Intersections of Religion and Law: Freedom, Social Change, and Human Rights

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to invite you to contribute to this Special Issue of Religions on “Intersections of Religion and Law: Freedom, Social Change, and Human Rights”. The interaction between religious norms and legal frameworks is one of the most enduring, multifaceted, and contested dynamics in human societies. Throughout history and across cultures, law and religion have functioned as parallel—and, at times, antagonistic—sources of authority, shaping notions of justice, identity, and belonging.

In the contemporary world, as modern states grapple with questions of legal pluralism, minority rights, secularism, and multiculturalism, the convergence—and frequent collision—of legal and religious orders has become central to debates about freedom, inclusion, and societal transformation. Legal systems regulate religious expression in vastly different ways: in some contexts, as protectors of individual liberty; in others, as mechanisms of state control or majoritarian dominance. Meanwhile, religious communities invoke sacred norms to challenge secular authority, negotiate identity, or demand recognition.

Religious traditions thus function not only as frameworks for personal belief and ritual practice, but also as normative systems that influence lawmaking, public policy, and moral imagination. In an age marked by resurging religious nationalism, identity-based politics, health crises, and global human rights struggles, this intersection between religion and law requires fresh scholarly engagement across disciplines and traditions.

This Special Issue aims to explore the diverse, evolving, and, at times, contested relationships between law and religion. It welcomes interdisciplinary inquiry into how legal and religious institutions engage with questions of freedom, authority, justice, and the common good. Drawing on fields such as law, theology, philosophy, health studies, political science, ethics, and sociology, this issue seeks to illuminate the regulatory frameworks, cultural tensions, and transformative potential that arise at the nexus of religion and law.

This topic sits squarely within the scope of Religions as a journal committed to examining religion in all its historical, philosophical, and contemporary dimensions—especially its interaction with modern global challenges.

We welcome contributions that address, but are not limited to, the following themes:

1. Theoretical and doctrinal foundations of religious freedom in various legal systems
2. Religious law and state law: cooperation, conflict, and accommodation
3. The role of religious norms in shaping understandings of human rights
4. Religion, law, and gender justice: sites of conflict and reform
5. Religion, health, and the politics of bodily regulation
6. Legal pluralism and the governance of religious minorities
7. Constitutional secularism and its discontents
8. The regulation of religious symbols, dress, and expression in public life
9. Indigenous spiritualities, sacred traditions, and legal recognition
10. Faith-based activism, legal resistance, and social movements
11. Comparative and empirical case studies on the religious dimensions of legal transformation

Original research articles, theoretical analyses, conceptual explorations, and interdisciplinary case studies are all welcome.

We hope this Special Issue will serve as a platform for critical and constructive dialogue on the possibilities and challenges presented by the intersection of religion and law. In doing so, it will aim to contribute meaningfully to academic debates and public policy conversations on pluralism, justice, human dignity, and the moral foundations of law in an increasingly interconnected yet divided world.

Submission Guidelines:

We invite interested authors to submit a proposed title and a 200–300 word abstract summarizing their intended contributions. Please send your abstracts directly to the Guest Editor, Dr. Nadirsyah Hosen, at nhosen@unimelb.edu.au, or to the Assistant Editor of Religions, Ms. Evelyn Zeng, at evelyn.zeng@mdpi.com. All abstracts will be reviewed for thematic alignment with the Special Issue. Full manuscripts will undergo double-blind peer review in accordance with journal policies.

Deadline for abstract submission: 1 December 2025

Deadline for full manuscript submission: 1 August 2026

We look forward to your participation, and to cultivating a rich and timely scholarly dialogue on religion and law. 

Dr. Nadirsyah Hosen
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.