Summary

The increasing ethnic and religious diversification to be observed in the West these days, along with the ever diminishing will of those groups to enter into and conduct constructive dialogue, have made the question of religion's role in today's world resound more dramatically than ever. In light of the growing number of Muslims living in Europe and the considerable degree of the Old Continent's secularization, how is Church-State separation to be managed? Should the fear of Islamic fundamentalism lead to stricter execution of the requirement of secularism? - or should it lead to a redoubling of the efforts to work out ways for a friendly coexistence between the State and various faiths, including non-Christian ones?

The American social scientist José Casanova takes up these questions and points to the advantages of the American model of Church-State relations in its institutional acceptance of religious plurality. Within this model, the religious identity of particular groups is duly asserted and justly treated. In Casanova's view, this is the right way to handle the challenge of a multicultural society. Jarosław Jańczak and Wojciech Janyga have jointly written a text in which they sharply criticize the French model of laicité, arguing that the pursuit of religious neutrality on the part of the State protects members of society not only from religious pressure, but also from the very possibility of confronting their worldviews with those of others. Their thesis is the subject of an editorial discussion held between Anna Krasnowolska, Jarosław Gowin, Roman Graczyk, and F. Remigiusz Sobański. F. Tomás Halík for his part recurs to the debate concerning mention of God in the European Constitution's Preamble. He ponders the sources that engender the apprehension entertained by advocates of a secular Europe. "Definitions" by Marek Zając provide an excellent introduction to the topic of "religion and state" in a multicultural world.

Znak's December issue also brings: "Diagnoses" by Karol Tarnowski, who claims that modern terrorism is a new embodiment of totalitarianism; Jacek Wojtysiak's essay on Kant; the regular columns by Piotr Kłodkowski, Małgorzata Łukasiewicz and Halina Bortnowska; and a set of texts by 20-year-olds, this time devoted to the faith of young people; and notes and reviews of freshly published books.

POCZĄTEK STRONY