The Non-Return of the Religious. A Current Consideration of Carl Schmitt’s Political Theology
Are you already subscribed?
Login to check
whether this content is already included on your personal or institutional subscription.
Abstract
The article aims to investigate which aspects of Schmitt’s Political Theology could be maintained today and which should be abandoned. It focuses on the conflicting relationship between religion/theology and politics, regarding the modern process of secularization. The goal is to show that this relationship persists today, even though reality has considerably changed since Modernity and even the 20th century. Schmitt helps to understand this aspect as he never stops thinking in a theological-political manner. In fact, his latest text, Political Theology II, can be read in the light of the need to extend the concept of “political theologyµ beyond Christianity and, thus, showing Schmitt’s awareness of the deep changes that have taken place during fifty years between the first and the second text. For example, these changes concern the rise of the idea of a democratic turn of political theology. In any case, Schmitt’s awareness of these changes makes possible to claim the polymorphic character of political theology, which can also be referred to Judaism and Islam, and to critically view the thesis about a return of the religious
Keywords
- politics
- religion
- Schmitt
- secularization
- theology