In this volume the authors study the three major monotheistic religions Judaism, Christianity and Islam to determine how they each approach their political roles. They discuss the relationship between religion and politics with a special emphasis: How and why do religions consider it normal to engage in political activities? What is the logic behind their aspiration to take on "political tasks"? The contributions consider the political self-image of these religions and compare them to external perception thereof from a nonreligious perspective.

Contributions by: John D. Roth, Andreas Liese, Erich Geldbach, Steffen Hagemann, Yehoyada Amir, Dominik Burkard, Aysun Yasar-Cebeci, Raja Sakrani, Markus Weingardt, Michael Droege, Andreas Lehnardt, Lutz Richter-Bernburg, Friedhelm Hengsbach, Karl Pinggéra, Vasilios N. Makrides, Volker Leppin, Judith Becker, GÃ"nter Thomas