As Above, So Below?
How do our politics and our theologies influence each other?
Carl Schmitt writes in Political Theology, that all political concepts have their derivation in theology; the “state of exception” or “state of emergency,” in political life, he claims, corresponds to the miracle in theology. If Schmitt is correct, then one cannot avoid having a theology. Moreover, one cannot avoid the political implications of one’s theology. [The counter-argument to Schmitt is that theology and politics are autonomous realms, and that the heavenly realm and the earthly realm abide by different laws; but, this too is a theology, and a political stance, so I think Schmitt’s point stands.]
What theological ideas arise from your political understanding?
What political concepts correspond to your theology?
Here are two examples:
Assuming there is an electoral college in the heavens, we can imagine a scenario where God wins the popular vote, but loses the electoral one, or vice versa. The former means God is beloved by Creation, but unpopular amongst the angelic assembly; the latter means God is beloved by the angels, but less popular with Creation. Of course, the idea that God might be voted in or out sounds somewhat heretical; though perhaps the exercise also exposes what is gained and what is lost in a democracy.
2. If the whole world is, from God’s point of view, one single nation-state, the refugees and non-citizens are all the non-existent beings, in potential, that seek entry into the world as it is. The indefinite future is excluded. An immigration position of Open Borders would mean that past, present, and future are maximally fluid, while the tightest form of restrictionism would mean that nothing changes. The former corresponds to Heraclitus (“All is Flux”), the latter to Parmenides (“Being is”).