Transcript Religion’s grounding function for a democratic state and

Religion’s grounding function for a
democratic state
and society
Master in Ecumenical Studies, Module CSS (Church, State, Society)
Wednesday, 10.15-11.45, Institut für Hermeneutik, Main Building
Prof. Dr. Michael Schulz, Arbeitsbereich Philosophie und Theorie der Religionen
Universität Bonn, Brühlerstr. 7, 53119 Bonn
Tel. 0228 735030, [email protected]
private: Tel. 0228 1800651; Mobile: 01788 68 32 25
1. (April, 6) A reciprocal relationship: Christianity,
churches and modern state – democracy and religions
• 1. To Christian identity belongs a relation to
society and state.
• 2. Modern state is not self-sufficient;
it presupposes premises which are not the
resolution of a parliament.
In concern to this premises Christianity gains
relevance.
Notions of State and Society
What is State?
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The Montevideo Convention on the Rights and Duties of States was a treaty signed at Montevideo,
Uruguay, on December 26, 1933, during the Seventh International Conference of American States.
The Convention codified the declarative theory of statehood as accepted as part of customary
international law.
http://avalon.law.yale.edu/20th_century/intam03.asp
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ARTICLE 1
“The state as a person of international law should possess the following qualifications: a ) a
permanent population; b ) a defined territory; c ) government; and d) capacity to enter into
relations with the other states.”
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Furthermore, the first sentence of article 3 explicitly states that "The political existence of the state
is independent of recognition by the other states." This is known as the declarative theory of
statehood.
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According to the international law state is determined by
(1) state-territory,
(2) state-authority,
(3) state-people/nation
Notion of Society
What is Society?
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Society as ambiguous concept of sociology: social system: (1) of plants, planets, animals – of human persons. (2) attributes define
societies: the European society. (3) groups of deferent interests: stoke cooperation, of art, Societas Iesu = Jesuits…) (4) social
constructions: Clan-society…. (5) societies according to systems of society: class society, corporative system, caste system, civil society
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Characteristics of societies as criteria for their distinction taken from
(1) economy: agrarian, industrial, socialistic, capitalistic, pluralistic
(2) or political intentions, aims: authoritarian, theocratic or democratic aims…
(3) Integration: ethnically closed or open society
(4) interpretation of sense: culture (occidental, Asiatic…), religion (Christian, Islamic society)
German language: society= Gesellschaft and Gemeinschaft, Gesellschaft got a more institutional sense although the word goes back to
the idea of cohabitation of master and journeyman – sal = room, selida = house) – Gemeinschaft is often understood as a moral or
emotional unity of persons, companionship, although it has even institutional meaning: European Community…
In Latin societas and communitas are synonyms
Koinwni,a contains the institutional and moral aspect.
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J.-J. Rousseau distinguishes society and government: people as private persons form a civil society beside state and its government.
17.-18. Jh. Society is considered as a “third sphere” between individuals and state. Society forms a process which is determined by
economic and other mental (ideological) forces like sciences and humanities
Hegel: Family (thesis) – society (antithesis) – state (synthesis) which represents the social reason.
Following Hegel, the distinction between society and state got important:
Marx, Engels, Lenin: society is defined by economy and material values in the hand of the dominating social class. The term “society”
makes part of a philosophy of history: All history is the conflict between processing and exploitative class.
Modern sociology: tries to avoid substantial ideas of society which inspire speculative concepts and prefers to understand society as the
complex reality of interhuman life, as a never-ending process of interaction, interdependence, as a social system; society occurs.
Religions belong to society.
1. To Christian identity belongs a
relation to society and state
State-Authority derives from God’s Authority
• Paul often conflicts with public authorities because of the gospel of Christ, although he
never provokes conflicts, he does not promote a revolutionary concept (slavery). He
develops a first theology of human state-authority which got highly influential:
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Romans 13:1 Everyone is to obey the governing authorities, because there is no
authority except from God and so whatever authorities exist have been appointed by
God. 2 So anyone who disobeys an authority is rebelling against God's ordinance; and
rebels must expect to receive the condemnation they deserve. 3 Magistrates bring fear
not to those who do good, but to those who do evil. So if you want to live with no fear of
authority, live honestly and you will have its approval; 4 it is there to serve God for you
and for your good. But if you do wrong, then you may well be afraid; because it is not for
nothing that the symbol of authority is the sword: it is there to serve God, too, as his
avenger, to bring retribution to wrongdoers. 5 You must be obedient, therefore, not only
because of this retribution, but also for conscience's sake. 6 And this is why you should
pay taxes, too, because the authorities are all serving God as his agents, even while they
are busily occupied with that particular task. 7 Pay to each one what is due to each:
taxes to the one to whom tax is due, tolls to the one to whom tolls are due, respect to
the one to whom respect is due, honour to the one to whom honour is due.
Context: tax burden in Rome; attempts to escape.
Genre: paraenesis, no doctrine of state (explaining the existence of states and
authority).
Políteuma en ouranois
homeland (state) in the heavens
• Paul’s eschatological doctrine of state as a relativization of the state:
• Phil 3,20: “… our homeland is in heaven h`mw/n ga.r to. poli,teuma evn ouvranoi/j
u`pa,rcei and it is from there that we are expecting a Saviour, the Lord Jesus
Christ…”
• Políteuma = place of citizenship, state, body politic – Paul uses a
constitutional term. Therefore the temporal-wordy state is not the last
and definitive one. Relativism by eschatological doctrine.
• Reference to the future distinction between civitas dei / civitas caelestis
and civitas terrena.
• 1 Petr 2,13; 1 Tim 2,1-3: Prayer for the authority, government
• Apocalypse: clash with the Roman authority, persecution of Christians;
the end of all forms of human Empires.
• Many early theologians (Apologists) confirm the Christian cooperation
with state-authority. Distance to public activities is due to pagan praxis,
adoration of deities.
There was a controversy about the military service of Christians (against:
Tertullian, Origenes)
The Kingdom of God
• The eschatological and not political message of Jesus:
basileia tou theou / realm, Kingdom of God
• Objection: Hermann Samuel Reimarus (1694-1768),
professor of Oriental languages in Hamburg, The Aims of
Jesus and His Disciples (1778): Jesus is a failed Jewish
revolutionary, a political Messiah, whose dead body was
stolen from his tomb by his disciples in order to spread
the story of his resurrection. Jesus did not explain the
significance what basileia tou theou says because he
presupposed its Jewish political meaning of his time.
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Jesus: The kingdom of God changes the feature of rule
Mc 10,42s: “You know that among the gentiles those they call their rulers lord it over them, and their
great men make their authority felt. 43 Among you this is not to happen. No; anyone who wants to
become great among you must be your servant, 44 and anyone who wants to be first among you
must be slave to all.”
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Acceptance of Roman supremacy? Zealots (zealotry) denied Roman taxes.
Mc 12, 13 Next they sent to him some Pharisees and some Herodians to catch him out in what he
said. 14 These came and said to him, 'Master, we know that you are an honest man, that you are not
afraid of anyone, because human rank means nothing to you, and that you teach the way of God in
all honesty. Is it permissible to pay taxes to Caesar or not? Should we pay or not?' 15 Recognising
their hypocrisy he said to them, 'Why are you putting me to the test? Hand me a denarius and let me
see it.' 16 They handed him one and he said to them, 'Whose portrait is this? Whose title?' They said
to him, 'Caesar's.'
17 Jesus said to them, 'Pay [give, hand out] Caesar what belongs to Caesar -- and God what belongs
to God.' And they were amazed at him.
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Jo 18,36 Jesus replied, 'Mine is not a kingdom of this world; if my kingdom were of this world, my
men would have fought to prevent my being surrendered to the Jews. As it is, my kingdom does not
belong here.'
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Titulus crucis
Society
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Jesus public activity: Kingdom of God is a public reality, it involves human person in all its dimensions
Jesus‘ social actions:
Reconciliation of different groups in the society
Engagement for the poor and sick, „social justice“ :
Luke 16
19 "Now there was a rich man, and he habitually dressed in purple and fine linen, joyously living in splendor every day.
20 "And a poor man named Lazarus was laid at his gate, covered with sores,
21 and longing to be fed with the crumbs which were falling from the rich man's table; besides, even the dogs were coming and licking his sores.
22 "Now the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham's bosom; and the rich man also died and was buried.
23 "In Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom.
24 "And he cried out and said, 'Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue,
for I am in agony in this flame.'
25 "But Abraham said, 'Child, remember that during your life you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus bad things; but now he is being comforted
here, and you are in agony.
26 'And besides all this, between us and you there is a great chasm fixed, so that those who wish to come over from here to you will not be able, and that
none may cross over from there to us.'
27 "And he said, 'Then I beg you, father, that you send him to my father's house -28 for I have five brothers -- in order that he may warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.‘
29 "But Abraham said, 'They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.‘
30 "But he said, 'No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent!'
31 "But he said to him, 'If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.'“
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The unity of people beyond their social differences:
Gal 3, 27 For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.
28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
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Salve and slaveholder as brothers in Christ
Philemon 15….“ that you (Philemon) would have him (Onesimus, Philemon’s escaped slave) back forever,
16 no longer as a slave, but more than a slave, a beloved brother, especially to me, but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord.
Cf. Theology of liberation
Conclusion: Christianity and State
• 1. No state-doctrine
• 2. a) justification
b) relativization of state-authority under
God‘s eschatological authority
• 3. Authority as service, not as an end in itself, not
as means of exploitation of people.
• 4. There is no apparent preference for a specific
political system.
• 5. Systematic conclusion: Christians can choose
this political system which makes it easier to
realize state-authority as a public service.
Conclusion: Christianity and Society
• 6. Christianity wants to change society by the
presents of God‘s kingdom.
• 7. The change concerns first the human
person, but in all its dimensions, even the
social ones (slavery, welfare, education,
“Social Gospel”; Theology of liberation).
2. Presuppositions of a modern state
• Ernst-Wolfgang Böckenförde:
.... the question of bonding forces is posed afresh and reduced to its actual core:
the liberal, secularised state is nourished by presuppositions that it cannot itself
guarantee. That is the great gamble it has made for liberty's sake. On the one hand,
it can only survive as a liberal state if the liberty it allows its citizens regulates itself
from within on the basis of the moral substance of the individual and the
homogeneity of society. On the other hand, it cannot attempt to guarantee those
inner regulatory forces by its own efforts — that is to say, with the instruments of
legal coercion and authoritative command — without abandoning its liberalness
and, at a secularised level, lapsing into that pretension to totality out of which it led
the way into the denominational civil wars. The prescribed state ideology, the
revival of the Aristotelian polis tradition, and the proclamation of an ‘objective
System of values’ all do away with the very split out of which public liberty is
constituted. There is no way back across the threshold of 1789 that does not
destroy the state as the order of liberty.”
Ernst-Wolfgang BÖCKENFÖRDE: State, Society and Liberty. Studies in Political Theory
and Constitutional Law, New York / Oxford 1991, 45.
• Is the analysis correct?
• Is this lack of presuppositions and guarantees a need or an opportunity of religion?
Ernst-Wolfgang Böckenförde *1930
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1953 PhD in law as well as in philosophy,
1964 postdoctoral habilitation. Judge in the
Federal Constitutional Court of Germany
from 1983 to 1996.
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He taught as a professor of Public Law,
Constitutional History, Legal History,
Philosophy of Law at the University of
Heidelberg, the University of Bielefeld and
the University of Freiburg.
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Publications
“Carl Schmitt Revisited”. Telos 109 (Fall
1996). New York: Telos Press.
Ernst-Wolfgang Böckenförde (1991): State,
Society, and Liberty: Studies in Political
Theory and Constitutional Law. Berg, New
York.