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Morality Policy as a Party Issue in a Secular Age

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Morality Politics in a Secular Age

Part of the book series: Comparative Studies of Political Agendas ((CSPA))

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Abstract

It is widely argued that religion has lost its importance across Europe. Despite this observation, many researchers note that religion and issues relating to religious values are attracting more attention in politics, not less. This chapter explores, illustrates empirically, and critically reflects on this paradox with regard to so-called morality policies. The chapter begins with an empirical overview of secularization trends and the emergence of morality issues in Europe. It then turns to a review of the basic research on secularization and morality policies, discusses the paradoxical rise of religion in politics today, and identifies key remaining questions, specifically those related to European countries having a strong religious cleavage in their party system (the so-called religious world).

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  1. Geschwister-Scholl-Institut für Politikwissenschaft, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU), Munich, Germany

    Eva-Maria Euchner

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Euchner, EM. (2019). Morality Policy as a Party Issue in a Secular Age. In: Morality Politics in a Secular Age. Comparative Studies of Political Agendas. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-10537-2_2

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