Focus and Scope

The Religion and Policy Journal is a specialized scholarly journal dedicated to the critical study of religion as a normative and ethical force in public policy and governance. The journal provides a focused academic forum for examining how religious ideas, moral traditions, and institutional actors shape, contest, and inform governance practices and policy decisions in contemporary societies.

Rather than adopting a broad multidisciplinary approach, the journal advances a thematically integrated focus on the intersection of religion, governance, and ethics, positioning religion not as a peripheral variable but as a central framework of meaning, legitimacy, and moral reasoning in public life. This thematic orientation distinguishes the journal from existing policy and governance publications where religion is often treated instrumentally or descriptively.

The scope of the journal is organized around the following core themes:

1. Religion and Public Policy

This theme focuses on the role of religious values, doctrines, and actors in the formulation, implementation, and evaluation of public policy. Contributions may address:

• The influence of religious norms on policy priorities and outcomes

• Policy debates shaped by religious moral reasoning

• Public policy responses to religious pluralism and diversity

• Contestations between secular policy frameworks and religious perspectives

Articles are expected to offer analytical depth and normative reflection that advance policy scholarship through sustained engagement with religion.

2. Religion and Governance

This theme examines the relationship between religion and structures of governance, authority, and public institutions. Topics include:

• Religion in political leadership, legitimacy, and public authority

• Governance of religious communities and minority groups

• The role of religious institutions in civic life and public accountability

• Interactions between religious actors and state power across different governance models

The journal emphasizes governance as a moral and symbolic process, not merely an administrative or technical one.

3. Ethics in Governance

This theme addresses the ethical foundations of governance and policymaking through religious and moral perspectives. Areas of inquiry include:

• Religious ethics in public decision-making and leadership

• Moral evaluations of laws, policies, and governance practices

• Religion-based critiques of injustice, corruption, and abuse of power

• Ethical visions of justice, human dignity, and the common good

This focus positions the journal as a distinctive venue for scholarship that connects ethical theory with concrete governance challenges.

Journal Identity and Distinctiveness

The Religion and Policy Journal distinguishes itself by:

• Adopting a thematically focused scope centered on religion, governance, and ethics

• Treating religion as a normative and analytical framework, not merely a social variable

• Offering sustained ethical and policy-oriented analysis absent in many mainstream governance journals

• Providing a dedicated platform for original research that advances normative debates in public policy and governance

Through this focused thematic orientation, the journal contributes a unique and coherent body of scholarship to the global study of religion and public policy.