Machiavelli is considered the historical champion of political efficiency. His thought is traditionally depicted as a pendulum balancing ethical standards and pragmatic exigencies, but which ends up unevenly oscillating towards the second pole. A good deal of cynicism is assumed as the price for the foundation of an objectified political…
The theme of belonging is certainly deep-rooted in tattooing practices of the Ancient World. I would like to explore a complementary theme: tattooing as an attempt to include world features on/in the skin and body so as to attune an individual life to the cosmos. Even today, the inscription of…
The sharing economy likes to present itself as a new economic model, markedly different from the traditional market economy, and scrupulous in its devotion to collaboration, improved resource management, and social solidarity. The word “sharing” points at exactly these values. Nevertheless, and in spite of its self-promotion—very much reflected in…
Islamic jurisprudence can guarantee respect for the religious tradition as well as the renewal of modern society in many ways. The Moroccan codification of 2004 (mudawwanah: literally “code”) can be considered a step toward the implementation of human rights within the civil code framework. Among the goals of the reform…
The Italian colonial enterprise, including its legal efforts, was notably transient and disorganized, especially when compared to its European counterparts. As a result, Italian legal professionals working in the colonies were compelled to develop their own—often original and creative—legal approaches in managing the complex relationships between legal authorities and colonial…
This study investigates the relationship between the dominant religious culture (and thus the political powers that simultaneously support and are conditioned by it, to varying degrees) and the practice of witchcraft and black and white magic in Europe, both in the past (the Spanish Inquisition is used as an example)…
In this essay I address the meaning and functions of charity in contemporary secularized democracies against the background of its plural roots in the three monotheistic religions, namely Judaism, Christianity and Islam. The legacy of these different traditions seems to be ambivalent in itself, even more so when it is…
First, this essay deals with the concept of human dignity in the twentieth century, the age of totalitarianism. Second, it reflects on human dignity in the technoscientific age, asking what is happening to human nature. Third, it examines the relation between human dignity and the constitutional state. And, finally, it…
Europe today is supposed to be a multicultural society in which diversities can coexist within a multicultural public sphere. But the realization of this objective requires new forms of legal equality and traditions of justice which are the main keys of understanding the demands of recognition that rise from the…
