Paying for the Privilege: The Management of Public Order and Religious Pluralism in Two Early Modern Societies

A cross-cultural analysis of the management of religious pluralism in the early modern era can serve to contextualize and relativize our understanding of toleration in the Western world. To that end, this article compares policies and practices employed by governments in the Protestant Dutch Republic concerning Roman Catholics with those used by Sunni Ottoman authorities toward Christians, Jews, and Shi'ites in Arabic-speaking provinces. Despite important differences in approach, authorities in both societies managed their pluralistic environments by marginalizing minorities in various ways. Their practice served to protect the public religious order while also according minorities the privilege of private worship.