The Lautsi Papers: Multidisciplinary Reflections on Religious Symbols in the Public School Classroom

Reviews / Votes

"[O]ffers a wide range of disciplinary, comparative and political perspectives on the intersection of religion, secularism and human rights in Europe ... The topic is propitious for modern-day Europe and the editor is ambitious in trying to give a voice to a wide range of perspectives ... [Its] chapters ... provide useful points of comparison, especially for religious freedom and human rights scholars ... These and other essays in The Lautsi Papers are sure to spark fruitful debates about religion, secularism and human rights in European classrooms, legislators and elsewhere. Such debates will become increasingly heated in other parts of the world, too, as immigration, globalisation and secularisation all bring major shifts to political populations and political attitudes to religion, tradition and culture."
John Witte, Ecclesiastical Law Journal (17:2, 2015).

"The Lautsi Papers: Multidisciplinary Reflections on Religious Symbols in the Public School Classroom, edited by Jeroen Temperman, provides a wide-ranging exploration of some of the most difficult issues involving religion in the public school environment in a pluralistic democracy ... While the focal point of discussion of each of the book's contributors involves [the two Lautsi] decisions from the ECtHR, the analysis and implications of many of these chapters have far broader value. Thus many of the issues and questions addressed are relevant to countries beyond the reach of the ECHR or the jurisdiction of the ECtHR ... Editor Temperman has ensured the benefits of such variety by selecting authors who possess different perspectives, backgrounds, national experiences, and scholarly research interests. The chapters thus include empirical, theoretical, and doctrinal examinations of the relevant issues. The result is a book that is well-balanced, thought provoking, and rich in resources. The varied approaches and perspectives presented in the different chapters make the book a valuable vehicle for examining legal, cultural, political, and philosophical issues underpinning governmental policy and laws involving religion in the public sphere as viewed through the lens of the public school classroom.
Ronna Greff Schneider, Human Rights Quarterly (36: 3, 2014).

"At the heart of this edited collection lies one affair-the Lautsi case-and one symbol-the crucifix. In 16 chapters, the book offers multiple analyses of the challenge raised against the mandatory presence of crucifixes in Italian state schools. From a variety of perspectives, the chapters all address the fundamental underlying question of the place of religion in public education ... [T]he book offers a fascinating read. The contributors, most of them lawyers, come from a diversity of sub-disciplines and jurisdictions, ranging from legal theory, human rights, constitutional law to comparative law, law and religion, and legal philosophy. They are spread across the UK, the Netherlands, Romania, Belgium, Canada, Italy, Hungary, and the US. The book will thus be of interest to a large audience: public lawyers, human rights experts, educationalists, philosophers, sociologists, political scientists, and scholars of religion ... As the dialogue about the place of religion in the public sphere continues, this particular collection, edited by Jeroen Temperman, will offer a rich and fascinating contribution to the debate."
Myriam Hunter-Henin, Journal of Contemporary Religion (Volume 29:1, 2014).

"The plethora of chapters (by an array of scholars from various disciplines) in the Lautsi Papers provides for many important (and contentious) insights pertaining to religious rights and related matters. This work is of the utmost value for those interested in the display of religious symbols (and religious expression) in the public sphere and its inextricable implications for insights related to understanding the ECHR's approach to: the protection of human rights; proselytism; indoctrination; minority and majority rights protection; the parameters of a supranational judiciary; neutrality and the public sphere; children's rights; parental rights; pluralism; the nature of religious symbols; and a general understanding of the mind of the ECtHR (and related complexities) in matters related to religious rights and freedoms."
Shaun de Freitas, International Journal for Religious Freedom Volume 6:1/2, 2013.