Religious Symbols

Abstract This article explores the interpretation of the right to freedom of religion as guaranteed in article 9 of the European Convention of Human Rights, and its application within different contexts by the European Court of Human Rights. It searches for the criteria used by the court in reconciling the exercise of an individual’s right to freedom of religion within a civil dimension and in the exercise of one’s civil life. In doing so this article highlights the tension that exists between the exercise of this freedom in an individual capacity and its manifestation in public, and provides insight into the extent of the discretion that states may exercise in limiting religious manifestation in public.