Theocratic Secularism

Religion and Government in Shi'i Thought
Erscheinungsjahr 2022
ISBN: 978-0-19-760679-7
Verlag: Oxford University Press

Buch, Englisch, 320 Seiten, Format (B × H): 157 mm x 226 mm, Gewicht: 590 g

Reihe: RELIGION AND GLOBAL POLITICS SERIES

For more than forty years, there has been a religious government in Iran that claims to be rooted in shi'i political theology. In this book, Naser Ghobadzadeh intends to show that this reading of shi'i political theology is a fundamental deviation from orthodox shi'ism.

The principle of theocracy is one of the most fundamental principles of the shi'i orthodox belief system, but its realization in practice depends on the return of the Twelfth Imam. Until that day, the institution of government and political leadership falls outside the scope of the authority of religious leaders. Naser Ghobadzadeh shows that governmental-shi'ism is less than half a century old and that its formation was not the product of a transformation in orthodox shi'i political theology.
Rather, governmental-shi'ism was born in the political arena and has been able to survive because it profits from government resources.

Coining the term 'theocratic secularism', this book argues for the re-instatement of a form of political secularism in Iran.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Ghobadzadeh, Naser

Fachgebiete

• Sozialwissenschaften Politikwissenschaft Politische Systeme Vergleichende Politikwissenschaft
• Geisteswissenschaften Religionswissenschaft Religionswissenschaft Allgemein
• Geisteswissenschaften Islam & Islamische Studien Islam & Islamische Studien

Über Autor(innen)

Naser Ghobadzadeh is a senior lecturer at the National School of Arts, Australian Catholic University. Naser's interests lie in the study of Islamic political theology, secularism, and Middle East politics. Ghobadzadeh holds a Ph.D. (University of Sydney, 2012) and an M.A. in Political Science (Shahid Beheshti University, Iran 2001). Ghobadzadeh has written three books including Religious secularity: a theological challenge to the Islamic
state (2015), Caspian Sea: legal regime, neighbouring countries and US policies (2005 - in Farsi) and A study of people's divergence from ruling system (2002-in Farsi). He is also co-editor of The Politics of Islamism: Diverging Visions and Trajectories (2018).