Singapore’s secularism and its pragmatic approach to religion
Singapore embraces a form of secularism that provides the state with the authority to unilaterally decide on where to draw the lines between religion, politics, and state. This paper presents examples that dominate Singapore’s approach to religion and governance. Given the centrality of religion in...
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Other Authors: | |
| Format: | Journal Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
2023
|
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://hdl.handle.net/10356/168778 |
| _version_ | 1811693726847729664 |
|---|---|
| author | Mohammad Alami Musa |
| author2 | S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies |
| author_facet | S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies Mohammad Alami Musa |
| author_sort | Mohammad Alami Musa |
| collection | NTU |
| description | Singapore embraces a form of secularism that provides the state with the authority to unilaterally decide on where to draw the lines between religion, politics, and state. This paper presents examples that dominate Singapore’s approach to religion and governance. Given the centrality of religion in the lives of Singaporeans, this article highlights how the state does not cast aside the social significance of religion but remains engaged with it. The model of secularism in Singapore affords the state the flexibility to easily switch between two broad types of secularism, namely a ‘soft secularism’, a religion-friendly variety, and a ‘hard secularism’, which the state employs as a tool for political control and management of society as it wrestles with existential challenges to ensure its continued survival. |
| first_indexed | 2024-10-01T06:56:16Z |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | ntu-10356/168778 |
| institution | Nanyang Technological University |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-10-01T06:56:16Z |
| publishDate | 2023 |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | ntu-10356/1687782023-06-25T15:42:22Z Singapore’s secularism and its pragmatic approach to religion Mohammad Alami Musa S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies Social sciences::Political science Secularism Singapore Singapore embraces a form of secularism that provides the state with the authority to unilaterally decide on where to draw the lines between religion, politics, and state. This paper presents examples that dominate Singapore’s approach to religion and governance. Given the centrality of religion in the lives of Singaporeans, this article highlights how the state does not cast aside the social significance of religion but remains engaged with it. The model of secularism in Singapore affords the state the flexibility to easily switch between two broad types of secularism, namely a ‘soft secularism’, a religion-friendly variety, and a ‘hard secularism’, which the state employs as a tool for political control and management of society as it wrestles with existential challenges to ensure its continued survival. Published version 2023-06-19T05:42:21Z 2023-06-19T05:42:21Z 2023 Journal Article Mohammad Alami Musa (2023). Singapore’s secularism and its pragmatic approach to religion. Religions, 14(2), 219-. https://dx.doi.org/10.3390/rel14020219 2077-1444 https://hdl.handle.net/10356/168778 10.3390/rel14020219 2-s2.0-85148877227 2 14 219 en Religions © 2023 by the author. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). application/pdf |
| spellingShingle | Social sciences::Political science Secularism Singapore Mohammad Alami Musa Singapore’s secularism and its pragmatic approach to religion |
| title | Singapore’s secularism and its pragmatic approach to religion |
| title_full | Singapore’s secularism and its pragmatic approach to religion |
| title_fullStr | Singapore’s secularism and its pragmatic approach to religion |
| title_full_unstemmed | Singapore’s secularism and its pragmatic approach to religion |
| title_short | Singapore’s secularism and its pragmatic approach to religion |
| title_sort | singapore s secularism and its pragmatic approach to religion |
| topic | Social sciences::Political science Secularism Singapore |
| url | https://hdl.handle.net/10356/168778 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT mohammadalamimusa singaporessecularismanditspragmaticapproachtoreligion |