THE IMPORTANCE OF RELIGION AND THE SECULAR FOR PEACE AND WAR: CHALLENGES FOR SCHOLARS SEEN IN THE LIGHT OF THE EDICT OF MILAN
THE IMPORTANCE OF RELIGION AND THE SECULAR FOR PEACE AND WAR: CHALLENGES FOR SCHOLARS SEEN IN THE LIGHT OF THE EDICT OF MILAN

Summary/Abstract: Religion has come to be seen as one of the most common and powerful drivers of armed conflict. This article departs from a prominent portion of the existing academic literature in suggesting that the extensive influence of religion in conflicts cannot be seen primarily as an isolated radicalising ideological force which works by defining the extremity of the crisis at hand. Rather, it is argued, religion exercises much of its influence through practices which express the norms of institutions and communities experiencing conflict. It is for this reason, the essay concludes, that to some religious institutions can appear to define communal aspirations in a conflict, while to others there seems to be no necessary link between that conflict and the use of religious forms or the roles taken by religious actors.

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