UID:
edocfu_9958352085502883
Format:
1 online resource(304 p.) :
,
illustrations.
Edition:
Electronic reproduction. New York, NY : Columbia University Press, 2015. Mode of access: World Wide Web.
Edition:
System requirements: Web browser.
Edition:
Access may be restricted to users at subscribing institutions.
ISBN:
9780231540377
Series Statement:
Religion, Culture, and Public Life
Content:
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.
Note:
Frontmatter --
,
CONTENTS --
,
Acknowledgments --
,
Introduction --
,
1. The Discourse of Anti-Relativism in the Political Thought of the Catholic Church --
,
2. Elements for a Public Critique of the Catholic Discourse of Anti-Relativism --
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3. Rationalism: Between Relativism and Religion --
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4. Defense of a Relativist Conception of Democracy --
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Conclusion --
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Notes --
,
Bibliography --
,
Index
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In English.
Language:
English
URL:
https://www.degruyter.com/doi/book/10.7312/acce17078
