The article discusses the study of modern interaction between religion and politics. In particular, it demonstrates arguments of the secular paradigm and its critical analysis, outlines theoretical approaches to the study of religion’s political persistence, shows the key areas of research in this area. The author emphasizes that the relationship between religion and modernity is of extremely complex character and is subject to differently oriented trends.

The author discusses the problem of interpretation of contemporary politics in the light of the rising importance of religious factor. The emphasis is on the need to find a new epistemological frame different from the traditional linear interpretive schemes and on the multivalent manifestations of the religious factor in modern conditions. It is shown that the methodological parameters of the concept «post-secular society» can be considered a variant of the combination of secular and religious principles and various religious traditions as well.

The paper treats the media phenomenon of «hurt sentiments»’ in the context of identification of the geographical space of India with confessional values of Hinduism. On the example of the «Ram Setu Movement» and the «Amarnath Agitation» it traces the mechanism of dissemination and implementation of the idea of «the state of hurt», as well as the participation of the federal bodies, leading media and communalist organizations (BJP, VHP, RSS) operating mainly from the Hindi-speaking heartland, in this process. It argues that the aggressive introduction of new symbols of militant Hinduism is of dangerous consequences for the internal and external political stability.

The article analyzes the transformation of the social doctrine of the Catholic Church, the main reference points of the present day social doctrine and the place of democracy in this doctrine. The article describes the catholic understanding of democracy vis-à-vis minimalist and maximalist approaches to democracy and shows that the Church has a maximalist and participatory vision of democracy which originates from the social doctrine.

The article analyzes the relationship between «political class» and strata of Islamic scholars in the context of Saudi Arabia evolution from the time of state creation till the beginning of the 2000 s. The process of differentiation of social and political roles between the authority and the Ulama is considered an indicator of the national political system’s development as both begin to fit into functionally specialized areas. The author stresses that this trend is becoming more certain under the impact of the growing interconnectedness of the modern world, as well as the increasing influence and political ambitions of the Saudian «educated class».

The article examines the ongoing political change in Turkey related to the growing role of Islam in the public realm, on the basis of the «post-secular society» concept introduced by J. Habermas. The emergence of a «post-secular» reality in Turkey have been explained through the analysis of secularisation, Islamization and influence of political Islam on the development of democracy. New political design is viewed as a dynamic interplay of secular and religious elements.

This article discusses geopolitical ideas which are being developed in the Russian Orthodox Church today, with the focus on the ideology of Patriarch Kirill (Gundiaev). The author argues that the image of «Holy Russia» dominates geopolitical imagination of Kirill and designates the core cultural identity of «historical Russia», i.e. of the family of nations supposedly originating from Kievan Rus. Having researched peculiarities of spatial imagination in discourses about «Holy Russia», the author makes conclusions on perspectives for political ideology and dangers for civil society associated with this concept.

This article explores the ambivalent potential of religiosity in the modern Russian state and society. The situation is analyzed in the context of polar systems of interaction between state and religion: «STATE – religion» and «RELIGION – state». It is shown that structural elements of religiosity bear different conflict potential. The author discusses the ways to counterbalance its destabilizing forms and stresses the importance of keeping secularity as a platform for public dialogue.

The article explores factors that facilitate / hinder the development of intercultural communication between Muslim immigrants and native-born Hispanics. Considerable attention is given to the views of political parties and organizations’ (either immigrant or Spanish) on this issue.

The article is dedicated to the evolution of Muslim immigrants integration in the Netherlands from late 1960 s to present day. The author seeks to understand the underlying causes of the recent change of integration paradigm in the country. The author concludes with a forecast concerning social and political consequences the new integration policy approach introduced in the country may have on its Muslims.

The article discusses the integration of Muslim communities in Switzerland. The processes of integration are explored in three dimensions: regulation of relations between the state and religious communities at the cantonal level, role of institutions of direct democracy (the referendum and popular initiative); federal policy towards Muslims communities’ legitimation. It is concluded that the Swiss integration politics is tolerant and consistent.