Religious Toleration and the Securitization of Religion

Religion is the classical object of toleration. Liberalism developed as toleration and rights protection of religious differences. More recently, religion - and more specifically, Islam and Muslims - has returned to the political agenda as part of processes of securitization, where religion has been framed as a threat requiring extraordinary political measures. The paper examines what securitization of religion implies for religious toleration. It argues that securitization affects the scope of toleration but also threatens to undermine the very meaning and function of toleration.