Religion-State Relations and Reconciliation in the Region of Western Balkans
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Abstract
The paper analyses different models of religion-state relations and aims to identify configurations and characteristic of legal order that could impact and foster the reconciliation processes among diverse religious and ethnic groups in the region of Western Balkans. The basic thesis of this paper is that religious organizations have a huge potential to facilitate and contribute to the reconciliation processes. However, the fundamental precondition for successful participation of religious organizations in the public space is the proper legal framework that regulates their legal status. Therefore, the paper aims to identify the proper model of religion-state relationship that enables religious organizations to provide an authentic and genuine contribution to the reconciliation process among nations and religions in the Western Balkans, which has always been diverse in terms of religion, with this diversity deeply rooted in its history. Furthermore, the paper analyses the key characteristics of modern church-state relations, such as state secularity, state neutrality, the protection of religious freedom and the notion of religious autonomy.
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