The Netherlands at the crossroads: on the need for a covenantal comeback for principled pluralism

Abstract

Principled pluralism, which overlaps to a significant extent with the concept of covenantal pluralism, is not what it used to be in the Netherlands. The country finds itself at a crossroads regarding church-state relations specifically and religion-society relations more generally. While principled pluralism in the Netherlands broadly reflected the first enabling condition of covenantal pluralism (religious freedom and equal treatment) it has been less effective regarding the other two enabling conditions (religious literacy, and practical virtues of multi-faith engagement). Today there appears to be no real alternative for reinvigorating principled pluralism but by a movement for covenantal pluralism. This article proposes two adjustments to further guarantee the future-proofing of principled pluralism: halting uncontrolled immigration and enhancing integration efforts. These address a key weakness of principled pluralism—its limited defense against views and actions incompatible with the democratic rule of law.