ABSTRACT
Chapter 4 examines how urban actors define and shape religious normality. Examining definitions of the legitimate public expressions of religiosity that derive from the public policies and debates in cities can reveal how state secularism is being reworked on the ground and how this shapes public expressions of religion. Examples of restrictive and inclusive secularism coexist, suggesting complexities and inconsistences not only within the national context but also on the urban level itself. It turns out that city responses to religion are not only pragmatic but normative; they not only shape laïcité discourses but ultimately influence ideas of national belonging.
