We are pleased to make available online several essays that address the tension between the sacred and the sovereign.  Though copyright restrictions unfortunately prevent us from posting the complete conference Reader online, we encourage you to contact the conference organizers for a copy.

Introducing the Conference:

• John Carlson: "Rethinking Religion and Sovereignty (Part 1)"

• Erik Owens: "Rethinking Religion and Sovereignty (Part 2)"

• John Carlson & Erik Owens: Introduction to the Conference Reader

Recommended Reading:

• R. Scott Appleby: "The Ambivalence of the Sacred"

• Commonweal editorial: "Sit Tight" 

• Commonweal editorial: "Intervention: When and How?" 

• Fred Dallmayr: "Rethinking Secularism (with Raimon Panikkar)" 

• Jean Bethke Elshtain: "Sovereignty at Century's End"

• Jean Bethke Elshtain: "The Dignity of the Human Person and The Idea of Human Rights: Four Inquiries"

• J. Bryan Hehir: "Kosovo: A War of Values and the Values of War" 

• Robin W. Lovin: "The Limits of Freedom and the Possibilities of Politics: A Christian Realist Account of Political Responsibility" 

• John Shattuck: "Human Rights and Democracy in Practice: The Challenge of Accountability"

Post-Conference Reflections, from Criterion:

• Introduction to Criterion 40:1 (Winter 2001)

• Erik Owens: "Transitions and Traditions: The Use of Force in International Politics"

• John Carlson: "The Sovereignty and Frailty of Institutions"

Documents:

• Lloyd Rudolph: Syllabus and commentary for his class "State Formation II: Rethinking Sovereignty"

• The Universal Declaration of Human Rights 

• More United Nations Treaties and Documents