Contributi di Giuseppina Scala

Multi-religious Welcoming Spaces in the Italian University System

ABSTRACT: Il saggio tratta il tema degli spazi messi a disposizione dalle Università italiane per il culto, o altre forme di spiritualità. Destinare spazi pubblici a esigenze religiose e spirituali costituisce un esempio dell'adeguamento delle istituzioni alle esigenze sociali marcate da un sempre maggiore pluralismo religioso e culturale. Finora le Università italiane sono state toccate da questo fenomeno in maniera marginale e questo contributo, che muove da una ricerca sul campo, descrive alcune esperienze mettendone in luce analogie e differenze. In conclusione, l’Autrice evidenzia l’emergere della questione islamica e riscontra un atteggiamento della governance degli Atenei sostanzialmente parallelo a quello tenuto dalle altre Pubbliche amministrazioni verso le comunità musulmane.

ABSTRACT: The essay deals with the issue of the spaces Italian universities provide for worship and other spiritual activities. Designating public spaces for religious and spiritual needs is an example of the ongoing adaptation process of institutions to social needs that is marked by ever-increasing religious and cultural pluralism. However, Italian universities have been affected by this phenomenon only in a marginal way so far. This paper, which is based on field research, describes the similarities and differences of the solutions adopted in various Italian institutions of higher education. In her concluding remarks, the Author points out the emergence of the “Islamic Question”. Indeed, the attitude towards Muslim communities by Italian universities is very similar to that of other public administrations.

TABLE OF CONTENTS: 1. Introduction - 2. The Protection of Religious Freedom within the Swedish Constitutional Framework - 3. Sweden as a sui generis Legal Order within Europe during the Pandemic and the Specificity of the Measures adopted to counter Covid-19 - 4. Religious Freedom in Sweden during the Covid-19 Pandemic. A Subordinated Protection based on a Trust-Oriented Response - 5. The Legal Culture of ‘Trust’ in the State as the Grounds for the ‘Respectful Collaboration’ of Religious Communities.

ABSTRACT: The Covid pandemic has an enormous impact on individual rights. This is true also for the freedom to manifest one’s religion and Sweden represents an exceptional case study because the strategies the Swedish Government has adopted to limit the spread of the virus are distinct from those adopted in other European countries. The article will first analyse Swedish constitutional provisions with reference to the protection of religious freedom. Second, the article will offer some examples concerning the distinguishing features of the measures adopted by the Swedish Government. Third, attention will be dedicated to the analysis of the conduct of the Church of Sweden and of other religious communities with regard to the governmental decisions to counter Covid-19. The main argument of this article is that the concept of ‘Trust’ can both justify the responses of the religious communities and be used in the broader perspective of the upcoming legislative reforms regarding religious communities.

SOMMARIO: 1. Premessa - 2. La tutela del sentimento religioso in Canada: un inquadramento costituzionale - 3. Il reato di Hate Speech - 4. Il reato di blasfemia - 5. Considerazioni conclusive.

Legal features of the sacred in pluralist systems. Recent developments in the Canadian constitutional legal order

ABSTRACT: Nowadays the concept of "sacred" is characterised by a pluralization of the religious phenomena, which are barely defined from a legal point of view by the State. One of the criticalities of this scenario lies in the fact that there is no uniqueness on the limits that the State determines in outlining the boundaries of a religion. The risk of this lack of precise limits could be, inter alia, the offense to religious sentiment. The Author investigates the legal provisions that limit offences to religious sentiment such as the crime of hate speech and blasphemy in Canada. The latter is in fact a pluralist system considered as a good example for other States.