Suchergebnisse

Examines struggles in the democratization & modernization of Moldova that have been in development since the end of the 1980s. The national liberation of this region has allowed for a territorial competition between Latin & Russian orthodoxies, the church of the former lending itself as a fundamental cause in the entire national project throughout Romania, the latter seeking to regain the hegemony it once held in former Soviet republics. With these denominational conflicts entering onto the political stage in a seemingly inextricable way, their clash jeopardizes not merely the religious identity of the redeveloping region, but moreover the prevailing national identity & all of the socioeconomic stakes that come with it. Addressing these issues entails, for Moldovians, a choice between identification with Western European ideals or appeal to the remnants of a Soviet past. 14 References. C. Brunski

The fragment "Capitalism as Religion" written by Walter Benjamin in 1921 (and first published posthumously in the mid-1980s in his complete works) is one of his most intriguing -- & "hermetic" -- texts. Inspired by the works of Max Weber, which he cites, on the elective affinity between the Protestant Work Ethic & The Spirit of Capitalism, Benjamin goes much further than Weber: not only does capitalism have religious origins, it's a religion in & of itself, a constant cult that is leading the world, sans merci, to the House of Despair. "Capitalism as Religion" is an anti-capitalist reading of Weber, of a piece with some of the writings of Georges Lukacs, Ernst Block & Erich Fromm. Adapted from the source document.

Until the 19th cent, Mohammedanism was perfectly suited to the needs of primitive African societies. The intrusion, along with Christianity, of a dynamic civilization in a closed static civilization, brought about the destruction of customary structures, & the Africa of today shows more & more the need of a universal religion which will allow the society to become reintegrated at a higher level than that of the ancient tribal & family groups. Christianity may appear to the Africans as a means of overcoming their technical backwardness, though at the same time it is frequently regarded to be an instrument of colonialism & of Western domination. Strictly speaking, Mohammedanism could replace Marxism (which has been accepted as an area of intellectual inquiry, but has been rejected as an ideology because of its European & atheistic attributes), if it did not; itself, tend to become an instrument of Arab, & especially of Egyptian, neo-colonialism As a result, it is not impossible that Africa will move in a 3rd direction, toward a pantribal, neo-paganism, which might be capable of giving rise to a kind of African national socialism. Such a development would be based upon racial rather than class struggle, & would present all the dangers of a totalitarian system that includes.both religion & politics at the same time. Tr by J. A. Broussard.

Résumé Le facteur religieux n'est pas bienvenu dans les sciences sociales occidentales, et en particulier dans les théories des relations internationales. La sécularisation du xxe siècle n'a pourtant nullement fait disparaître le religieux : elle a provoqué son adaptation à un nouvel environnement. Le facteur religieux réapparaît aujourd'hui largement, invitant les théories des relations internationales à le réintégrer, en particulier dans leur analyse des dynamiques conflictuelles.

The analysis of the relationship that forms between the political & religious spheres on the national level leads the researcher to three distinct yet complimentary levels of observation. Beyond the institutional & individual & collective behavior levels, the researcher has to focus on the matrix (a kind of long-term memory) of religion that maintains its effects despite its normative weakening. In this regard, & despite the profound differences in their political-religious trajectory & their present configuration, Southern European countries share a common heritage: the Catholic Church -- & the Orthodox Church in Greece -- that has largely contributed to the development of the anthropological conception of politics & the public good that prevails in these countries, & to the formation of the social link. 1 Table, 56 References. Adapted from the source document.

2) Prof. V. Monteil, who stayed two years in Indonesia as a cultural attaché, has gathered numerous facts in order to write a book devoted to "Indonesian Islam"; we are publishing here the text of a talk he gave in Djakarta in June, 1970, where he analyses the burning question of the common points and the tensions which bring together — and which separated — the diverse religions of Indonesia (Islam, Protestantism, Catholicism, Hinduism ).

Behind the relationship between Hellenism & Christianity lies the content of a wider conflict between anthropocentrism & despotism. The Greek version of Christianity is opposed to the Latin version (& in a way to the Slavic one) due to the anthropocentric substrate bequeathed by the Hellenic cosmosystem. It was constituted as the ekklesia of the demos of the faithful at a time when the nonfeudal Latin church became a sacredotal body. The passage from a European world to one of anthropcentrism forced the church to undertake substantial adaptation. This entailed taking on the anthropocentrique acquis that, however, was yet to attain its internal coherence & own space, much of which continued to be confused with the secular world. The eventual collapse of the Hellenic cosmosystem during the 19th century & the creation of the neo-Hellenic nation-state meant that the church became identified with its clergy without really being able to take up a prominent place in the public sphere & in civil society. Nevertheless, the Hellenic paradigm provides a framework for comparison & solid reflection upon the place of religion in contemporary societies & a perspective that is well adapted to the anthropocentric state of the modern cosmosystem. 14 References. Adapted from the source document.

An examination of changes in the relations between politics & religion & of the question of social belonging, in the context of pre- & postrevolutionary France. It is maintained that current discussions of totalitarianism, secularity, & the ethics of consensus may benefit from examination of the theories of Jean-Jacques Rousseau & Alexis de Tocqueville & their differing theories of the social status of the moral regeneration of man, & de Tocqueville's concept of democratic religion. Also discussed is their shared ambivalence regarding the problem of the "common soul" of society. I. Shagrir

This essay presents a synthetic account of the author's interpretation of fascism as a modern, nationalist, revolutionary, anti-liberal and anti-Marxist phenomenon that he has elaborated on the basis both of original research and of an innovative redefinition of the concepts of totalitarianism and political religion and their interrelationship. Having demonstrated the incoherence of some negative critiques that have given a distorted account of this theory, it engages with the principal constructive criticisms that have been made of it. This leads to further clarification and refinement of the thesis that totalitarianism constitutes one, but not the sole, expression of the sacralization of politics in the age of modernity. Adapted from the source document.