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Modernity Without Restraint: The Political Religions, The New Science of Politics, and Science, Politics, and Gnosticism (Collected Works of Eric Voegelin, Volume 5)
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Average Rating:  out of 3 Reviews
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Price: $42.50
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Sale: $34.00
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Manufacturer: University of Missouri Press
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EAN (European Article Number): 9780826212450
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Number of Items: 1
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Binding: Hardcover
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Author: Eric Voegelin
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Publisher: University of Missouri Press
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Publication Date: 2000-03
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Reading Level: 336
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Description: _Modernity Without Restraint_ presents three of Erik Voegelin's essays on the modern political religions, including Marxism, National Socialism, Hegelianism, Nietzschianism, and Heideggerianism. To Voegelin, these thinkers are all best described as "gnostics" and in their effort to create God's Kingdom on Earth seek to "immanentize the Christian eschaton". In "The Political Religions", Voegelin traces back the origin of political religion to the Egyptian worship of the Sun, the cult of Akhenaton. He traverses the history of the Middle Ages, and he shows how the archetype of the Christian apocalypse (a heresy to the orthodox Christian) came to occupy a central role in political religion. He includes a good discussion of the leviathanic state of Thomas Hobbes. Finally he ends with a compelling picture of the National Socialist state embodied in the Fuehrer. Although he was criticized in this essay for not outrightly condemning the National Socialists, Voegelin stated that this in fact just reveals the satanic allure that this political religion holds. To Voegelin, National Socialism is "satanic". In "The New Science of Politics", Voegelin examines various modes of representation from Plato and Aristotle through the Roman Empire. He then discusses the idea of gnosticism; he views the modern political religions as a restoration of the Gnostic heresy (condemned by early Christianity), an attempt to replace faith with certainty and bring about the Kingdom of God on Earth. This idea arose in the apocalyptic tradition, transmitted through the Middle Ages by the followers of Joachim de Fiore. He discusses in particular the case of the English Puritans. According to Voegelin, the modern political philosophies of liberalism, communism, and the philosophy of Thomas Hobbes are under the spell of gnosticism. In "Science, Politics, and Gnosticism", the most interesting of the essays presented, Voegelin delves into the thinkers Hegel, Marx ("an intellectual swindler"), Nietzsche ("the murder of God"), Heidegger, and psychoanalysis and National Socialism. To Voegelin, these thinkers are all "gnostics", and the movements spurred by their philosophies are "ersatz religions". Voegelin represents an interesting alternative to modernity and liberalism. And this book among his collected works serves as an excellent introduction to the thought of this profound thinker, philosopher of gnosticism.
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Customer Reviews
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Review Summary: Counterpoint to positivist / behaviorist poli-sci |
Date: 2008-02-08 |
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Details: Modernity Without Restraint comprises three overlapping essays / lectures by Voegelin in which he explores the "pneumopathological" effects of Gnostic beliefs on the individual and the society they infect. Voegelin intended them to target gnostic elements in the ideologies of two of the totalitarian movements of his time, Fascism and Communism, though they bear a chilling relevance to the current intermingling of right wing politics and evangelical Christianism in contemporary American political culture. His style can be difficult, his vocabulary (translated from the German) can seem strange at times (e.g., "pneumopathology," "immanentization"), and his central theme of the importance of ordering the individual soul, and society at large, in harmony with a "transcendent order of being" could be initially off-putting to a "social scientist," but his thesis, well supported and argued through a synopsis of relevant thinkers and topics from the history of religion, philosophy and social science, provides an interesting and broadening counterpoint to "modern" positivist / realist / behaviorist influences in political science and social science generally. Though much of Voegelin's argument centers around the importance of spirituality for the individual and society, and connection to a transcendent order that is "given," "Modernity Without Restraint" provides a timeless warning against "immanentization of the (Christian) eschaton," the spiritual and practical consequences for any society that succumbs to it. |
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Review Summary: Deep and Profound |
Date: 2007-03-18 |
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Details: For those of you who are new to Voegelin perhaps a word generally about his work will be helpful. Voegelin was born in Cologne, Germany in 1901. In 1938, he and his wife fled from Germany to the United States. From this context alone it is not surprising that Voegelin is very critical of the Nazis in particular and totalitarian regimes in general. What is perhaps more surprising to those who first come across Voegelin is his claim that regimes such as the Nazis are derivatives of such generally loved intellectual movements as the Enlightenment and Progressivism.
Taken together, the three works published in this volume provide a good basis for understanding how Voegelin comes to this conclusion. In this regard, "The New Science of Politics" is probably the most comprehensive work of the three. However, I would make two suggestions to those who are considering tackling this volume. First, read the first and third (that is, "The Political Religions" and "Science, Politics, and Gnosticism") before reading "The New Science of Politics". I think that the first and third pieces are much easier to read, even though they are less encompassing overall. Second, read "The New Science of Politics" twice. I read that installment for the first time about a year ago and I feel that I understood a lot more the second time around.
Voegelin is a great thinker, and his works in this volume provide a different, and yet very profound way of looking at modern Western society. I think Voegelin's construction of Gnosticism is right on as a critique of the modern psyche. I would recommend this book to anyone looking to explore the work of Voegelin; this is a great place to start. The writing is fairly difficult, but you don't have to understand everything to take a lot from this book. |
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Review Summary: Gnosticism and Political Religions. |
Date: 2002-01-25 |
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Details: _Modernity Without Restraint_ presents three of Erik Voegelin's essays on the modern political religions, including Marxism, National Socialism, Hegelianism, Nietzschianism, and Heideggerianism. To Voegelin, these thinkers are all best described as "gnostics" and in their effort to create God's Kingdom on Earth seek to "immanentize the Christian eschaton". In "The Political Religions", Voegelin traces back the origin of political religion to the Egyptian worship of the Sun, the cult of Akhenaton. He traverses the history of the Middle Ages, and he shows how the archetype of the Christian apocalypse (a heresy to the orthodox Christian) came to occupy a central role in political religion. He includes a good discussion of the leviathanic state of Thomas Hobbes. Finally he ends with a compelling picture of the National Socialist state embodied in the Fuehrer. Although he was criticized in this essay for not outrightly condemning the National Socialists, Voegelin stated that this in fact just reveals the satanic allure that this political religion holds. To Voegelin, National Socialism is "satanic". In "The New Science of Politics", Voegelin examines various modes of representation from Plato and Aristotle through the Roman Empire. He then discusses the idea of gnosticism; he views the modern political religions as a restoration of the Gnostic heresy (condemned by early Christianity), an attempt to replace faith with certainty and bring about the Kingdom of God on Earth. This idea arose in the apocalyptic tradition, transmitted through the Middle Ages by the followers of Joachim de Fiore. He discusses in particular the case of the English Puritans. According to Voegelin, the modern political philosophies of liberalism, communism, and the philosophy of Thomas Hobbes are under the spell of gnosticism. In "Science, Politics, and Gnosticism", the most interesting of the essays presented, Voegelin delves into the thinkers Hegel, Marx ("an intellectual swindler"), Nietzsche ("the murder of God"), Heidegger, and psychoanalysis and National Socialism. To Voegelin, these thinkers are all "gnostics", and the movements spurred by their philosophies are "ersatz religions". Voegelin represents an interesting alternative to modernity and liberalism. And this book among his collected works serves as an excellent introduction to the thought of this profound thinker, philosopher of gnosticism. |
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