SHOULD RELIGION HAVE A PLACE IN MAKING LAWS? 3
of impact on the entire law formulation procedure. Chaplin (2011) asserts that no law can
be rightfully justified on the basis of adherence to codes of a single religious belief. As
such, it is necessary for the law formulating bodies to consider evaluating a multifactorial
scope of religions prior to adopting their ideologies. As such, since most religions have a
central role in connecting humans to the divinity, this can be a valuable standpoint to
incline the laws being formulated. Laws are meant to safeguard the wellbeing and safety
of humans, not to harm. Adoption of religion in the law formulation process can help
humans to operate within the confines of their connection to the divinity and in this
manner serve citizens better.
Religion is an essential and logical tenet in giving meaning to life. Vernon (2011)
argues that there is need to undertake everything in life with a sense of meaning. As such,
Vernon (2011) presents Carl Jung’s perspective of the divine within that accord a sense
of direction to the paths we undertake. In respect to the arena of justice, laws are not
formulated just for the sake of being tabulated in constitutions, they are meant to
establish a mode of living. As such, there is need to infuse religion in the process of law
formulation as a mitigating measure of ensuring that “the mode of living” imposes a
sense of meaning on the diverse ways that the law affects human life.
The concern regarding religions involvement in the law formulation process is a
perpetual controversy in the 21
st
Century. Religion seeks to safeguard morality and to
operate towards imparting a social change. Religion further reinforces the connection
between human existence and the divinity. As such, it largely influences our perspectives
and how we conduct ourselves. Religion accords meaning to every aspect of life. In this
regard, it is essential to safeguard a place for religion in the law formulation processes.
