Relativism and Religion

Why Democratic Societies Do Not Need Moral Absolutes
Erscheinungsjahr 2015
ISBN: 978-0-231-17078-9
Verlag: Columbia University Press

Buch, Englisch, 288 Seiten, Format (B × H): 236 mm x 163 mm, Gewicht: 526 g

Reihe: Religion, Culture, and Public Life

Moral relativism is deeply troubling for those who believe that, without a set of moral absolutes, democratic societies will devolve into tyranny or totalitarianism. Engaging directly with this claim, Carlo Invernizzi Accetti traces the roots of contemporary anti-relativist fears to the antimodern rhetoric of the Catholic Church, and then rescues a form of philosophical relativism for modern, pluralist societies, arguing that this standpoint provides the firmest foundation for an allegiance to democracy.

In its dual analysis of the relationship between religion and politics and the implications of philosophical relativism for democratic theory, this book makes a far-ranging contribution to contemporary debates over the revival of religion in politics and the conceptual grounds for a commitment to democracy. It conducts the first comprehensive genealogy of anti-relativist discourse and reclaims for English-speaking readers the overlooked work of political theorists such as Hans Kelsen and Norberto Bobbio, who had articulated the bond between philosophical relativism and democracy. By engaging with attempts to replace the religious foundation of democratic values with a neo-Kantian conception of reason, this book also offers a powerful case for relativism as the strongest basis for a civic ethos that integrates different perspectives into democratic politics.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Accetti, Carlo Invernizzi

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Philosophie Ethik, Moralphilosophie
• Sozialwissenschaften Politikwissenschaft Politische Systeme Demokratie
• Sozialwissenschaften Politikwissenschaft Politikwissenschaft Allgemein Politische Theorie, Politische Philosophie
• Geisteswissenschaften Philosophie Sozialphilosophie, Politische Philosophie
• Geisteswissenschaften Philosophie Angewandte Ethik & Soziale Verantwortung

Inhaltsverzeichnis

AcknowledgmentsIntroduction1. The Discourse of Anti-Relativism in the Political Thought of the Catholic Church2. Elements for a Public Critique of the Catholic Discourse of Anti-Relativism3. Rationalism: Between Relativism and Religion4. Defense of a Relativist Conception of DemocracyConclusionNotesBibliographyIndex

Über Autor(innen)

Carlo Invernizzi Accetti is an assistant professor of political theory at City College, City University of New York, and an associate researcher at the Center for European Studies of the Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris (Sciences Po).