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Encyclopedia > State secularism
Legend :      secular state
Legend :
     secular state

A secular state is a state or country that officially is neutral in matters of religion, neither supporting nor opposing any particular religious beliefs or practices, and has no state religion or equivalent. A secular state also treats all its citizens equally regardless of religion, and does not give unfair preferential treatment for a citizen from a particular religion over other religions. Image File history File links Please see the file description page for further information. ... Motto of the French republic on the tympanum of a church, in Aups (Var département) which was installed after the 1905 law on the Separation of the State and the Church. ... A state is a set of institutions that possess the authority to make the rules that govern the people in one or more societies, having internal and external sovereignty over a definite territory. ... In political geography and international politics a country is a geographical entity, a territory, most commonly associated with the notions of state or nation. ... Nations with state religions:  Buddhism  Islam  Shia Islam  Sunni Islam  Orthodox Christianity  Protestantism  Roman Catholic Church A state religion (also called an official religion, established church or state church) is a religious body or creed officially endorsed by the state. ...


A secular state is not an atheistic state (e.g. Albania under Enver Hoxha), in which the state officially opposes all religious beliefs and practices. Theoretically, a secular state protects freedom of religion and freedom from religion, as pursued in state secularism. It is also described to be a state that prevents religion from interfering with state affairs, and prevents religion from controlling government or exercising political power. Laws protect each individual including religious minorities from discrimination on the basis of religion. State atheism is the official rejection of religion in all forms by a government in favor of atheism. ...  , (IPA , October 16, 1908–April 11, 1985) was the leader of Albania from the end of World War II until his death in 1985, as the First Secretary of the Communist Albanian Party of Labour. ... The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen guarantees freedom of religion, as long as religious activities do not infringe on public order in ways detrimental to society. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ...


In some secular states, there can be a huge majority religion in the population (e.g. Turkey) and in others there may be great religious diversity (e.g. India). Secular states become secular either upon establishment of the state (e.g. United States of America) or upon secularization of the state (e.g. France). Movements for laïcité in France and for the separation of church and state in the United States of America began the evolution of the present secular states. Historically, the process of secularizing states typically involves granting religious freedom, disestablishing state religions, stopping public funds to be used for a religion, freeing the legal system from religious control, opening up the education system, tolerating citizens who change religion, and allowing political leadership to come to power regardless of religious beliefs. Public holidays that were originally religious holidays and other traditions are not necessarily affected, and public institutions become safe from being used and abused by religion. Secularization or secularisation is a process of transformation as a society slowly migrates from close identification with the local institutions of religion to a more clearly separated relationship. ... Motto of the French republic on the tympanum of a church, in Aups (Var département) which was installed after the 1905 law on the Separation of the State and the Church. ... Constantines Conversion, depicting the conversion of Emperor Constantine the Great to Christianity, by Peter Paul Rubens. ...


Many different types of government have been secular states, including republics (such as the Republic of France). Not all legally secular states are completely secular in practice. In France for example, state institutions close for Christmas, and teachers in Catholic schools are salaried by the state. Forms of government Part of the Politics series Politics Portal This box:      For other uses, see Republic (disambiguation). ...

Contents

List of secular states

The following is an incomplete list of officially secular states as of 2006:

Anthem: İstiklâl Marşı  (Turkish) Independence March Capital LefkoÅŸa (Nicosia) Official languages Turkish Government Representative democratic republic[1]  - President Mehmet Ali Talat  - Prime Minister Ferdi Sabit Soyer Sovereignty from Republic of Cyprus (de facto)   - Proclaimed November 15, 1983   - Recognition Only by Turkey  Area  - Total 3,355 km² (not ranked... Anthem Oj, svijetla majska zoro Oh, the bright dawn of May Montenegro() on the European continent()  —  [] Capital (and largest city) Podgorica Official languages Serbian (Ijekavian dialect)1 Government Republic  -  President Filip Vujanović  -  Prime Minister Željko Å turanović Independence due to the dissolution of Serbia and Montenegro   -  Declared June 3, 2006   -  Recognised... Anthem Serbia() on the European continent() Capital (and largest city) Belgrade Official languages Serbian written with the Cyrillic alphabet1 Government Parliamentary republic  -  President Boris Tadić  -  Prime Minister Vojislav KoÅ¡tunica Establishment  -  Formation 8th century   -  Independence c. ... The Bill of Rights in the National Archives The First Amendment to the United States Constitution is a part of the United States Bill of Rights. ...

List of former secular states

See also

The intended meaning of the term civil religion often varies according to whether one is a sociologist of religion or a professional political commentator. ... Secular education is a term that refers to the system of public education in countries with a secular or separation between religion and state. ...

External link


  Results from FactBites:
 
Embassy of France in the U.S. - The Secular Principle (3473 words)
Secularity is intrinsic to those values, and France has ratified the European Convention on Human Rights, article 9 of which repeats and expands on article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
The Act on the separation of Church and State set forth the basic tenets of French secularity: freedom of conscience and worship, free organization of churches (2), non-recognition of churches and their equality before the law, and freedom to express religious beliefs in public.
Secular neutrality, the principle of official non-recognition of any religion, means that no stipend or direct subsidy may be paid to any church.
secularism: Definition and Much More from Answers.com (1621 words)
Secularism or secularity are also used in the meaning of Laïcité, a concept related to the separation of state and religion.
Secularism can also be the social ideology in which religion and supernatural beliefs are not seen as the key to understanding the world and are instead segregated from matters of governance and reasoning.
Proponents of secularism have long held a general rise of secularism in all the senses enumerated above, and corresponding general decline of religion in so called 'secularized' countries, to be the inevitable result of the Enlightenment, as people turn towards science and rationalism and away from religion and superstition.
  More results at FactBites »


 

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