<![CDATA[This study aims to analyze research developments, impacts, strengthening strategies, challenges, and research gaps regarding the relationship between religious pluralism and social cohesion in multicultural societies. The research uses the Systematic Literature Review (SLR) method with reference to the PRISMA guidelines. Data were obtained from the Scopus, Google Scholar, ScienceDirect, and DOAJ databases through the process of identification, screening, feasibility assessment, and thematic synthesis of 25 articles that met the inclusion criteria. The results of the study show that research on religious pluralism and social cohesion has increased in the period 2024–2026 with the dominance of qualitative studies in Indonesia. The findings indicate that religious pluralism can strengthen social cohesion through increased tolerance, empathy, solidarity, mutual respect, and inclusive character formation when supported by interfaith dialogue, religious moderation, collaborative governance, inclusive public policies, and strengthening local wisdom values. On the other hand, religious pluralism also faces various challenges, such as limited capacity of mediation institutions, symbolic segregation, participation inequality, intolerance, radicalism, socio-economic inequality, and the spread of hate speech that has the potential to weaken social cohesion. This study emphasizes that the management of religious diversity requires a multidimensional approach that integrates education, dialogue, public policy, leadership, and community participation. In addition, there are still research gaps related to the evaluation of long-term policy effectiveness, the influence of digital transformation on interreligious relations, and cross-regional and cross-cultural comparative analysis. These findings are expected to be the basis for policy development and further research in strengthening social cohesion in multicultural societies]]>
