Speaker
Description
The hallmark of modern - in the sense of today's - democracies is the plurality of social systems (in the sense of Luhmann’s sociology) in the states in which we live. Christian political theology and political philosophy have devoted themselves extensively in recent decades to the question of how the ideological, cultural and religious plurality of citizens in democracies should be present in the public space in which the general will of the people is discursively determined.
Against this background, the paper will present some aspects of the relationship of Christianity to democracy. First, some problems that arise with a formal understanding of democracy will be presented. Then, fundamental problems that traditional constellations of Christianity entail for democracy will be discussed. This is followed by reflections on a constructive relationship of Christianity to political law on the background of Christian (Protestant) theology, which are then turned against currently present forms of religious politics. Finally, the relevance of human rights for democracy and the rule of law is discussed, again from the perspective of Christian (Protestant) theology.