hat the world would be a better place if only secularist politics, were comprehensively instituted within political institutions. I will discuss this argument by looking at the issues that arise from theocracy in Iran, specifically the incompatibility of theocracy and democracy, and the issue of entrenching political policies in religious doctrines and what that means for change. I will then examine the different forms that secularism can take. Firstly, by examining the forced atheism of Soviet Russia, and the Judeo-Christian secularism of the United States of America, looking at how these forms of secularism do not fully overcome the issues presented in theocracy. Lastly I will examine laicite, looking particularly at France, and how through
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In the 1970’s, Iran had a popular sovereignty with an elected parliament and a president overseen by a faqih, an Islamic jurist, namely Khomein. Khomein was the supreme religious leader, and his authority was legitimized on the basis that he was "the only legitimate successor to the prophet and the imams”. However in 1980s, Khomein removed the elected head of state, placing total power in the clergy. This was followed by an attempt to fully enforce sharia law, which was met with dispute, as even within the clergy the particulars of sharia law are debated. This lead to Khomein announcing that the Islamic State had unconditional authority to make all decisions, not limited by Sacred Law. “A government in the form of a God given absolute mandate was the most important of the divine commandments”. In this way, Khomein undermined the foundation of theocracy, Islamic law and democracy, positioning himself as an absolute leader. The citizens of Iran were disregarded entirely when Khomeini placed authority solely in the unelected clergy and himself. Iran is a clear example of how religious legitimization of power can divert the track of democracy, and even lean towards a …show more content…
It legitimizes political authority.(38) The united states, for example, can be described as a secular republic that is realizing God 's will (38) Politics is conducted separately from religion, and there is complete religious freedom in accordance with the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States. However, this secularity continues the legacy of Christianity, in that it is accepted that "religion is ultimately good for democratic politics" (42) In the US the objective is not to expel religion, but to find a common ground found in all Christian discourse, and use it as a framework in which democratic politics can be conducted
In the 1970’s, Iran had a popular sovereignty with an elected parliament and a president overseen by a faqih, an Islamic jurist, namely Khomein. Khomein was the supreme religious leader, and his authority was legitimized on the basis that he was "the only legitimate successor to the prophet and the imams”. However in 1980s, Khomein removed the elected head of state, placing total power in the clergy. This was followed by an attempt to fully enforce sharia law, which was met with dispute, as even within the clergy the particulars of sharia law are debated. This lead to Khomein announcing that the Islamic State had unconditional authority to make all decisions, not limited by Sacred Law. “A government in the form of a God given absolute mandate was the most important of the divine commandments”. In this way, Khomein undermined the foundation of theocracy, Islamic law and democracy, positioning himself as an absolute leader. The citizens of Iran were disregarded entirely when Khomeini placed authority solely in the unelected clergy and himself. Iran is a clear example of how religious legitimization of power can divert the track of democracy, and even lean towards a …show more content…
It legitimizes political authority.(38) The united states, for example, can be described as a secular republic that is realizing God 's will (38) Politics is conducted separately from religion, and there is complete religious freedom in accordance with the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States. However, this secularity continues the legacy of Christianity, in that it is accepted that "religion is ultimately good for democratic politics" (42) In the US the objective is not to expel religion, but to find a common ground found in all Christian discourse, and use it as a framework in which democratic politics can be conducted