Law and religion in the liberal state

Abstract

European Union (by Lucian N. Leustean and Jeffrey Haynes, in Chapter 18). It is interesting to note how the uncovering of the religious matrix – for too long hidden and forgotten – operating at the origins of both these two remarkable institutions of post-Second World War international society is happening at the same time as both these international/supranational organisations strengthen their effort to include religious voices and build better religious literacy and religious engagement capacity as part of their international policymaking toolkit. In a similar way, it was refreshing to read about some ‘old’ and ‘new’ religious actors and international dynamics. There is the thoughtful, knowledgeable Chapter 20 by Mariano Barbato on one of the oldest – and probably among the least well understood – religious actors in international relations, the Papacy, an ‘old’ actor of great contemporary political relevance given the global-political role the head of the Catholic Church has assumed on such different important issues such as the refugee crisis, climate change, and the current Ukrainian crisis, to mention just a few. A fascinating analysis by Daniel G. Hummel explores the new, less well-known, and clearly very important religious diplomacy of the state of Israel as part of US – Israeli bilateral relations (Chapter 25). In sum, as scholars and students of politics with an interest in this growing subfield, we have good reason to be very grateful to Jeffrey Haynes for his herculean effort in bringing this substantial volume together. It is a useful teaching and research addition to what is becoming one of the most dynamic and interesting areas of research in International Relations.