Bearing True Witness

Abstract

This research article analyzes the aspirations and likely outcomes of the Christian right in terms of educational policy in America. The main source of data for this analysis draws from 13 source-protected interviews with directors of state-level Christian right organizations. A semi-structured, elite interviewing approach was utilized. The qualitative data demonstrates that the American Christian right is divided, organizationally, between those who identify with Republican party politics versus those who approach the political process more independently. The author shows that for the Christian right, education is a peripheral issue rather than a central one. Consequently, the Christian right will likely be unable to turn its political objectives into actual policy gains in terms of public education.     

Europe's Christian Democratic Parties and American Possibilities

In this paper, I survey the histories of Europe's Christian Democratic parties and suggest that inasmuch as they show that religiously framed party politics can have significant and positive effects on both institutions and supporters, it is difficult to see how those lessons translate straightforwardly to the American social and political order. Even if they did, making a success, both electorally and substantively, of a Christian Democratic movement in the United States would require a degree of statesmanship that certainly seems in short supply these days.     

Myths and the political use of religion in Christian Democratic culture

Abstract

In this essay, the author will attempt to analyze the overall relationship established between the party of Christian Democracy (so named for its affiliation with a traditional religion) and the phenomena of the sacralization of politics that have so profoundly shaped the character of mass parties in the twentieth century. The quest for consensus led the Catholic party to adopt a new language, based on mythical thinking and profoundly indebted – in content and mode of communication – to the experiences of totalitarianism. The active rivalry with political religions marked, both in the phase of development and in the process of communication, the forms of mass political expression of Christian Democracy. De Gasperi's proposal concerning the definition of new identities and political affiliations, both on the national level and on the broader Western level (both in European and Atlantic terms) was the product of a unique ideological development in keeping with the requirements of modern mass politics.     

A Christian democratization of politics? The new influence of Catholicism on Italian politics since the demise of the Democrazia Cristiana

A paradox exists in relation to contemporary European Christian democracy. Its ideological influence has increased as Christian democratic parties have declined. This is particularly evident in Italy since the demise of the Democrazia Cristiana (DC). By investigating the ideological development of Italian parties and some key policy reforms that they introduced after the fall of the DC, this article explains this ‘Christian democratization of politics’, a process by which Catholic ideals and symbols acquire a decisive impact on the Italian party system. Three types of Christian democratization are individuated and analyzed: the gradual replacement of liberal values with Catholic political ideas in the positions taken by liberal-oriented parties; the novel synthesis between social Catholicism and social democracy by moderate left-wing coalitions; and the Lega Nord’s use of Catholic values to stress populist positions and identity issues.     

'Institutional thickness', political sub-culture and the resurgence of (the 'new') regionalism in Italy – a case study of the Northern League in the province of Varese

In recent years, the 'regional scale' within the European Union (EU) has become more central within academic and policy debates. In particular, there has been an increased focus upon the importance of so-called 'institutional thickness' for regional development within the EU. Furthermore, the fact that in several European countries, regionalist political parties have made significant electoral gains has ensured that the 'regional question' in Europe has become even more prevalent. This paper explores the linkages between institutions and regionalist political parties by focusing upon the situation in Italy where the resurgence of political regionalism, centred on the Lega Nord (LN) or Northern League political party, has been particularly strong. In particular, the paper focuses upon the development of the LN in a particular province of Northern Italy, Varese. This section explores the ways in which the LN has developed institutionally and electorally and indeed whether the party has been able to develop a specific political sub-culture to replace the previous one associated with the Christian Democrat (DC) party, which was the main party in Varese before the landmark changes that took place in Italian politics in the early 1990s.     

Becoming the ‘party of civil rights’: the Radical Party, 1962–1979

ABSTRACT

The article reconstructs how the Italian Radical Party became, from the mid-1960s, the party of ‘civil rights’, and what its main battles for these rights were between 1967 and 1979. In the Italian political system the Party played a crucial role in the process of re-institutionalization that took place in the 1970s, helping to transfer demands formulated in social and cultural terms since the 1960s to the legislative-institutional level. Making the battle for civil rights the object of their own political action had a systemic meaning for the Radicals – namely, to undermine the dominion of the Christian Democrats and redefine the relations between the political sphere and society. This was closely linked to the political strategy of the party and to the organizational form it gave itself from 1967 onwards. These aspects, however, did not remain unchanged between 1967 and 1979; rather, they fed on the Radicals’ evolving vision of Italian society (on its social turmoil) on the one hand, and on the other they reacted to the evolution of the Italian political scenario, in particular to the possibility of building a parliamentary alternative to the Christian Democracy.     

Can Christian Democracy Be America's Next European Import?

The confluence of the Supreme Court's Obergefell decision on gay marriage and the unusual nature of the 2016 U.S. presidential election presents American Christians with significant political questions. Obergefell's elevation of gay marriage to the status of a constitutional civil right put U.S. law and Christian orthdoxy at loggerheads, thereby raising serious issues with regard to the continued ability of religious organizations to participate in the not-for-profit sector and in higher education. At the same time, the nationalistic turn of the the Republican party under Donald Trump generated dissonance with Christian views of human solidarity. The new situation seems to shift the landscape of American politics and raises the possibility of new alternatives. Contributors to this symposium were asked to evaluate the prospects for an Americanized version of European Christian Democracy. While they generated a diversity of opinion about Christian Democracy, the group pragmatically recognized the many obstacles in place. Some argued against the idea because of reservations about associating the Christian faith with the coerciveness of law. Others noted the proven virtues of such parties in Europe. This article interacts with the different responses and makes a case for why Christian Democracy might have a brighter future in the U.S. than many believe. The primary reason is that Christian Democracy emerged in response to aggressive secularism in Europe's past that may only be reaching similar levels in the U.S. today. Therefore, a new political movement with similarities to Christian Democracy might make sense in the American context.     

It Hasn't Happened Here (Yet): The Obstacles to a Christian Democratic Party in the United States

While the French Revolution of 1789 divided European polities along religious lines in the ensuing decades, the English-speaking world, including the United States, was largely bypassed by the turmoil it engendered. Consequently, while Christian democratic parties developed in postrevolutionary Europe, parties in Great Britain and the US divided along more pragmatic lines. Now, however, the increasing polarization of the American electorate along religious and partisan lines has brought a French-stye divisiveness to that country's political life. While this would seem to provide fertile ground for the growth of a Christian democratic party, such a phenomenon will become viable only if structural, cultural and practical obstacles can be successfully overcome.     

清末民初的“纪年”变革与国家建构

清末,中国传统时间思维受到西方线性时间观念的冲击而发生根本变革,纪年变革就是这种变化最为直接的表现。知识分子将纪年视为建构＂现代国家＂的重要方面,并为争夺纪年所具有的政治资源展开激烈论争。民国建立之后,革命党人将建构新纪年体系视为革新政治的重要标志,并在社会上大力播扬新纪年的意义,此做法却受到了普通民众的抵制。时间观念及与之相伴的生活习俗与现实政治之间的复杂关系是近代社会变革的重要论题。     

Two forms of Catholicism in twenty-first-century Italian public debate: an analysis of positions on same-sex marriage and Muslim dress codes

There is a peculiar relationship between religion and the political system in twenty-first-century Italy. In particular, the collapse of the Democrazia Cristiana party has favored the rise of new political entrepreneurs eager to exploit religion as a legitimacy factor, while the Catholic Church has attempted to influence politics without the mediation of any specific political party. New debates involving religious values have therefore developed. This article analyzes the positions taken and the frames proposed by Italy’s Catholic political actors in relation to two particularly telling issues, that of same-sex marriage and that of the Muslim dress codes. Its most striking finding is the presence in the Italian political system of two distinct forms of Catholicism in politics. One, promoted by the Catholic Church and followed by most centrist Catholics, is quite tolerant in terms of social and religious pluralism and supportive of human rights and social justice, but it emphasizes the ‘traditional’ heterosexual family as the cornerstone of society. The other, ‘civilizational’ form, promoted by the Lega Nord and some other center-right representatives and intellectuals, is based on an idea of Italian citizenship articulated in religious, cultural, and ethnic terms, and thus excluding those who are not members of this community. Here Christian identity is not defined by the Church’s teachings, but rather represents a marker of Western civilization in opposition to Muslim civilization.     

Lega democratica and the making of Italy’s center-left

This article analyzes the history of the Lega democratica, a group of Catholic intellectuals active between 1975 and 1987, and its impact on Catholic debates in Italy’s Second Republic. Despite its small membership, the group’s heritage influenced Italy’s post-1994 center-left and shaped its leadership. Such relevance is explained by describing the Lega democratica’s legacy on four issues. First, on Catholic pluralism: the group was central to a decade-long failed attempt to reconcile different souls of the Italian Catholic laity, which anticipated the end of the Christian Democratic party. Second, after Aldo Moro’s murder the Lega democratica theorized the impossibility of a ‘historic compromise’ between Communists and Christian Democrats: such a development framed their post-1994 attitude. Third, the group’s history reveals a growing generational split on how to achieve political reform (mediation vs. rupture). Finally, the emerging idea of a ‘primacy of civil society’ in the political sphere partly defined the Ulivo coalition’s ideology.     

How Theological is Political Theology? The Case of Twentieth-Century American Protestantism

ABSTRACT

How theological is political theology? Twentieth century American Protestantism illustrates that the answer depends on more than the extent to which a political theology is theological. For example, Walter Rauschenbusch and subsequent emancipatory political theologians understand theology's political significance very differently than John Howard Yoder and other political theologians influenced by the Radical Reformation. Nevertheless, both groups conceive the Christian gospel as a politics and so concur that Christian theology is essentially political. By contrast, Reinhold Niebuhr interpreted the gospel as disclosure of God's mercy and therefore denied that Christian theology is primarily a politics--for society or the church. Hence, although all three of these political theologies are thoroughly theological, they are not political in the same manner or for the same reasons. Accordingly, in addition to quantitative considerations, ascertaining theology's place in political theology involves discerning how a political theology is theological and why a theology is political.     

Oliver O'Donovan,The Ways of Judgment

Abstract

Investigating how Christians best understand their political role on the receiving side of political authority, the essay revisits the older "citizens versus subject" debate and presents exegetical, doctrinal and historical considerations that suggest keep this tension alive instead of seeking to dissolve it on either side. The author argues that the peculiar interweaving of "citizen" and "subject" traditions characterizes the Christian attitude towards political authority from the outset. This is demonstrated by a fresh reading of Romans 13 in which the arguably "conservative" origin of Christian political thought is shown to bear clear, albeit often overlooked, marks of a genuine "citizen" ethics. Extemporising on Luther's commentary on Romans 13, the essay demonstrates how the idea of a Christian as "subject-as-citizen" is rooted in a theological refusal to compartmentalize the human existence into separate spheres of authority As "embodied soul" the Christian responds to political authority in a way that engages the human being in all its faculties, simultaneously free and bound. The essay concludes by suggesting that the crucial shift in the more recent history of political thought can be explained more readily as a shift from this theologically motivated duality towards a monochrome political voluntarism that insisted a citizen's submission to political rule could be conceived as essentially submission to one's own will.     

Delegitimation and anticommunism in Italian neofascism

Abstract

Although anticommunism was a key element of the identity and political strategy of the neofascist Italian Social Movement (MSI), it has remained a largely unexplored theme in historiographic research. This article reconstructs its origins, developments, and outcomes, from the birth of the MSI in the aftermath of World War II to its dissolution in 1994. Far from being an immutable feature of neofascist political culture, anticommunism took on very different roles and meanings depending on the political climate of republican Italy. In a more radical key, anticommunism both facilitated and hindered political dialogue with the other parties, firstly and foremost the Christian Democratic Party (DC). Taken to excess, anticommunism also accentuated neofascist hostility to democracy. This led to a lasting delegitimation of the MSI at a systemic and ethical-political level, and the party’s alienation in the years of the First Republic.     

Containing containment: rethinking Italy's experience during the Cold War

This article examines the impact of the Cold War on the Italian political system. It compares the relations of the two main Italian parties - the DC and the PCI - with their external interlocutors and allies - the USA and the USSR - during the first decade of the Cold War. By doing so, the article rejects traditional interpretations of how post-Second World War international constraints limited Italy's sovereignty. It argues instead that the main Italian pro-western party, the Christian Democrats, deliberately opted for a policy of containment of American pressures. Such a policy was functional to the twin objectives of consolidating DC hegemony, and safeguarding Italy's new republican constitution.     

The smallest ideological and political battlefield: depicting borders on postage stamps – the case of Israel

There are few dozen areas in dispute around the world, where the borders have not been agreed by the involved parties or by the international community. The dispute over the Israeli border is particularly complex as it not only presents disagreement between the opposing sides in play but also in the international arena and within the Israeli political system and society. This paper examines one way in which the State of Israel is trying to define its borders through postage stamps. The argument raised is that Israel issues stamps that deal with disputed territorial areas in accordance with the ideology of the ruling party of a certain period, as well as the respective social consensus surrounding a particular area. Our findings support this argument and find three meta‐messages incorporated into the stamps, including the historical connection between the State of Israel and the land of Israel, unified Jerusalem, and the Christian connection to Jerusalem.     

Liberated from the Liberator: Frederick Douglass and Garrisonian Political Theology

I argue that Frederick Douglass and William Lloyd Garrison held very different political theologies, even while they seemed to work productively together from 1841 to 1847. Examining Douglass's self-presentation on both sides of his split with Garrison, I conclude that he stifled his Christian moral vision in order to comply with Garrisonian theological ideals while working in New England. After moving to Rochester, New York, Douglass was free to give full voice to his authentic Christian political vision. I explore their differing approaches to the Bible's authority, theological anthropology, and the moral permissibility of force, which influenced their political responses to slavery. Scholars such as John Stauffer and John Sekora have argued that his departure facilitated esthetic and racial forms of emancipation for Douglass; I argue that leaving Garrison allowed Douglass to express not only his authentic literary and black identities, but his true Christian identity as well.     

中国特色政党制度与社会的关系

政党与社会的关系是政党政治的基本关系之一。政党制度作为政党政治的实现形式,是社会不断发展的产物,同时它又对社会发展产生着重大影响。在我国,中国特色政党制度与社会主义社会的关系,除具有一般政党制度与社会的关系外,还具体表现为中国特色政党制度与社会利益群体、社会资源和社会意识形态的关系。     

Christianity and Political Engagement in Post-Apartheid South Africa

Abstract

This paper focuses specifically on the impact of the Christian churches on the social, cultural and political contexts of South Africa. It considers the political role of the mainline Christian churches and their ecumenical bodies during the apartheid era. In post-apartheid South Africa, the social and political context has changed and the Christian churches relate to this new context in varied ways. The rapid growth and proliferation of Christian churches under forces of globalization to some extent undermines social cohesion and development. The traditional practice of the public gathering, or imbizo, is particularly threatened. This article therefore seeks to address the question of whether Christian institutions in a rapidly globalizing Africa are an asset or liability for promoting identity and belonging, social cohesion, and the development of social capital.     

Beyond Revolution,Beyond the Law: Christian Anarchism in Conversation with Giorgio Agamben

ABSTRACT

The Christian anarchist tradition and the work of Giorgio Agamben fit within a subversive trajectory of political theology that critiques the state paradigm, while also operating at a distance from it in their creation of a newly imagined political community. This research asks what it could look like to conceive of a political community beyond the state, imagined from the subject position of the marginalized. It also seeks a mutually informed path towards the practical formation of such communities, as elaborated through a case study of the Anabaptist tradition. Agamben’s concepts provide a renovation of the political themes of Christian anarchism, including the ideas of moving beyond revolution, voluntary exile through the abdication of rights, and messianic vocation. As the space for political praxis within Agamben’s work continues to evolve, the Anabaptist tradition provides helpful practices to imagine a withdrawal from the governmental machine as a community of voluntary exiles.