Addressing Religious Plurality: A Consideration of Four Models

Abstract

This paper seeks to address the challenge of religious plurality by drawing upon political theory literature. It proceeds to review, but ultimately reject, three models for dealing with diversity of religious outlooks: (i) the model of public reason (primarily as articulated by John Rawls); (ii) refinements to the model of public reason from responses to and critiques of Rawls; and, (iii) the model of ‘religious transformation’. As an alternative, this paper will suggest a new, fourth, model called ‘justice as discourse’, which it will argue is a better framework for addressing the challenge of religious diversity and more conducive to social sustainability.