Symposium 2014: “Varieties of Secularism, Religion, and the Law”

The 21st annual International Law and Religion Symposium, this year featuring 80 invited delegates, from 40 countries, addressed the theme “Varieties of Secularism, Religion, and the Law.” The Symposium opened Sunday evening, 5 October, with welcoming remarks by BYU Law School Dean, James R. Rasband, and President of Brigham Young University, Kevin J Worthen. The Keynote Address was given by United States Senator for Utah Orrin Hatch, who also was presented with the Center’s Distinguished Service Award, by Professor W Cole Durham, Jr., Director of the International Center for Law and Religion Studies.

This year’s delegates included scholars, government officials, journalists, and religious and civic leaders from Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Croatia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Dominican Republic, France, Greece, Guatemala, Guyana, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Japan, Laos, Malaysia, Mexico, Mongolia, Nigeria, Norway, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Russia, Singapore, Slovakia, South Korea, Spain, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, United States, and Vietnam.

The delegates addressed such topics as “Secularism, Religion, and Social Tension”, “Religious Responses to Secularism”, “Varieties of Secularism”, “The Future of Secularisms”, and “Religious and Theoretical Understandings of Secularism”, as well as Secularism, Religion, and Law from national and regional perspectives.

The Annual Symposium is organized and hosted by the International Center for Law and Religion Studies of the J. Reuben Clark Law School at Brigham Young University.