ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The struggle for gender equality is a key challenge in both domestic and international affairs. Every generation confronts the desires of members of various religious communities to follow their religious belief. Recent decades have seen the rise of human rights as the global normative framework seeking to direct relations amongst citizens and most importantly between citizens and governments. This anthology also seeks to move beyond the focus of most lawyers and human rights scholars on comparative textual analyses and attempts to reconcile religion with human rights norms. It does some of that. However, the emphasis is on empirically grounded studies of religious law as it is being conceived, practised and interpreted in various communities, from the Hausa in Northern Nigeria to Muslim families in Montreal and Jewish communities in Beit Shemesh, Boston and Toronto.
