Manual de seguridad Industrial de Auto Frenos

The dialectical relation of Orthodoxy and politics

O rthodoxy, as a holistic, religious experience, may in itia lly appear to be an incom patible referent, when considered, w ith p u re ly p o litic a l form s, o f personal and societal expression. From a Serbian historical perspective, th is alm ost unequal relation originates in the te rrito ria l organisation o f the church, w hich transcends p o litic a l boundaries, in an encompassing p u rsu it o f her congregation's existential problems, sacred o r profane. The p o litic a l encroachment o f the O rthodox la ity , the separation o f vox Dei from vox populU was fo rc ib ly pronounced under the secular conditions o f Yugoslav communism, w hich lim ite d the scope, in te n sity and form al depth o f confessional a ffin itie s. In an O rthodox environm ent, communism's appeal proved, “ short-lived," confined w ith in the institutional-ideological realm o r governm ental co n tro l o f a loca lity, a region and the state “ so th at the e a rth ly w orld is not transform ed in to helT". The p o litica l a u th o rity o f the state -as a p rim a ry social in s titu tio n - was tautological w ith the establishm ent o f the necessary preconditions, safeguarding the social developm ent and consistent function o f the collective -socialist- e ntity.

O rthodox C hristian ity ascribes to a specific and ideal notion o f p o litica l, étatist a uth o rity, as an expression o f d iv in e ly sanctioned providence aimed at, the society's welfare. The ecclesiastic presence

^ Solovyev, an Orthodox, Russian intellectual, -of the nineteenth century- supported the view that the aim of the political state is not to create Heaven on earth but rather to obstruct the deterioration of the latter into “h ell”.

in inaugural p o litic a l ceremonies or the inco rpo ra tion o f a religious oath o f allegiance, fu rth e r confirm s the O rthodox perception o f the p o litic a l life . P olitical leaders are bestowed w ith the resp on sibility to pursue the m atters o f th e ir p o lity, in the organisation and u tilisa tio n o f hum an and inanim ate resources. By its nature, this resp on sibility is chronologically specific, to the e a rth ly life . The awareness o f the in h e rite d lim ita tio n s o f p o litica l a u th o rity should ide a lly correlate to an accountable leadership, which adheres to the prescribed norms and nature o f duty. The delineated precepts o f the secular a u th o rity, are cla rifie d through the paraphrased application o f a proposition, a ttrib u tin g to the Church the role o f the State, whereby "the state o r ra th e r the c iv il a u th o rity (is) m erely the police departm ent o f the Church.3”

W ith in this context, the in d ivid u a l members o f the society are v o litio n a l participants in the p o litical processes, w hich allow them to observe and control, the legal constitution o f th e ir com m unity. Yet, as the hum an experience evolves on a profane and a transcendental level, in d ivid u a l. O rthodox affinities, are not necessarily correlating w ith the successful exercise o f p o litica l a uth o rity, in as much as the

^ The original form of this proposition, chronologically refers, to the M iddle Ages and the corollary ecclesiastical prominence or rather union of the sacred (sacerdotium) w ith the profane {imperium, or regnum). Since the latter, also related to the preservation of order and social protection and as Orthodoxy did not share the project of Reformation, the foregoing thought, could be applied to

the current analysis. This excerpt is quoted by Figgis, John Neville, Political

thought from Gerson to Grotius 1414-1625, (New York: Harper Torchbooks,

la tte r, does not solely depend upon the societal prom inence o f the O rthodox fa ith . Upon this assumption, O rthodoxy d o ctrin a lly rejects the establishm ent o f religio usly defined p o litica l parties,^ w hich are perceived as divisive social agents -contrary to the universal appeal and project o f the Church. Instead, the social purpose o f O rthodoxy pertains to the u n ifica tio n and s p iritu a l approxim ation o f hum anity, irrespective o f p o litic a l divisions and a ffilia tio n s. For O rthodoxy, the ultim ate referent is id e n tifie d w ith the salvation o f the hum an being th a t lies beyond the profane com m itm ents o f the ea rth ly experience.

However, h istorical and contem porary circumstances provide the antipode to the preceding O rthodox ideal, o f p o litic a l a uth o rity. Social cohesion revolves around a sense o f dual allegiance, including the id e n tifica tio n w ith the p o litic a l spectrum and membership o f the ecclesiastical body. In other words. O rthodoxy's relationship w ith the p o litic a l a u th o rity is forged on hum anity's mundane and physical existence, w hich incorporates religious principles in the le g itim a tio n o f collective, social and p o litica l structures. In the Serbian context. O rthodoxy constitutes a salient p o litica l agent through the a ffilia tio n o f sp iritu a l and emotive precepts o f

" The Orthodox perception of Christian, political parties, is in direct contrast to the Western European experience, which led to the concrete alignment of the sacred content w ith specific political projects. In consequence, the Italian and German paradigms, are alien to the doctrinal notions of Eastern Christianity. Orthodoxy pertains to and is concerned with the transformation of the earthly

world. Yet, contrary to secular, pohtical authority her orientational references

are not specific to m aterial substance but rather involve a significant spiritual and transcendental content.

personhood w ith the com m unal and national experience. In these conditions, the physical protection and defence o f the nation could not be sustained on p u re ly religious grounds. P olitical a u th o rity and m ore precisely, the étatist structures are ju stifie d , as the sole sources o f v io le n t coercion, upon w hich law and o rd e r are established. In th is equation. O rthodoxy possesses the a b ility and power, to influence hum an perceptions, actions, purpose, and attitudes. This religious p oten tial fo r societal m obilisation lies in the core o f the dialectical re la tion o f O rthodoxy and politics.

H istorical experience generally suggests th a t divin e references, in p o litic a l a u th o rity, transform ed the latter, in to an im m utable fact o f life and p o litic a l leaders were conferred w ith absolute power. The p o litic a l realm was imm une, to popular debate and challenges, w hile a u th o rity was experienced, as subjection and compulsion^. Even if, such, absolutist aspirations are not e n tire ly absent, in contem porary polities, religio usly invoked legitim acy, enables the p o litic a l ru le r to transcend economic o r transactional concerns and to inspire the w ill and com m itm ent o f the people. Of course this reciprocal interactio n m aterialises w ith in the specificities o f a socially pronounced religion like O rthodoxy, and a state, w hich prom otes the established faith. When transposed into a sp iritu a l and ethical vision, the enactm ent o f p o litic a l a u th o rity rises above perceptions o f a contracted artefact and unites the human hypostases in to the actualisation o f order and

the enhancement o f collective virtue . “ P atriotism and the police can unite in d ivid u a ls only so far: God is needed to close the gap.^”

O rthodox perceptions o f collective v irtu e are constituted upon ethical prescriptions o f personal and social conduct -by references to an agapeistic m oral content- that render the contractual cohesion o f the com m unity, attainable. The religious delineation o f hum an life commences w ith the baptism al in itia tio n in the ecclesiastical body, w hich is then reiterated, by a re cu rre nt p a rticip a tio n in sacraments. In the process, a measure o f significance, is bestowed to distin ctive values and relations, like the fa m ily, w hich are in teg ra l to notions o f personhood. On the basis o f this evaluative cluster, the interactive foundations between O rthodoxy and p o litica l a u th o rity are delim ited and constructed. The members o f the w orshipping com m unity hence become v o litio n a l citizens o f the profane p o lity , under conditions th a t pronounce, th e ir religiously induced convictions. In substantial measure, the convergence o f a s p iritu a l and a p o litica l o r national allegiance is d iachro nically engendered w ith in Serbian O rthodoxy, as she encodes a non-universal concretion, o f an eternal religion and non-negotiable tru th claims. The O rthodox fa ith is not an attenuated tra d itio n , propagated by specific and p o litic a lly im portant, sections o f the p o lity. In fact, variable form s o f p o litic a l a u th o rity and th e ir norm ative purpose

* Quoted by Melzer, A rthur M., “The Origin of the counter-Enlightenment:

Rousseau and the new religion of sincerity,” in American Political Science

w ould be incom prehensible, w ith o u t atte ntio n to O rthodoxy, as the enduring projection o f Serbianhood.

W itho ut the religious contours o f acceptable wisdom -tru th -, adjudicating arbitrariness and m inim ising social entropy, designated p o litic a l structures, could not be sustained. The foregoing term s o f acceptable wisdom are co ro lla ry to ecclesiastically, defined notions, com m unal perceptions and concepts o f selfhood, d a ily routines and cum ulated lines o f thinking,^ w hich are internalised and externalised by O rthodoxy. Under these circumstances, personal com m itm ent to social-political processes, is not solely a ttrib u te d to an autonomous exercise o f hum an agency. Instead, the legitim ation o f the p o litic a l sphere is founded on perceptions o f righteousness, w hich reproduce cognitive form s o f O rthodox reasoning. Im portantly, these cognitive precepts® are accepted as a residual p a rt o f a h isto rica lly sanctioned

’ Ivan Strenski supports a sim ilar line of though w ith regard to the interaction between pohtical authorities and religion, both of which, constitute concrete, cultural expressions of life rather than mere ideological schemes. See Strenski, Ivan, “Pohtical culture, rehgious culture and sacrifice,” in M artin, Luther (ed.).

Religious transformations and socio-political change, (Berhn: Mouton de

Gruyter, 1993), pp. 293-4.

® Institutional legitimacy, according to M ary Douglas, is conferred when the righteousness of the institution is grounded in nature and reason [See Douglas,

M ary, How institutions think, (London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1987), p. 45].

W ithin the Orthodox cosmology references to nature and reason are rehgiously ascribed in a coherent, line of thought, perpetuahy actualised and reproduced. It fohows that the construction of the pohtical sphere and the legitim acy of its institutions would be subjected to the broader cognitive precepts of Orthodoxy.

religion, conferred on the com m unity, by its venerated forefathers, celebrated heroes and m artyrs. The O rthodox genealogy o f fa ith and her m ythopoeic content, o b je ctify personal o r collective experiences through the recurrent construction o f a physical and m etaphysical re a lity and reco nciliation o f p articula ritie s and peculiarities. In other words, “w hat re lig io n brings in to co n flict, po litics cannot easily reconcile; w hat re lig io n unites, p olitics cannot easily divide.^'’

The p o litic a l app ro p ria tio n of, o r reckoning w ith O rthodoxy, is centred on the m oral p e n e tra b ility o f the la tte r, w hich is reflected in the harm onisation o f power structures and patterns o f interaction. P olitical a u th o rity is va ria bly confined, in religiously invoked, ethical norms (piety, “ love ethic,” sacrifice, a ltru ism and notions o f rig h t and w rong), as these are socially experienced and perpetuated. The v a ria b ility o f this assum ption is dependent upon the re lig io sity and ethos o f p o litic a l leaders and the attachm ent to o r observance o f the sacred. The p o litica l externalisation o f these m oral perceptions is contextually bound to a social environm ent that presupposes and is m otivated by the same evaluative principles. A fram ew ork o f social values, rules, customs and trad ition s, w ould reciprocally determ ine, the com m unal allegiances, to p o litic a l

The extent and impact of Orthodox reasordng, would depend, on the strength or absence of secular, political convictions.

’ Quoted by Stackhouse, Max L , “Pohtics and rehgion,” in Ehade, Mircea (ed.).

The Encyclopaedia o f Religion, Volume 11, (New York: Macmillan Publishing

causes. However, it w ould be reductive i f not fallacious, to consider the pursuance and exercise o f p o litica l a u th o rity, as a m anifestation o f religious orthopraxis. W hile national and personal perceptions o f belonging may involve a sacred referent, the requirem ents and operative needs o f a polity^° extend beyond the m etaphysical prescriptions th a t a re lig io n could provide. O rthodoxy's em otive and s p iritu a l appeals, are p o litic a lly significant under conditions o f crisis, unrest o r a threat, w hich require societal cohesion -subjecting her p o litic a l capital to ambiguous, populist-dem agogic m anipulation.

P olitical appeals to the w orshipping congregation are, though, m ediated by the ecclesiastical hierarchy, the “ custodian" o f the d eity and the O rthodox doctrine. The O rthodox hierarchy constitutes the core o f the religious com m unity upon w hich notions o f the physical- m oral union are construed and propagated. The emergent O rthodox ethos could n eith er be p o litic a lly ignored nor socially abbreviated as it is spatially and h isto rica lly embedded, w ith in the organisational structures o f the co lle ctivity. In this context, a question arises as to w hether O rthodoxy, in p a rticu la r her function al content (“ cu ltus"), is a p rim ary fo rm o f p o litic a l expression. The answer could be in the a ffirm a tive i f the com m unity's profane and s p iritu a l hypostases are

The pursuit of political and social modernisation often contradicts rehgiously invoked traditions and notions. A recent example, of these partly contradictory processes, was experienced in Greece, when the government decided to abolish any w ritten references, of confessional affinity, (overwhelmingly. Orthodox Christian) in id entity cards. The decision was justified on grounds of political and cultural approxim ation, w ith the estabhshed norms of the European Union and was countered by ecclesiastically co-ordinated, popular unrest.