ABSTRACT
If a return to faith in God is the answer, then why has religious resurgence caused conflict and even violence? The next several pieces address religious revival as it has played out in politics and international relations, exploring the gap between spiritual ideals and political reality. This essay was first presented as a paper at the Third World Congress on Human Rights in New Delhi in December 1990. It was later published as an Occasional Paper by the Minority Rights Group in London in May 1991.
A revised version of the paper became my keynote address at the Asian Social Institute's (Manila) seminar on “Ethno-religious Conflict in Asia” in February 1992. ASI was kind enough to publish the paper in Anq Makatao, An Interdisciplinary fournal for students and Practitioners of the Social Sciences Vol. XI, No. 1 1992 (Asian Social Institute, Manila, Philippines, 1992). The paper has been further revised for this book.
