The Price of Freedom Denied: Religious Persecution and Conflict in the Twenty-First Century

by Brian J. Grim , Roger Finke

• ISBN13: 9780521146838
• ISBN10: 0521146836
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2010-12-06
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Summary

The Price of Freedom Denied shows that, contrary to popular opinion, ensuring religious freedom for all reduces violent religious persecution and conflict. Others have suggested that restrictions on religion are necessary to maintain order or preserve a peaceful religious homogeneity. Brian J. Grim and Roger Finke show that restricting religious freedoms is associated with higher levels of violent persecution. Relying on a new source of coded data for nearly 200 countries and case studies of six countries, the book offers a global profile of religious freedom and religious persecution. Grim and Finke report that persecution is evident in all regions and is standard fare for many. They also find that religious freedoms are routinely denied and that government and the society at large serve to restrict these freedoms. They conclude that the price of freedom denied is high indeed.

Author Biography

Brian J. Grim is senior researcher in religion and world affairs at the Pew Research Center's Forum on Religion and Public Life in Washington, D.C. Roger Finke is Professor of Sociology and Religious Studies at the Pennsylvania State University and Director of the Association of Religion Data Archives (www.theARDA.com).

Table of Contents

Preface: Religions' Shared Experience of Religious Persecution and Conflict	p. ix
Religious Persecution: Pervasive and Pernicious	p. 1
Religious Freedom: Broken Promises	p. 25
Persecution: The Price of Freedom Denied	p. 61
Case Studies: Japan (High Levels of Religious Freedoms), Brazil (Freedoms with Some Tensions), and Nigeria (Partitioned Religion-State Power)	p. 88
A Closer Look: China (Religion Viewed as a Threat), India (Social Monopoly), and Iran (Social and Political Monopoly)	p. 120
What about Muslim-Majority Countries?	p. 160
Do Religious Freedoms Really Matter?	p. 202
Appendix: Testing the Competing Arguments	p. 215
Bibliography	p. 223
Index	p. 239
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