Religious Transformations and the Language of Rights in Latin America

Abstract

Three elements combine to shape the relation of religion and politics in Latin America now and in the future: the facts of religious plurality and pluralism; the emergence of real social and political pluralism in a context of democracy; and the creation and diffusion of a practical vocabulary of rights that includes the defense of human rights, but goes further to promote the creation of autonomous subjects able to claim voice and participation in public life. The creation of a vocabulary of rights, with roots in social, religious, and political norms and practices, provides a theoretical and empirical bridge between religion and politics.