Authority Deferred: A Christian Comment. (May 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Williams, Rowan
• Is Part Of: Studies in Christian ethics. Volume 29:Number 2(2016)
• Page Start: 213
• Page End: 217
• Publication Date: 2016-05
• Subjects: Augustine -- Church and state -- legitimacy -- political theology -- sacrality -- Shi'a Islam; Christian ethics -- Periodicals; Morale chrétienne -- Périodiques; 241.05
• DOI: 10.1177/0953946815623139
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0953-9468

Abstract

This essay responds to Sajjad Rizvi's analysis of Shi'a political theology in terms of the risks of over-emphasising the achieved clarity of a religious/political ethic in society. It notes the comparable reserve in Christian political thought, especially in the Augustinian tradition, in respect of a single sacral authority in society, and briefly discusses the various ways in which this has been articulated in mediaeval and modern contexts.