The Virtues of Unprincipled Constitutional Compromises: Church and State in the Irish Constitution

Abstract

Constitution making - Disagreement - Principled constitutionalism versus unprincipled bargaining - Pragmatism - Church and state - Separation of religion and law - Maintaining religious peace - Drafting of the Irish Constitution of 1937 - Placating Irish Catholicism - Accommodation of protestant religious minority - Balancing religious freedom and religiosity - Balancing fundamental rights and religious influence - Flexibility and adaptability - Pragmatic assessment of constitutions and constitution making.