Politics as Religion

by Emilio Gentile, George Staunton (Translator)

Emilio Gentile, an internationally renowned authority on fascism and totalitarianism, argues that politics over the past two centuries has often taken on the features of religion, claiming as its own the prerogative of defining the fundamental purpose and meaning of human life. Secular political entities such as the nation, the state, race, class, and the party became the focus of myths, rituals, and commandments and gradually became objects of faith, loyalty, and reverence.

Gentile examines this "sacralization of politics," as he defines it, both historically and theoretically, seeking to identify the different ways in which political regimes as diverse as fascism, communism, and liberal democracy have ultimately depended, like religions, on faith, myths, rites, and symbols.

Gentile maintains that the sacralization of politics as a modern phenomenon is distinct from the politicization of religion that has arisen from militant religious fundamentalism. Sacralized politics may be democratic, in the form of a civil religion, or it may be totalitarian, in the form of a political religion. Using this conceptual distinction, and moving from America to Europe, and from Africa to Asia, Gentile presents a unique comparative history of civil and political religions from the American and French Revolutions, through nationalism and socialism, democracy and totalitarianism, fascism and communism, up to the present day. It is also a fascinating book for understanding the sacralization of politics after 9/11.

Genres: History, Politics, Religion, Nonfiction, Philosophy

200 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

Emilio Gentile (born 1946 in Bojano) is an Italian historian specializing in the ideology and culture of fascism. Gentile is considered one of Italy's foremost cultural historians of fascist ideology. He studied under Renzo De Felice and wrote a book about him.

Gentile is a professor at the Sapienza University of Rome. He considers fascism a form of political religion. He also applied the theory of political religion to the United States after the September 11 attacks.

Reviews

[Dimitrii Ivanov · Rating 4 out of 5]

Отличная книга, подробно и со множеством примеров описывающая феномены гражданских и политических религий. Особенно много об итальянском фашизме, германском нацизме и советском коммунизме как политических религиях, в том числе о реакции христиан на эти феномены. Красиво издано. Разочаровывающее предисловие, с обильными цитатами из Эволы и рассуждениями про угрозу, которую либеральная гражданская религия представляет для правых индивидуалистов, т.е. его главная цель, кажется, не примерить наблюдения Джентиле к тому, что произошло за 20 лет между выходом оригинального издания и русского перевода, а утвердить собственное мировоззрение.

[AC · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is not a republication or rewriting of Gentile's study of political liturgy in Itally, but a sustained and general study of the sacralization of politics ("Political Religion") as such - and covers everything from its beginnings in the writings of Rousseau and in the cults (myths, symbols, and liturgies) of the American and French Revolutions, through Mazzini, Mussolini, Hitler, and Stalinism -- with a final chapter on Third World nationalizing socialisms of Kim il Sung, Ceausescu, Mao, Nkrumah (in which he follows a path first opened by Gregor) -- ending back with American political pieties. The book is marred by too much emphasis (in my opinion) on general, theoretical discussions -- but they are generally astute, and the brief discussion of the physiognomy of totalitarian regimes at pp. 46-48 is brilliant and itself worth the price of the book. But the point proven, the book (150 fairly dense pages) could have been halved.

[Dan Leiser · Rating 5 out of 5]

Politics as religion

A kaleidoscopic examination of how the civil and political religions of the 20th century cycled through birth, domination, and death. This could be looked at as a synthesis of the disparate references and longer more direct examinations of political and civil religions, Raymond Aron will be a familiar name by the end, and the way they experienced it during the actual events.

This perspective which casts a semi standardized projection over totalitarian regimes, how they functioned, and how they created myths, rituals, symbols, and practices akin to the church and actively fought it was highly interesting.

What he theorizes at the end with regarding the decline and possible reemergence of political and civil religions, you get a sense that he isn’t quite sure. And I am not either. We live in a world that’s fundamentally different from the 20th century with regards to the affiliations with religions, how we interact with leaders and even with contemporary movements like MAGA or Orban in Hungary, AfD, etc you get the sense that our broad speculation against religiosity may be a bulwark when the leaders who are trying to channel their own totalitarian states are hollow men. On the other side, the playbook is there. We have a different skepticism about us now, but if someone found a way to turn the skepticism into hope than we’re probably in trouble as the masses are in a crisis of faith, a crisis of humanity and existentialist to their core.

An interesting examination, it’s a shame the copies are so expensive because it does feel like this should be more widely read.

[Maxim Kavin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Политические религии — и что с ними едят

Часто мы слышим, что современность — это эпоха секуляризации общества, где религии утратили свое былое влияние на людей и позиции в иерархии институтов. Однако XX век был примером конфликтов, не связанных с религиозной тематикой, он дал нам совершенно иное понимание религий.

Эмилио Джентиле, итальянский историк, в своей книге делает вывод о том, что традиционные верования, к которым мы привыкли, ослабли, но на их место пришли религии совершенно иного уровня: политические и гражданские. Дело в том, что люди сохранили потребность во что-то верить, и этим умело пользовались тоталитарные режимы XX века, создавшие феномен политических религий, которые хоть внешне и отличались от христианства или ислама, но по структуре были идентичны им: схожие обряды, своя мессия и Бог, сакрализация — все это составляющие тоталитаризма.

И автор создал полноценное исследование диктатур XX века, чтобы ответить на вопрос: почему люди поддерживали эти режимы

[Isabel Pliszka · Rating 4 out of 5]

plus 2 stars for a strong conclusion. teach me how to analyze like you

[Flamur Sallahu · Rating 3 out of 5]

It starts good, but not to much analyse.