Politico-Theological Foundations of Universal Human Rights

The Case of Maritain

Bibliographic Data

ID4919692
AuthorsMiguel Vatter (0000-0003-2384-8920, corresponding author)
Year2013
Volume80
Issue1
Pages233-260
Publication date2013-03-01
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueSocial research (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0037-783X • E-ISSN: 1944-768X
PublisherProject MUSE (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1353/sor.2013.0039
OpenAlexW130401221
LanguageEN
Citations received4
References cited9

Today it has become nearly commonplace to understand the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as a new, positive "basic law" for global civil society. Yet this Kelsen- inspired, positivist understanding of the UDHR covers over both the theologico-political and the bio-political presuppositions of the doctrine of "basic rights" voiced through the UDHR. In order to bring to light these dimensions of universal human rights, this paper offers an interpretation of Jacques Maritain’s understanding of human rights, both prior to and after the UDHR. The article shows that Maritain understood universal human rights as part and parcel of a new "democratic" Christian political theology centered on the critique of Schmitt’s conception of sovereignty. Additionally, Maritain attempted to ground the universality of human rights on a theory of human nature which is strikingly biopolitical in character and closely related to emerging neoliberal critiques of sovereignty

Declaration · Democracy · Doctrine · Epistemology · Human rights · Interpretation (philosophy) · Political science · Politics · Presupposition · Sociology · Sovereignty · Universality (dynamical systems) · Historical and Contemporary Political Dynamics · Law · Philosophy · Political Philosophy and Ethics · Political Theology and Sovereignty

Tools

Open DOIOpen Access