Routledge Handbook of Religion and Politics in Latin America

The Routledge Handbook of Religion and Politics in Latin America offers a state of the art of the academic and multidisciplinary reflection on the main aspects of the relationships between religion, politics, and society in Latin America.

The book provides insights from leading scholars in the fields of religious studies and political science, from the historical roots of religious pluralism to contemporary debates on religious freedom, democratization, and civic engagement, each chapter delves into a different aspect of this multifaceted topic. Special emphasis is given to the need to overcome the dominant reductionist approaches to the study of religion and politics in Latin America which focus too narrowly on church-state relations and ignore the sometimes contentious political and societal implications of the growing religious pluralism in the region. The handbook also aims to build bridges between the often isolated disciplines of religious studies and political science, as well as between Latin American and Western scholars. The first section provides an overview of the political perspectives of Latin American worldviews. The second section looks at the interface of religion and the public sphere. The third section delves into the multiple dimensions of religious freedom. Section four examines the complex relationship between religion and democratization. Section five explores religious civic engagement and its impact on development. Finally, section six offers several country case studies to illustrate points made in earlier sections and go more in-depth into particularities of each country.

The Routledge Handbook of Religion and Politics in Latin America will appeal to students and scholars of politics, religious studies, and Latin America, providing a valuable resource for understanding the forces shaping Latin American societies.

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Dennis P. Petri is a political scientist, researcher, and international consultant, with extensive experience in Latin America, Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. He has worked in academic and policy roles for various universities, international NGOs, and multilateral organizations. Currently, Petri is the Head of the Chair of Humanities and Professor in International Relations at the Latin American University of Science and Technology of Costa Rica. He lectures regularly at the Latin American Faculty of Social Sciences (FLACSO-UNESCO) and The Hague University of Applied Sciences. Petri also holds the position of International Director at the International Institute for Religious Freedom and is the Executive Director of the Foundation Platform for Social Transformation and the founder and scholar-at-large of the Observatory of Religious Freedom in Latin America. He earned his PhD in Political Philosophy from Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. As a Mexican-Dutch-Costa Rican author, Petri has published extensively on freedom of religion, religion and politics, social dialogue, parliamentary reform, and democracy assistance.