Beyond Totalitarianism

This article concerns secularization theory and the concept of political religion, specifically their analytic scope. It begins by noting that their recent revival after the Cold War displays a strong fixation on totalitarian ideologies: whereas Nazism and Bolshevism have received extensive attention, liberalism has been ignored. While this secularization–totalitarianism nexus is not without precedent in earlier scholarship, the article argues that it is arbitrary; ample space exists within secularization theory to accommodate other modern narratives of progress and perfection, including liberal ones. The article unlocks and recovers this space by revisiting the early stages of secularization theory to reveal that many of its initial proponents, such as classical realist scholars of international relations, included liberalism on their agenda. Concluding passages give some thought to why contemporary political religion historiography has not progressed beyond totalitarianism and why it should pick up on the broader secularization literature introduced here and re-engage with liberalism today

Economics · Epistemology · Historiography · Ideology · Liberalism · Narrative · Political science · Politics · Positive economics · Scholarship · Secularization · Social science · Sociology · American Constitutional Law and Politics · Law · Philosophy · Religion and Society Interactions · Religion, Society, and Development

• The government of life

  K Villadsen, Ayo Wahlberg•Economy and Society•2015

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