cases and broader theoretical debates.

Keywords:

• Religion and state;
• Secularism and exclusion;
• Religious nationalism;
• Post-secular critiques

Submission Guidelines:

Please submit a proposal of no more than 500 words, including:

• Title and abstract outlining your central argument, methods, and theoretical framework
• A short author biography (150 words max)
• The anticipated format of the paper (e.g., theoretical essay, empirical case study, comparative analysis)

Prof. Dr. Alberto Spektorowski
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the Special Issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Religions is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.