Jews flourished better under hierarchical pluralist empires than under secular states

Evidence

There is also a third, the secular. Here it is important to note a distinction between secularism and pluralism. Secular soci­ eties are usually pluralist. Pluralist societies are not necessarily secular. There are many examples of pluralist societies in which one group, one religion, usually one ethnic–religious group is dominant, but permits others to survive or even to flourish, subject to the acceptance of certain limitations. On the whole, Jews have done rather better in pluralist societies of this kind, such as the medieval Islamic caliphates, or the empires of the Ottomans and the Hapsburgs in the Middle East and in Central Europe. — Bernard Lewis, From Babel to Dragomans, 329

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to debates on dhimmi status and whether tolerance in Islamic empires compares favorably to Western nation-states.
• QUESTION: Lewis’s claim that Jews did better under pluralist empires than under secular or Christian states feeds the Berger/Said cluster but begs empirical scrutiny.