Earthly powers, the clash of religion and politics in Europe from the French Revolution to the Great War, Michael Burleigh
Type
Label
Earthly powers, the clash of religion and politics in Europe from the French Revolution to the Great War, Michael Burleigh
Language
eng
Bibliography note
Includes bibliographical references (p. 461-505) and index
Illustrations
illustrationsplates
Index
index present
Literary Form
non fiction
Main title
Earthly powers
Nature of contents
bibliography
Oclc number
61479634
Responsibility statement
Michael Burleigh
Sub title
the clash of religion and politics in Europe from the French Revolution to the Great War
Summary
Examining the ways in which politics and religion have influenced each other over the last two hundred years, Burleigh reveals that throughout history the two realms have interacted in complex and sometimes lethal ways--just as they still do today. The overall effect was a widespread increase in secularism and a demystification of the power of politics. Burleigh encompasses the philosophies of the Enlightenment, as well as the pseudo-religious aspects of Marxism. While the nineteenth century saw the replacement of the confessional by the liberal state, it also saw the birth of ideological fanaticisms that would achieve enormous power in the twentieth century. laying the foundations for both the soft totalitarianism of the modern bureaucratic welfare state and the more sinister police states of Communists and National Socialists. The most violent and repressive of these systems mimicked many of the functions of religion. Although liberalism was eventually restored to the continent in 1945 and 1989, many of the themes that Burleigh highlights here, notably the need for civic religions, have assumed a terrible relevance as Europe reacts to the threat of Al Qaeda.--From publisher description
Table Of Contents
Age of reason, age of faith -- The Church and the revolution -- Puritans thinking they are Spartans run amok in eighteenth-century Paris -- The alliance of throne and altar in Restoration Europe -- Chosen peoples : political messianism and nationalism -- Century of faiths -- New Men and sacred violence in late-nineteenth-century Russia -- Rendering unto Caesar : church versus state, state versus church -- The churches and industrial society -- Apocalypse 1914