What is the place of religion and religious convictionsin government, politics and in public life - taking intoconsideration the need to respect the free exerciseof religion? Challenges to existing arrangementsof church-state affairs come from many corners ofdomestic debates and international affairs. Probablymost spectacularly, it also stems from the vicinity of thereligious freedom of less established (or less popular)holders of faith. The underlying difficulty of thesedebates is that at first sight they appear to tackle theissue of the plurality of any polity not only in its religiouscomposition, but also concerning the community'sracial, ethnic and cultural diversity, often with lastingpolitical consequences. Contributions in this volumeoffer insight into these debates across jurisdictions.