Category: Short-Form

I won’t go into much detail regarding this chapter as it’s really just a case study of sorts that portrays an example of Gnosticism in society and the effort to re-divinize temporal power. Voegelin does this by looking at the Puritan revolution in 17th century England. What is interesting in this chapter is Voegelin’s seeming… Continue reading Voegelin’s “The New Science of Politics”: Chapter Five: Gnostic Revolution—the Puritan Case

Christianity de-divinized temporal power by establishing a split between the spiritual power of the church and represented in the pope and the temporal power of society/the state represented in the emperor/ruler. Modern efforts to re-divinize temporal power are rooted in Christian heresies dating back to the late 12th century. Before this time, the West and… Continue reading Voegelin’s “The New Science of Politics”: Chapter Four: Gnosticism—The Nature of Modernity

This chapter traces the end of political theology through the establishment of Christianity in Roman empire. To begin, we come to understand there are three types of representational truth: With the first, society represents the truth of the transcendent in that it becomes a microcosm of the greater cosmological reality. In the second, society becomes… Continue reading Voegelin’s “The New Science of Politics”: Chapter Three: The Struggle for Representation in the Roman Empire

Before I get into this chapter, I am coming to realize that I need to read this book a second time. I’ve gotten used to Voegelin’s way of speaking and writing, so there’s not a comprehension issue. But, the content is so dense and rich that I want to make sure I fully grasp it.… Continue reading Voegelin’s “The New Science of Politics”: Chapter Two: Representation & Truth