Minority Religious Groups and the State

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All nations have religions whose adherents might be called ‘religious minorities’. In Australia, a mainly Christian nation (ABS 2007a) Islam, Hinduism and Sikhism, are ‘minority religions’ because relatively small numbers of people adhere to these religions. As groups, adherents of minority religions may be socially vulnerable to marginalisation or discrimination, given their smaller numbers. Minority groups may have problems practicing their religions; they may be unable to participate in general aspects of social life; or they may encounter deliberate discrimination. However, this is not necessarily the case as some societies, like Japan, exhibit styles of cohesion whereby minority religions groups integrate without suffering disadvantage. This chapter will consider the circumstances of minority religious groups in the countries of this volume, to gain a comprehensive appreciation of social cohesion and religion across the countries of this book.