Church and State 2005
A postmodern political theology by Sen McGlinn
This is a political theology for the Bahá´í Faith, but it is also a
philosophy for living in our globalising, postmodern society. The
functional differentiation of society means that government,
religion, commerce, art, education and science are increasingly
independent, have different social functions, relate differently to
one another, and that their lived meanings for us are different.
Functional differentiation also drives the pluralism and relativism,
global scope and individualisation that characterise postmodern society.
In a society in which religious ritual is the mirror of individual
distinctiveness, not of collective identity, in which permanent pluralism
means n that no one religion can provide common norms and values, and no
ideology should try, and in which the norms of one sphere of life are not
transferred to other spheres, religion must find a new understanding of
itself, and a new job description for its role in society. The 20th
century has taught us that economic affairs cannot be governed by
political ideologies, that science must be free of doctrine and political
agendas, that church and state must be separated. But it has not provided
us with a new world view that explains the postmodern world that we
actually experience. This book draws on the Bahai scriptures, and the
Bible and Quran, to show that the differentiation and globalisation of
postmodern society are signs that the Kingdom of God is growing in the
world. |
This book (16 x 25 cm) of 441 pages costs
$US 39 from www.kalimat.com 7 black and white photogrpahs overlaid with texts by Sonja van Kerkhoff
To Sen's 2018 book "Principles for Progress" on the Leiden University Press website
To more Bahá´í related books |