The relationship between law and religion has been undergoing a radical reassessment across the world in the last few decades, as states and governments begin to reassess what the relationship between the two should be in modern pluralist democracies. Far from witnessing a decline in the importance of religion, most legal systems are seeing the regulation of religion by law becoming more problematic. The studies contained in this volume draw together a wealth of research from many jurisdictions to consider what the current regulatory perspective is between the state and the religions that it governs. It builds upon the work of the International Consortium for Law and Religion Studies (ICLARS), which met in Milan in January 2009 and which gave impetus and inspiration to the book. In creating this text the Consortium has made accessible an invaluable variety of different perspectives on and different approaches to how and to what extent law and religion interact from different jurisdictions with very different legal traditions and cultures.

The first chapter, by Grace Davie, introduces the studies from the perspective of the sociology of religion, surveying the part that religion has played in elections to the American presidency. This obviously raises interesting questions about the continuing influence of religion in what is, arguably, both the most advanced Western state and the most religious, running contrary to the standard perception that secularity and modernity go hand in hand. The author analyses the results from the 2000, 2004 and 2008 elections between Gore and Bush, Kerry and Bush and Obama and McCain by religious affiliation and race, and also by worship attendance – that is, the regularity of attendance at worship of those surveyed. The article also demonstrates variations between different states in the influence and role that religion played. Davie goes on to consider the extent to which Europeans grasped what was happening, considering the very different experience that Europe has had in the declining influence of religion in politics. In doing so it makes some fascinating points about the role that religion plays in all these areas.

Part I of the book is entitled ‘Patterns of Law and Religion’ and examines South Africa, West Africa, India, Japan, the United States and challenges emanating from Latin America. The article on South Africa examines the impact of the 1996 constitutional protections on the South African religious demography, and the way in which these provisions have to deal with an increasingly diverse situation. South Africa has a predominantly Christian religious tradition, but one that is divided between a great number of different denominations, as well as the re-emergence of more traditional African religious traditions, which has been witnessed in other parts of the continent as well. India, of course, has always had a very varied religious tradition, being the birthplace of major religions, and the article in this section bring the reader up to date with many of the developments that have taken place in the subcontinent in recent years, predominantly through legislative enactments.

In Part II the editors have focused on Europe, examining predominantly Church–state relations across the continent and the many practices adopted. There is a study by Mark Hill of the, perhaps confusing, relations of state and Church in the United Kingdom – ranging from established Churches in England and Scotland to disestablished Anglican Churches in Wales and Ireland. These relationships may be compared with those within the states of northern, central and eastern Europe. Obviously the experiences of these states (particularly in the realm of Church–state relations) are very different from those of the United Kingdom, but they also differ from one to another. Northern Europe has had established Churches for much of the period from the Second World War, whereas, in many parts of central and eastern Europe, the Churches had to co-exist with an outwardly secular communist regime. There is also a general introduction by Giuseppe Casuscelli to the concept of Europe as a multinational idea and the effect that this has on our understanding of the Church–state relationships that exist. It presents a useful, informative and thought-provoking treatment of what we mean by Europe and the way in which divergent traditions have to be accommodated in what are pluralist modern democracies.

Part III concentrates on the current debate over the international legal protections of the United Nations International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. It has a contribution by Blandine Chélini-Pont that examines the controversial approach taken to religion in the French Republic. In this Part there is also consideration of the approaches that states have taken to the role of religious symbols, resulting in a number of cases across Europe. Finally there are a number of contributions on the current debates concerning the legal status of Islam across the world, including a general introduction, a study of Canadian Muslim women and the resolution of family disputes, and an article on the implementation of the 1992 agreement in Spain. Silvio Ferrari draws the collection together at the end.

Each article has fascinating details for students and scholars of law and religion. Two particularly stood out for me. First, the consideration of the Yasukuni Shrine in Japan and the inclusion therein of Japanese soldiers who were convicted of war crimes and second, the article considering the protection of human rights under the medieval empires of sub-Saharan Africa. It was intriguing to discover that in the legal systems of these states there were provisions protecting religious rights that predated Magna Carta in England. It certainly makes one pause to consider our belief in the superiority of Western legal processes and protections. There can be few books that bring together contributions from such a variety of authors from numerous universities and, indeed, from legal practice. Some authors hold chairs in their discipline, while others are at the start of their academic careers, beginning to get to grips with research in this area. All of them are interesting to both the specialist and the lay reader.