Public Authority, Religious Pluralization and Sectorization in Late Modernity

Religious pluralization is generally considered to be a dominant feature of modernity. However, the current state of relations between states & religious groups, in particular, public reaction to the sectarian phenomenon in Europe, reveals a link to a concomitant political logic -- religious sectorization. While the pluralization process favors the creation of a public space in religion, the sectorization logic nourishes protectionism & leads to religious authentication. Based on the combined restructuring impact on religions of pluralization & sectorization, different types of pluralist public policies should be distinguished, ie, liberal, elitist, democratic, & technocratic. It is suggested that the greater the degree of sectorization, the more public authority will tend to define the religious phenomenon in an exclusivist way. A few recent political, administrative, & judicial decisions are used to illustrate this argument. Adapted from the source document.