The meaning of religion in German Constitutional Court

Abstract

It’s not easy to give a precise definition of the concept of religion or of what generally constitutes a religion, because of the intangible and wide-ranging nature of the topic. The principle of State neutrality has important consequences for the legal definition of religion: in a neutral State, public authority doesn’t have the power to define what can be classified as religion and religious behaviour. Generally a religion is defined as a set of beliefs and practices, usually involving acknowledgment of a divine or higher being or power, by which people order the conduct of their lives both practically and in a moral sense. German society is currently marked by religious pluralism and constitutional jurisprudence has the difficult task to identify inclusive and objective parameters in order to guarantee religious freedom.