司法中的政治理論脈絡－－從宗教符號判例看法國共和主義下的世俗性與平等

Political Theories in Justice： French Republican Laicity and Equality in Jurisprudence Concerning Religious Symbols

近年來法國關於公共空間宗教符號的判例，引起了關於“共和國應當如何處理宗教”的爭議。法國法院對私人空間／公共空間和宗教符號／文化符號這兩對分類的使用，似乎既沒有實現平等對待，又沒有堅持世俗性。但是，法國存在一個共和主義政治思想的脈絡，這些判例不但確實在這一脈絡中產生，而且從中獲得融貫性。法國的共和主義強調個人－－國家的直接關係和單一、非宗教性的公民身份認同。所以，平等原則在實踐中一律否定宗教、民族、語言等身份認同。世俗性則為這種單一的公民身份灌注了獨特的宗教觀：個人的宗教認同只能留在私人領域，在公共空間必須排除一切宗教符號和話語。基督教的行為模式、社會組織和話語，因為經過了一個多世紀的世俗化過程，現在以非宗教的方式展現，所以往往在實踐中被理解為“文化性”的因素。相比之下，主流社會認為其他宗教的行為方式必然是宗教身份認同的體現，並進一步認為其他宗教必然無法與共和主義融合，因而導致這些宗教所要求的行為模式成了法國共和主義脈絡中的司法解釋不斷限制的對象。

Recent case laws on religious symbols in public space from various European jurisdictions have put French laicity and the principle of equality into debates. These cases seemingly endorse discriminatory treatments against Muslim women under veils and favour the catholic presentations in governmental locations, therefore being compatible neither with equality nor with laicity. These controversial judgements, however, are only comprehensible in the context of French Republicanism-- an ideology that underlines the direct relationship between the powerful State and its individual citizens who has no other identity than a unified, universal and secular identity as other fellows. Equality is therefore a principle of denial rather than recognition, and laicity of exclusion rather than integration. Together they forge a unified and unique national identity that renounces any pretention of religious, ethnic, or linguistic communities and that imposes a particular version of State-Church relationship according to which convictional affairs shall be remained in private sphere and not known in public debates. Also, after years of being disciplined by the State, Christianity in France acquired the secular languages to express. For this reason, Christian symbols are considered as cultural, not religious. Symbols of other religions, on the contrary, are firmly described as religious in public discourses.