Carla M. Zoethout, Amsterdam, the Netherlands. ‘Let It Become the Political Religion of the Nation’. Liberal Democracy as Public Morality

Abstract: At the beginning of the twenty-first century, European societies reflect a great diversity of different religious and philosophical convictions. In order to guarantee that our future society will be just as varied as today’s, attention should not only be focused at the different religions and life stances. Rather, for a prospective pluralist society to exist, it is indispensable to have a common identity, shared values, or what could be labeled a ‘public morality’. The question is what this identity really means in present-day society and what public morality encompasses.

Today’s multi-religious society is no longer based on one common religion that serves as a framework for social cohesion. That means it is necessary to find out whether it is possible to articulate a (minimum) public morality, without religion. What is the content of a minimum ‘public morality’ that citizens of a pluriform society should acknowledge? And how can we make sure that our future society will be just as varied as far as religious and philosophical convictions are concerned?

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