For a full-length video of this event, visit: [ Ссылка ]
For more on the Berkley Center, visit: [ Ссылка ]

April 26, 2013 | In his new book Matthew Scherer moves beyond common understandings of secularism as the separation of church and state to define secularism as a constant transformation of religious and political life -- akin to a process of conversion. Transposing the idea of conversion from religious history to contemporary politics brings the limitations of the modern categories of "religion" and "politics" into relief, and shows how reframing secularism is itself an essential issue within contemporary global politics. By figuring secularism as a process of conversion, *Beyond Church and State* foregrounds the deep entanglement of religion and politics as a key site of ongoing contestation. Arguing that all forms of secularism entail the conversion of religious and political life, *Beyond Church and State* points toward a distinct new mode of secularism that acknowledges and cultivates social differences while at the same time encouraging and sustaining participatory democracy.

свернуть