The concept of “political religion:” a historical overview

Abstract

A historical overview of the rich ambiguity of the concept of “political religion” is offered here. After a glance at the early modern period, some of the most important authors who treated political religions as secular religions, such as Condorcet and Voegelin, are analyzed before diving into the current debates. Although the exact use of the term “political religion” is not yet fully defined, this paper makes an argument that the early meaning of the concept did not refer to the secularization of religion, nor to the sacralization of politics, but rather to the public character of religion, as opposed to inner or private beliefs.