Doctoral Dissertation Research: The Transformation of Church-State Relations in the United States and Australia

University Of California-Berkeley, Berkeley CA

Investigators

Abstract

SES-0727814 Margaret Weir Damon Mayrl University of California Berkeley This is a study of the historical development of church-state relations in the United States and Australia during the twentieth century. Despite their many similarities, the two nations adopted very different approaches toward religious organizations during this period. While the United States moved toward stricter separation of church and state, Australia adopted a set of policies that increased the interconnections between the two. What accounts for the different paths taken by these two nations? This project aims to explain this divergence by examining the context and development of state policies toward religious organizations in two particular domains: education and social welfare. It does this through historical and comparative methods. Important data sources will include government reports, legislative debates, court decisions, and administrative documents; the records of religious pressure groups; and other public historical documents such as newspapers, memoirs, and polemical tracts. Research will be conducted in government archives and libraries in both Australia and the United States. The primary intellectual contribution of this research will be to improve sociological understanding of what drives shifts in church-state relations. Currently, multiple competing explanations have arisen from studies of the American case in isolation. This study draws upon existing theories of state building and secularization, and takes advantage of transnational comparison, to adjudicate among these existing explanations and to forge a theoretical approach that is generalizable to other countries. Further, it will add detail to our understanding of processes of secularization, and highlight the role that religious actors and religious conflict have played in the process of state building. Beyond its scholarly benefits, this project will also have several broader impacts. First, it will help build the infrastructure for future research and education by strengthening institutional and intellectual connections between Australian and American scholars, particularly within sociology, where the two nations' academic communities have labored largely in isolation. Second, the interdisciplinary focus of this project will be of interest to, and contribute to ongoing efforts to build bridges among, scholars in sociology, political science, law, and religious studies. Finally, it will provide important historical and comparative context for one of the most contentious contemporary political debates: that of the appropriate role of religion in politics. By uncovering the primary actors and motives that have animated this debate historically, it will enrich political debate and enable decision-makers to make more informed decisions than was previously possible. To maximize its public impact, the findings of this research will be disseminated broadly through conference presentations, journal articles, and a book.