Religion and Politics: A Cosmological Dualism

Religion and politics continue to combine in important ways which in many issues about humanity are debated and acted upon but this clash is of two opposing intuitions, arguing, one from a moralist and secular point of view and the other is from a ‘rationalist’ point of view, depending upon the players in the government produces a great class against the role of the divine and natural order against the exercise of power in a society. As what Finer said, religion formed part of a vast cosmology into which all things are fitted. In this cosmology, all things from morality to immorality of a society up to politics and the exercise of power of the government are included.

The influence of religion is so great that it can even dictate the populace what and how to behave. Of course in such way that is according to the will and to the morals set according to the teching of God. This is something good in a society, where you have an institution that regulates and teaches the people how to be a good man more than to be a good citizen.

So what’s the different between a good man and a good citizen?

Aristotle, in his book Politics makes a clear distinction of being a good man and a good Citizen. A good Citizen is the one who is faithful to the state constitution while a good man is someone who possesses a   perfect virtue. So for Aristotle, being a good man is more superior to being a good citizen because a good citizen can be faithful to an oligarchic constitution, can be faithful to a communist state, can be faithful to a wrong ideals but a good man can only be faithful to one-virtue, which is a general concept of what is right and what is wrong or a general concept of Ethics.

The church plays an important role in building morals by teaching positive attitudes to the states citizens- and this is advantageous for the people because they are led to a good, happy, and peaceful life. But during the coming of a complex form of religion a more complex pattern of relationship to other institution began to emerge.  According to George Moyser, religious beliefs and activities began to carry with it the idea that there was a higher and better idea above and beyond ordinary reality to which all were in principle subject, including the king, the wielder of political power within that natural order. Thence created a possibility of separation between religious and political sphere. Along this separation is an emerging possibility of conflict and rivalry as what’s happening today.