Religious Pluralism Versus Exclusionism: Recognition Versus Misrecognition

Dr. Giles argues that a significant cause of hostility between religions is an attitude of exclusivism, the belief that people of other religions are separate people who can and should be excluded from the mainstream of society. This normative judgment excludes the members of other religions from the positive considerations afforded to people of a preferred religion. The antidote to exclusivism would seem to be some type of religious pluralism in which people of different religions can recognize and accept each other’s presence and coexist peacefully without acts of antagonism.