The Relationship Between Religion And Law -By Ezinwanne Onwuka

There is a widespread tendency in modern, secular society to view religion and law as unrelated except insofar as they may, from time to time, come into conflict. In the paragraphs that follow, I will attempt to show that there is a convergence between these two dynamic aspects of the human tradition.

Religion is concerned with the adherence to a supreme being, God, and it emphasizes the moral relationship that man has with God. On the other hand, law is the principles and regulations established in a community by some authority and applicable to its people, whether in the form of legislation or of custom and policies recognized and enforced by judicial decision.

Religion has spread it’s wings across all spheres of the society – educational, sociopolitical and most importantly, legal systems. Hence, the contentious issue concerning the interaction between religion and law.
The concept, “religious law” was coined to refer to those parts of many religious traditions that prescribe and regulate norms of conduct, as encoded, for example, in such sources as the Bible (e.g the ten commandments), and the shariʿa, as well as many aspects of conduct that are now within the purview of the law.

Generally, religion and law are both concerned with how humans ought to live their lives. The legal concepts of crime and punishment, for example, closely resembles the religious concepts of sin, expiation, and purity. In religion, sin is regarded as a violation of the cosmic order. Punishments or expiation may be designed to restore order and purity for the individual and/or the community. In its origin, then, crime was often not distinguished from sin. Hence, even though law and religion have a number of differences, the imposition of rules and punishments created a link between them.

At this juncture, it is important to state that there is no separate or secular term for “law”. The absence of which buttresses the connection between the two. For example, in Hinduism the term dharma means not only “law” but also “religion” and “proper conduct,” among other things.

Undoubtedly, religion and law are considered essential elements of the society, given that they are the basis of social equity and justice. Both play a complementary role in creating social organization and maintaining a coercive social order. This is evident when we consider the fact that the social norms that relate to religion are heavily applied in law especially when formulating the rules and standards to be complied by the state subjects. In addition, particular legal matters are addressed in religion concerning murder, rape, crime and other capital offenses that are punishable by law. Crime, for example, is prohibited under the religious teachings and within the legal structures of a given nation.

From the foregoing, it can be stated that religious institutions are the primary factors of the connection between religion and law. There exist contractual relations between religious institutions and the state’s legal structures. For instance, in the context of Islam, there exists a direct link between Islamic law and the Islamic religion, given that the law of Islam (Shari’a) is enforced to those who subscribe to the religion.

In conclusion, there exist a strong link between religion and law given that the religious beliefs and values of the people are the foundation of the society. The spiritual values are incorporated into the secular law in respect that they are integral to creating societal values that shape the principles, rules and institutions that govern the society.

Ezinwanne Onwuka, Cross River State
ezinwanne.dominion@gmail.com
+2348164505628