Samenvatting

This article explores three perspectives of tradition and their consequences for the relationship between law and religion. A religious tradition can be seen either as a remnant of the past, separate from modern law, or as an authoritative source of moral prescriptions. The analysis of a literary tradition demonstrates that traditions influence each other and develop in a cyclical way. Tradition comes about as a construction by the present of the past. This third perspective shows the importance of the acknowledgment of law as an open platform for deliberation and recognition of religious values.