Center-Related Conferences and Events 2015

9-11 February 2015. Wilton Park Conference on “Developing a Multilateral Approach to Freedom of Religion or Belief:  A European Perspective” at Wilton House, West Sussex, UK.  Cole Durham participating.

23-28 February 2015. International Conference: “Towards Law and Religious Freedom in Africa”, an initiative of the Centre for Human Rights of the Faculty of Law, University of Lagos in collaboration with the Nigerian Bar Association (Lagos and Ikeja Branches); African Consortium for Law and Religion Studies, South Africa and International Centre for Law and Religion Studies, J. Reuben Clark Law School, Brigham Young University, Utah, United States of America.  Cole Durham participating.

22-23 March 2015. Conference Legal and Moral Challenges of Religious Resurgence, sponsored by The International Consortium for Law and Religion Studies and the Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, in Jerusalem. Cole Durham and Brett Scharffs participating. 

28 March 2015. Freedom of Religion Weekend Workshop, co-sponsored by Wayne State University Law School, The International Religious Liberty Institute, and The Detroit Chapter of the J. Reuben Clark Law Society, in Detroit, Michigan.

2-3 April 2015. Annual Spring Meeting of the International Advisory Council, in Salt Lake City, Utah.

6 April 2015. LDS International Society Conference, held at Brigham Young University, in Provo, Utah

16 April 2015. Religious Freedom and Foreign Policy, sponsored by The British Council, the Religion Newswriters Foundation, the Center on Religion and the Professions at Missouri School of Journalism, Lancaster University (UK), and the Religious Freedom Center of the Newseum Institute, Knight Conference Center, Washington, DC.  Cole Durham participating.

11-12 May 2015.  Conference “Religion and the Rule of Law Comparative Studies: Vietnam and the United States”, co-sponsored by the Institute for Global Engagement (IGE), Brigham Young University (BYU), and Vietnam National University’s University of Social Sciences (USSH), Washington, D.C.

14-16 May 2015. Conference “Challenges and Opportunities: Religious Freedom Development in the Sphere of Law” [English]  [Armenian/հայերեն&]  [Russian/ русский язык] (Yerevan, Armenia) Elizabeth Clark participating.

18-19 May 2015. Conference of the African Consortium of Law and Religion: “Religious Freedom and Religious Pluralism in Africa: Prospects and Limitations” (Windhoek, Namibia) Cole Durham and Bob Smith participating.

20-22 May 2015. Conference Religion and development: making better policy to make a bigger difference in Africa, Wilton Park sponsored conference (Cape Town, South Africa) Cole Durham and Bob Smith attending. [Programme]

21 May 2015. The Importance of Application of the Freedom of Conscience in a Democratic Society, Trnava Faculty, Department for legal issues of religious freedom (Trnava University, Slovakia)  Elizabeth Clark participating.

21-23 May 2015.  5th Annual Colloquium of the Latin American Consortium for Religious Liberty, “Advances and Setbacks in the Legal Protection of Religious Liberty” (Universidad Iberoamericana, Mexico City)  Gary Doxey participating.

25-26 May 2015. ReligioWest / European Research Council, Preparatory Conference Towards the Final Report [Draft Programme] (San Domenico di Fiesole, Italy), Cole Durham participating.

30-31 May 2015. Symposium on Marxist Theories of Religion, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing, Brett Scharffs presenting “The Relationship of Religion and the State: The Surprising Similarities and Important Differences in the Political Philosophy of Marx and Locke.” 

5-6 June 2015. Central European University Annual Law and Religion Conference: “Religion and Equality: Contemporary Challenges in Accomodating Diversity” in Budapest, Hungary. Cole Durham and Brett Scharffs participating.

8-12 June 2015.  Brett Scharffs at two conferences in Indonesia: at Gadja Mada University in Yogyakarta and at Muhammadiyah University in Malang.

21-24 June 2015. Oxford Conference: “Magna Carta and Freedom of Religion or Belief” at St. Hugh’s College, Oxford. Cole Durham, Brett Scharffs, David Kirkham, Donlu Thayer participating.

25-26 June 2015. Conference on OSCE Guiding Principles on Legal Personality of Religious Communities, held in Louvain, Belgium.

6-8 July 2015.  Religious Freedom Annual Review, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah.

20-24 July 2015. Sixth Summer Program on Religion and the Rule of Law, held in Beijing, People’s Republic of China.

25 July 2015. “The Boundaries of Religious Activities,” held in Beijing, People’s Republic of China.

10-14 August  2015.  The 17th annual “Meeting of Experts,” organized by the International Religious Liberty Association (IRLA), Pepperdine University in Malibu, CA. Cole Durham participating.

15 August 2015.  Beijing Union University Conference, Beijing, PRC. Brett Scharffs participating, “Vietnam’s Proposed ’Law on Religions and Beliefs’: Differentiating Core, Important, and Desirable Factors Regarding Religion and the Rule of Law — State and Religious Interests”

8-9 September 2015. “Advancing Freedom of Religion or Belief for All” Conference, held at Theological School of Halki, Turkey 

14-25 September 2015. Certificate Training Program on Religion and the Rule of Law, held in Hanoi, Vietnam.

4-7 October 2015. 22nd Annual International Law and Religion Symposium: “Religion, Law, and Social Stability” at Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah.

8-9 October 2015. “International Religious Freedom:  Toward a Model of Transatlantic Cooperation,” a Policy Dialogue, Georgetown University, Washington, D.C.

15-19 October 2015.  Parliament of the World’s Religions, in Salt Lake City, Utah. 

22-23 October 2015. Comparative and International Perspectives against the Background of the Annual Report of the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief, various locations, New York City.

5-6 November 2015. Notre Dame Law Review Annual Symposium: “Religious Liberty and the Free Society: Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Dignitatis Humanae” at University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana. 

7 November 2015. Religious Freedom in a Changing World, University of Utah Law School, Salt Lake City, UT. 

9 November 2015. “Rights Cherished or Freedoms Perished? Perspectives on the future of freedom of conscience, religion and belief and freedom of expression” at Inns of Court, London, England. 

10 November 2015. Protecting Religious Freedom: An Interfaith Invitation, in Orlando, FL.

16-18 November 2015.  G20 Interfaith Summit, Istanbul: “Religion, Harmony and Sustainable Development”, Griffith University, Brigham Young University, and others.

19 November 2015. Launch Event, The OSCE/ODIHR – Venice Commission Guidelines on the Legal Personality of Religious or Belief Communities, held at Istanbul Bilgi University, Istanbul, Turkey.

20-21 November 2015. International Symposium, “Do Freedoms Unite or Divide:  Negotiating the Borders of Freedom of Expression and Freedom of Religion in a Multicultural World,” sponsored by the Alliance of Civilizations Institute, Fatih Sultan Mehmet Waqf University, held in Istanbul, Turkey. 

30 November to 9 December 2015. Religion and Rule of Law Training Program, convened by the Institute for Global Engagement (IGE), Sitagu International Buddhist Academy (SIBA), Myanmar Council of Churches, Catholic Bishops Conference of Myanmar, and the International Center for Law and Religion Studies at BYU, held in Yangon, Myanmar.

5-8 December 2015. Workshop on “Rights, Dilemmas and the Politicisation of Freedom of Religion or Belief,” Oslo Coalition, held in Oslo, Norway.

10-12 December 2015. “Under Caesar’s Sword,” an International Conference on Christian Responses to Persecution, held in Rome, Italy.

Cole Durham Participates in “Religion, Security and Human Rights” Conference at European Parliament, 10 December 2015

The European Platform against Religious Intolerance and Discrimination (EPRID) organized a conference on Human Rights Day, 10 December, 2015, titled “Religion, Security and Human Rights”. The conference, held in Brussels Belgium at the European Parliament, included speakers such as Dr. Heiner Bielefeldt, U.N. Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, Dr. Kishan Manocha, Senior Advisor at OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, Dr. Liviu Olteanu, Secretary General & Director of Conscience and Liberty from the Association Internationale pour la Défense de la Liberté Religieuse, Ms. Kalpna Devi, Human Rights Defender from Pakistan, and the Center’s director, Professor Cole Durham….

First Certificate Training in Myanmar: Religion and the Rule of Law

From 30 November to 9 December, 2015, Professors W. Cole Durham and Brett G. Scharffs, Director and Associate Director of the International Center for Law and Religion Studies, participated in a Religion and Rule of Law Certificate Training Program in Myanmar. The 10-day event was sponsored by the Institute for Global Engagement, Brigham Young University, the Venerable Sitagu Sayadaw, The Catholic Bishops Conference of Myanmar, and the Myanmar Council of Churches. This was believed to be the first event of its kind to be held in Myanmar. Participants included leaders from each of the country’s major religious communities….

G20 Interfaith Forum in Turkey: Religion, Harmony, and Sustainable Development

A Message from the Conference Conveners 

Religion plays a major role in global events, touching issues from medical ethics to cross-border conflicts to macroeconomic trends. However, religion can be misunderstood or even overlooked as a factor in world events and, thus, the contributions faith and religion make to social well-being and policies, which impact national and international communities, are often not recognized.

The 2015 G20 Interfaith Forum held in Istanbul 16-18 November. 2015 brought together scholars, lawyers and political leaders, with faith and interfaith leaders from around the world for three days of discussion and dialogue as a substantial contribution to the G20 Economic Summit. The gathering was designed to showcase the scholarly and societal contributions of various faith traditions and philosophies from around the world, and to create opportunities for communication and relationship building and raise the profile of participating communities, groups, and organizations.

Conference Convenors were

…

Protecting Religious Freedom: An Interfaith Invitation

Protecting Religious Freedom: An Interfaith Invitation: Freedom of religion is a fundamental human right that protects the consciences of all people. It allows us to think, express, and act upon what we deeply believe. But in many parts of the world, as in the United States, this freedom is eroding. Religious organizations and individuals face increasing restrictions as they participate in the public square, express their beliefs, or serve in society. A panel of local faith leaders and international experts met on 10 November 2015, at the First Baptist Orlando Faith Hall in Orlando, Florida, to…

Rights Cherished or Freedoms Perished? Symposium in London, 9 November 2015

The International Center for Law and Religion Studies and the Brigham Young University London Centre were among sponsors of a breakfast symposium held Monday 9 November 2015 at the Inns of Court in London, entitled “Rights Cherished or Freedoms Perished? Perspectives on the future of freedom of conscience, religion and belief and freedom of expression.”  

Mark Hill QC hosted the event at the Francis Taylor Building, Inner Temple. Speakers were Tim Wilson, Australian Human Rights Commissioner, and Brendan O’Neill, editor of Spiked Online, Britain’s first on-line only current affairs magazine, and a columnist for the Big Issue in London, the Australian in Sydney and a blogger…

Brett Scharffs at Notre Dame Law Review Symposium, 6 November 2015

Professor Brett G. Scharffs, Center Associate Director and Law School Associate Dean for Faculty and Curriculum, participated the Volume 91 Symposium of the Notre Dame Law Review: Religious Liberty and the Free Society: Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Dignitatis Humanae. The Symposium opened on November 5, 2015 with an address from Bishop Daniel E. Flores, Bishops of Brownsville, Texas, and continued on November 6 with a series of panel discussions moderated by Hon. Richard Sullivan, Southern District of New York. Professor Scharffs participated on the panel “Examining the History of Digntitatis Humanae and Religious Freedom” with Phillip Muñoz, Notre Dame Law School and Anna Su, University of Toronto Faculty…

UN Side Event: Annual Report of the Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief

A series of events under the theme Comparative and International Perspectives against the Background of the Annual Report of the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief was held in New York City on October 22 and 23, 2015 in connection with the delivery of the Annual Report at the United Nations by Special Rapporteur Heiner Bielefeldt.

Following the delivery on Thursday of the Report entitled “The Rights of the Child and His or Her Parents in the Area of Freedom of Religion or Belief”, a reception was held honoring Heiner Bielefeldt and discussing…

Archbishop William E. Lori Receives 2015 International Religious Liberty Award

The J. Reuben Clark Law Society and the International Center for Law and Religion Studies are honored to announce that the Most Reverend William Edward Lori, in presented with the International Religious Liberty Award for 2015. 

Archbishop Lori is Archbishop of the Baltimore Archdiocese and head of the Ad Hoc Committee for Religious Liberty of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. He has played a leading role in gathering an interfaith coalition to promote the freedom to exercise one’s faith in both private and public life. 

Religious liberty “is not merely a privilege that the government grants us and so may take away at will, Archbishop Lori observed in an address before Congress in 2011. Religions liberty, rather, “is inherent in our very humanity, hard-wired into each and every one…

Winners of the 6th Annual Founding Fathers Religious Liberty Writing Contest – October 2015

The Mid-Atlantic Chapter of the J. Reuben Clark Law Society and the International Center for Law and Religion Studies of Brigham Young University are pleased to announce the winners of the Sixth Annual Founding Fathers Religious Liberty Writing Contest.

The following students were honored at an Awards Dinner held at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, DC on 8 October 2015.

First Place:Cash Award of $4000 

  • Nicholas Reaves (University of Virginia School of Law) – “Uniquely Qualified: The Constitutionality of Police and Clergy Alliances”

…

22nd Annual International Law and Religion Symposium: “Religion, Law, and Social Stability”

The Twenty-second Annual International Law and Religion Symposium was held 4-6 October 2015 on the campus of Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. This year’s delegates — approximately 90 leading scholars, jurists, and political and civil society leaders from 38 countries — joined in exploring issues surrounding the theme Religion, Law, and Social Stability. 

The Center expresses its gratitude to the distinguished keynote speakers, who also received this year’s Distinguished Service Award. Dr. Gunnar Stålsett and Professor David Little opened the conference with excellent and thought-provoking addresses.

The Center is also immensely grateful to all of the distinguished delegates, many of whom made considerable sacrifices to travel long distances to be with us in Provo and Salt Lake City. The depth and breadth of the presentations…

Fourth Certificate Training in Vietnam: Religion and the Rule of Law

Brigham Young University Law School professors Cole Durham and Brett Scharffs, Director and Associate Director of the International Center for Law and Religion Studies, participated in the fourth Certificate Training Program on Religion and the Rule of Law in Vietnam, held 14-23 September 2015 in Hanoi. Co-sponsored by the Center, the Institute for Global Engagement, and the University of Social Sciences and Humanities Hanoi, these annual training programs bring together experts in religion and good governance from Asia, Europe, and the United States with government officials, policy advisors, faith leaders, researchers, professors, and students — this year almost 70 of them — to strengthen a growing network of experts on law and religion in Vietnam and throughout Southeast…

Advancing Freedom of Religion or Belief for All: Experts Gather at Halki, 7-9 September 2015

Press Release No: 15/34 – September 2015 – Istanbul/Heybeliada

From September 7 to 9 more than 40 human rights experts from across Europe journeyed to the hilltop theological school of Halki on the Turkish island of Heybeliada. Once the heart of theological education for the Orthodox world, the school closed in 1971 as a result of a ban on private higher education in Turkey. Arriving by plane, train, and even by foot, participants discussed and debated approaches to advancing freedom of religion or belief.

Participants were drawn from CEC Member Churches, civil society, academia, and the European Institutions. Topics covered included the need for religious literacy, the role of religion in the public and political spheres, the need for greater internal and external coherence of…

Advancing Freedom of Religion or Belief for All: Cole Durham Joins Experts in Turkey

Professor Cole Durham, Director of the International Center for Law and Religion Studies (Brigham Young University, USA), and President of the International Consortium for Law and Religion Studies (Milan, Italy) was among the Experts gathered at the Theological School Halki in Istanbul/Heybeliada, Turkey, from 6-9 September 2015, to discuss “Advancing Freedom of Religion or Belief for All”. The conference convened under the auspices of The Ecumenical Patriarchate and the Conference of European Churches (CEC), as Churches Together for Human Rights. For an account of the conference, see CEC&nbsp…

Highlighting the Peace-Making Power of Religion, Despite its Mixed Track Record – 2015

The 17th annual “Meeting of Experts,” organized by the International Religious Liberty Association (IRLA) met August 10-14, 2015, at Pepperdine University in Malibu, CA. A diverse panel of scholars, representing universities and organizations from seven countries, examined the role of religion in current global conflicts while also focusing on ways that faith can forge peace. Presenters included Robert A Seiple, current IRLA president, and Professor Cole Durham, acting in his role as President of the International Consortium for Law and Religion Studies. You may read more about the meeting at the link below. 

Religious Freedom Annual Review 2015: “Fairness for All”

Utah Governor Gary R. Herbert, Professor Robin Fretwell Wilson of the University of Illinois College of Law, and Director W. Cole Durham Jr. of BYU Law School’s International Center for Law and Religion Studies were among the experts participating in the 2015 Religious Freedom Annual Review,” Fairness for All,” sponsored by the Center and hosted July 6-8 by BYU Continuing Education.

Click to view conference

The purpose of the event was to provide an update for lawyers and nonlawyers on religious freedom challenges in the…

The 2015 Oxford Conference: Magna Carta and Freedom of Religion or Belief

The International Center for Law and Religion Studies, in cooperation with the Oxford Journal of Law and Religion, hosted its 2015 Oxford Conference June 21-24  at St Hugh’s College, Oxford, commemorating the 800th anniversary of the sealing of Magna Carta, “the greatest constitutional document of all times—the foundation of the freedom of the individual against the arbitrary authority of the despot”.{*} 

SOME PHOTOS FROM THE CONFERENCE MAY BE FOUND HERE.

The event began with a devotional Sunday evening at the Oxford LDS Meetinghouse, featuring an address Religious Freedom and the Habits of the Heart by Elder Bruce C. Hafen, Emeritus General Authority and Member of the First Quorum of Seventy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and a violin performance of Ave Maria (Bach / Gounod) by Mark Oshia of Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, accompanied by Elder Hafen.

Monday featured presentations…

Professor Scharffs: Two Indonesia Programs on Sharia and Human Rights – June 2015

In June 2015 Professor Brett Scharffs participated in two teaching programs designed to create bridges between Islamic Law and Human Rights. One program was held at a leading secular university in Yogyakarta, Gadja Mada University, and the other was at an Islamic University in Malang, Muhammadiyah University. The programs bring together experts on Human Rights and on Islamic Law with students of law, Islamic Law, sociology and history, as well as practitioners from a range of NGOs. Professor Scharffs made presentations on the history and drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and freedom of religion from a human rights perspective. The papers from the courses are being compiled into a textbook that will be published in both English and Bahasa in Indonesia next year. John Lowe, who just completed his first year at BYU Law School, also participated in the program, providing informal translation support and helping with logistics.

CEU 2015: Religion and Equality: Contemporary Challenges in Accommodating Diversity

The 2015 annual CEU Conference, held 5-6 June, focused on challenges in accommodating diversity and brought together distinguished international scholars, parliamentarians, human rights council members, and practicing attorneys, representing United States, Europe, Eastern Europe, and Russia.

For more than 20 years, Cole Durham has been a visiting faculty member at Central European University (CEU) in Budapest, in a program where distinguished professors from 30 countries teach students from 100 countries. Professor Durham was joined nine years ago in this endeavor by Professor Brett Scharffs, and they have together built coursework from their casebook, Law and Religion: National, International, and Comparative Perspectives. An outgrowth of this longstanding partnership with CEU has been a series of panels and discussions culminating in an important series of annual conferences. 

“CEU has proved to be an ideal venue for bringing people together from Central and Eastern Europe and…

Brett Scharffs at Symposium in Beijing on Marxist Theories of Religion – May 2015

Dean Brett G. Scharffs, Associate Dean for Faculty and Curriculum, Francis R. Kirkham Professor of Law, and Associate Director of the International Center for Law and Religion Studies, participated in a Symposium on Marxist Theories of Religion sponsored by the Institute of World Religions, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences on May 30-31, 2015, in Beijing. Professor Scharffs’ presentation was titled, “The Relationship of Religion and the State: The Surprising Similarities and Important Differences in the Political Philosophy of Marx and Locke.” The paper, which will be published in the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences Journal of the Institute of World Religions, will focus on a narrow question: How should we understand the respective views of Karl Marx and John Locke on the ideal relationship of religion and the state?

The paper focuses not on the respective views of Marx and Locke about the truth of (some) religion, its social value, or its historical prospects. Rather, it focuses on the particular issue of how the state should situate itself institutionally vis-à-vis religion. Professor Scharffs argues “that for all their differences – and they are legion – there is a surprising overlap between Marx and Locke in their thinking about the political and legal stance that the state should take towards religion as a social institution. Both argue, powerfully and unequivocally against an alignment of religion and the state, and both argue for a strong separation of religion and the state. The expectation of the ultimate outcome of this separation is different. Locke expects ‘true’ religion to flourish; Marx expects religion, stripped bare of state sanction and support, to gradually recede and perhaps disappear. But that is a question history will answer. For the state, here and now, and all the more in the ‘new normal’ of globalization and rapid social change, both would reject a management mindset and agree that the proper political stance of the state should be one of institutional and financial separation.

Advances and Setbacks in the Legal Protection of Religious Freedom, Mexico City, May 2015

The 15th Annual Colloquium of the Latin American Consortium for Religious Liberty was held May 21-23, 2015 at the Universidad Iberoamericana in Mexico City, Mexico. Sponsored by the Latin American Consortium for Religious Liberty, the Universidad Iberoamericana, and the International Center for Law and Religion Studies at BYU, the conference focused on the theme “Advances and Setbacks in the Legal Protection of Religious Freedom”. The inaugural session was chaired by the principal host and organizer of the colloquium, Prof. Dr. Alberto Patiño Reyes of Universidad Iberoamericana.  Other participants included Prof. Dra. Maria Concepción Medina González, acting as the “Relatora General” of the colloquium. Prof. Dr. Raul Gonzalez Schmal, who delivered the inaugural address, and Prof. Dra. Carmen Asiaín Pereira, President of the Latin American Consortium…

Religious Freedom and Religious Pluralism in Africa: Prospects and Limitations – May 2015

The Third Conference on Law and Religion in Africa took place in Windhoek, Namibia, May 18-19, 2015. This memorable and very successful conference focused on the theme “Religious Freedom and Religious Pluralism in Africa: Prospects and Limitations.” Some sixty participants are participatee in the conference, from 17 countries:  UK, US, Ethiopia, Egypt, Nigeria, Benin, Ghana, South Africa, Senegal, Namibia, Rwanda, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Zambia, Botswana, Uganda, Belgium.

Participants discussed such topics as:

  • African traditional law / religion
  • Human rights and dignity (including rights of children, the disabled, the elderly and women)
  • Implications of globalisation, neo-liberalism, democratisation, and fragile states for religious

…

Conference: “Religious Freedom Development in the Sphere of Law” – Yerevan, Armenia

With thanks to Ryan Andersen

From May 13-15, 2015 scholars and attorneys from the United States, Europe, and Central Asia met in Yerevan, Armenia to participate in the conference “Challenges and Opportunities: Religious Freedom Development in the Sphere of Law”.  The International Center for Law and Religious Studies and the Coordinating Counsel for CIS and Baltic Countries on Theoretical and Practical Aspects of Religious Studies (Kyiv, Ukraine—Moscow, Russia) co-hosted the event, which focused on the development of law and religion in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union.

See conference reports and photographs from the website Religions in Armenia.  More Conference photos are here.

Topics ranged from religion and the environment, the religious aspect of the conflict in Eastern Ukraine and its effects on religious life in Ukraine, religious divides…

“Religion and the Rule of Law Comparative Studies: Vietnam and the United States”

Press Release from the Institute for Global Engagement

From 11-12 May 2015, the Institute for Global Engagement (IGE), in partnership with Brigham Young University (BYU) and Vietnam National University’s University of Social Sciences & Humanities (USSH), conducted a “Religion and the Rule of Law Comparative Studies: Vietnam and the United States” conference in Washington, DC. The conference examined religious freedom, good governance, and policymaking in the U.S. and Vietnam.

Conference participants focused on four cross-cutting themes: 1) Registration and legal status of religious groups; 2) Rights of religious foreign entities and individuals; 3) New religions; and, 4) Religious property. Experts from both countries brought various academic, religious, legislative, and international…

Conference in Jerusalem: Legal and Moral Challenges of Religious Resurgence – March 2015

Professor Cole Durham and Dean Brett Scharffs, Director and Associate Director of the International Center for Law and Religion Studies (ICLRS), participated in the conference “Legal and Moral Challenges of Religious Resurgence” held 22-23 March 2015 in Jerusalem, at the Van Leer Jerusalem Institute. Co-sponsored by the Institute and the International Consortium for Law and Religion Studies (Milan) (ICLARS), the conference featured presentations from scholars from Israel, the United States, and the United Kingdom.  Participants were greeted and welcomed by Director of the Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, Gabriel Motzkin; by Professor Durham, and by Joseph David, Associate Faculty Member, University of Oxford and Professor of Law, Sapir Academic College, who joined again for Closing Reflections. José Casanova, Head of The Berkley Center’s Program on Globalization, Religion…

International Conference: Towards Law and Religious Freedom in Africa

An International Conference “Towards Law and Religious Freedom in Africa” was held at the University of Lagos, Nigeria, February 26-28, 2015. The conference was an initiative of the Centre for Human Rights of the Faculty of Law, University of Lagos in collaboration with the Nigerian Bar Association (Lagos and Ikeja Branches); the African Consortium for Law and Religion Studies, South Africa, and the International Center for Law and Religion Studies, J. Reuben Clark Law School, Brigham Young University. 

The Chief Host and Host of the event were the Vice-Chancellor, University of Lagos, Professor Rahamon A. Bello, FAEng, and the Dean, Faculty of Law, University of Lagos, Professor Akin Ibidapo-Obe…

Report: Launch Event for the ODIHR/Venice Commission Guidelines on the Legal Personality of Religious or Belief Communities – 4 February 2015

Report from Cole Durham at the European Parliament

On February 4, 2015, the European Parliamentary Intergroup on Freedom of Religion or Belief and Religious Tolerance hosted, at the European Parliament in Brussels, a launch event for the newly published ODIHR/Venice Commission Guidelines on the Legal Personality of Religious or Belief Communities.

The event was chaired by MEP Dennis de Jong, Co-President of the Intergroup on Freedom of Religion or Belief and Religious Tolerance of the EU Parliament, and featured introductory remarks by Snježana Bokulić, Head of the Human Rights Department, OSCE/ODIHR; a presentation of the Guidelines by Finola Flanagan, Former Member of the European Commission for Democracy Through Law (The Venice Commission) and Engy Abdelkader, Member of the OSCE/ODIHR Advisory Panel on Freedom of Religion or Belief; and comments by John Kinahan, of Forum 18.  After formal presentations…