RL/SO 330 - Church and State in Spain from 1492 to the Present

This course seeks to examine the relationship between church and state in Spain as a strategy to explore current political discussions, such as, debates about citizenship and immigration. Students will be invited to question not only Spain's definitions of "religious diversity," "secularism," and "freedom of conscience," but also Catalonia's positions as well. From Isabella and Ferdinand's conception of the Catholic Empire to the November, 2007, law recognizing Buddhism as a legal religious tradition in Spain, this course hopes to provide the historical background to current debates about Spain's notion of "secularism." Topics will include religious identity, migrant religion, secularism, religious pluralism, and multiculturalism. Some lived-religion method and theory will be presented as well.