Catholicism and Democracy - by Emile Perreau-Saussine (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

How the Catholic Church redefined its relationship to the state in the wake of the French Revolution

Catholicism and Democracy is a history of Catholic political thinking from the French Revolution to the present day. Emile Perreau-Saussine investigates the church's response to liberal democracy, a political system for which the church was utterly unprepared.

Looking at leading philosophers and political theologians--among them Joseph de Maistre, Alexis de Tocqueville, and Charles Péguy--Perreau-Saussine shows how the church redefined its relationship to the state in the long wake of the French Revolution. Disenfranchised by the fall of the monarchy, the church in France at first embraced that most conservative of ideologies, "ultramontanism" (an emphasis on the central role of the papacy). Catholics whose church had lost its national status henceforth looked to the papacy for spiritual authority. Perreau-Saussine argues that this move paradoxically combined a fundamental repudiation of the liberal political order with an implicit acknowledgment of one of its core principles, the autonomy of the church from the state. However, as Perreau-Saussine shows, in the context of twentieth-century totalitarianism, the Catholic Church retrieved elements of its Gallican heritage and came to embrace another liberal (and Gallican) principle, the autonomy of the state from the church, for the sake of its corollary, freedom of religion. Perreau-Saussine concludes that Catholics came to terms with liberal democracy, though not without abiding concerns about the potential of that system to compromise freedom of religion in the pursuit of other goals.

Review Quotes

"Catholicism and Democracy inaugurates a much-needed effort to recount the history of Catholic political ideas in the democratic age. Sadly, this fine book is also Perreau-Saussine's final work, as the professor passed away at the age of thirty-seven in 2010. It is to be hoped that its posthumous publication will inspire others to pick up the important thread that he has so brightly illuminated."---Jeffrey A. Smith, First Things

"Catholicism and Democracy treats an important subject with originality and erudition, remaining indispensable reading for anyone interested in the relationship between Christianity and modern political thought."---Carolina Armenteros, Catholic Historical Review

"[I]mpressive."---Sylvana Tomaselli, Tablet

"Perreau-Saussine makes a powerful and innovative case and is careful, fair, and even-handed in his interpretations."---Daniel Philpott, The Thomist

"Perreau-Saussine's work is provocative, brilliantly argued, and largely convincing. . . . [T]he present work should go a long way toward shifting our understanding of the historical dialogue between Catholicism and democracy in modern France."---Paul Cohen, American Historical Review

"This book is well written, has a provocative character, and is recommended for all with an interest in the developments regarding the relationship between the Church and State, the history of the Catholic Church and the way Christians adapt spiritually to change and political challenges."---Erna Oliver, Studia Historiae

About the Author

Emile Perreau-Saussine (1972-2010) was a lecturer in the Department of Politics and International Studies at the University of Cambridge. He was the author of Alasdair MacIntyre.