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This chapter discusses the impact of demographic change (Southern population growth and Northern population decline) on the form of Christianity that is likely to be practiced in the future and points out that claims that the Southern churches have strayed from older definitions of Christianity are greatly exaggerated. However much Southern Christian types have diverged from older Christian orthodoxies, they have in almost all cases remained within recognizable Christian traditions. The first part of the chapter looks at various aspects of inculturation (interpreting the Christian proclamation in a form appropriate for particular cultures) in relation to determining what are the core beliefs and what are the cultural accidents of Christianity; these aspects include architecture, liturgy and religious language, changes in patterns of worship and their underlying beliefs, and the implications of the emphasis on popular belief and tradition for the veneration of the Virgin Mary in Southern Catholic communities. The second part of the chapter discusses patterns in the emerging Southern churches that go beyond familiar Christian traditions, even as far as a thinly disguised paganism, which is manifested in belief in spirits and spiritual powers (which have their strongest impact on terms of healing and miracles and exorcism) and the concept of spiritual welfare (confronting and defeating demonic forces). The third part of the chapter discusses the cultural conflict over literal interpretations of exorcism and spiritual healing in the Bible, the acceptance by the Southern churches of the Old and New Testaments as documents of immediate relevance, their emphasis on aspects of Christianity that have become unfamiliar, and their revival of ancient customs. Last, the Southern churches – the ‘new’ Christianity – are discussed in terms of their sectarian character, and how this is likely to change in the future as they grow and mature, and become more like the major churches.

This chapter considers the approach to limits to religious liberty, together with the questions of clashes between religious liberty and other constitutional or human rights and the application of religious liberty between private parties. There are various ways that religious freedom can be restricted to more ‘manageable’ proportions. There are at least five such limiting strategies, four of which involve making a distinction between the realm that is unhampered by the law and the restricted realm by focusing on the type of belief or the consequences of the action involved. These are the belief-action distinction; distinction between other-regarding and self-regarding acts; distinction between religiously compelled and religiously motivated acts; and distinction between core and peripheral beliefs. After explaining and critiquing each one, a fifth strategy, reasonable limitation, is discussed along with the reasons why this strategy is preferable over the others.