Posted on by Christina Vlahos

Call for Papers – The Religion & Law Review

The Religion & Law Review, a new journal for early scholars, has issued a call for papers, as well as a call for editors and peer reviewers.  The Review’s description follows:

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The Religion & Law Review (RLR) was born to aid early scholars. The RLR is an academic space where articles, book reviews, blog posts, and other content explore the intersection between religion and law in an approachable, international, and interdisciplinary format. In particular, the Review will consist of a triannual publication of submitted articles from early scholars accepted through a double-blind peer review process. Through a scholastic and faculty benefactor the RLR is able to offer prizes to the top two papers in our first publication. Upon the conferral of the Editorial Committee $100 will be awarded to the top paper and $50 for the runner-up. A Call for Papers will open on November 1st. See http://www.religion.legal to join our editorial and peer review team before October 2nd.

The RLR is also asking for scholars, professionals, and academics to answer a survey on religion & law. The survey submissions thus far have included guidance on research, the job market, new trends, role models of old, and more. The results will be synthesized into an article to introduce our first volume.

To apply for an editorial position, click here.

To submit an application for the Peer Review Committee, click here.

To submit a paper, click here.

Posted on by Christina Vlahos

“Saving the People” (Marzouki et al, eds.)

In November, Oxford University Press will release “Saving the People: How Populists Hijack Religion,” edited by Nadia Marzouki (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique), Duncan McDonnell (Griffith University), and Olivier Roy (European University Institute). The publisher’s description follows:

Western democracies are experiencing a new wave of right-wing populism that seeks to 9780190639020mobilize religion for its own ends. With chapters on the United States, Britain, France, Italy, Austria, the Netherlands, Poland and Israel, Saving the People asks how populist movements have used religion for their own ends and how church leaders react to them. The authors contend that religion is more about belonging than belief for populists, with religious identities and traditions being deployed to define who can and cannot be part of ‘the people’. This in turn helps many populists to claim that native Christian communities are being threatened by a creeping and highly aggressive process of Islamization, with Muslims becoming a key ‘enemy of the people’. While Church elites generally condemn this instrumental use of religions, populists take little heed, presenting themselves as the true saviours of the people. The policy implications of this phenomenon are significant, which makes this book all the more timely and relevant to current debate.

Posted on by Christina Vlahos

Guirguis, “Copts and the Security State”

In November, Stanford University Press will release “Copts and the Security State: Violence, Coercion, and Sectarianism in Contemporary Egypt,” by Laure Guirguis (Orient-Institut, Max Weber Foundation).  The publisher’s description follows:

Copts and the Security State combines political, anthropological, and social history to
analyze the practices of the Egyptian state and the political acts of the Egyptian Coptic pid_26146minority. Laure Guirguis considers how the state, through its subjugation of Coptic citizens, reproduces a political order based on religious identity and difference. The leadership of the Coptic Church, in turn, has taken more political stances, thus foreclosing opportunities for secularization or common ground. In each instance, the underlying logics of authoritarianism and sectarianism articulate a fear of the Other, and, as Guirguis argues, are ultimately put to use to justify the expanding Egyptian security state.

In outlining the development of the security state, Guirguis focuses on state discourses and practices, with particular emphasis on the period of Hosni Mubarak’s rule, and shows the transformation of the Orthodox Coptic Church under the leadership of Pope Chenouda III. She also considers what could be done to counter the growing tensions and violence in Egypt. The 2011 Egyptian uprising constitutes the most radical recent attempt to subvert the predominant order. Still, the revolutionary discourses and practices have not yet brought forward a new system to counter the sectarian rhetoric, and the ongoing counter-revolution continues to repress political dissent.