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The theory of political religion concerns governmental ideologies whose cultural and political backing is so strong that they are said to attain power equivalent to those of a state religion, with which they often exhibit significant similarities in both theory and practice.〔Gentile, Emilio: ''Politics as Religion'' (2006) Princeton University Press〕 In addition to basic forms of politics, like parliament and elections, it also holds an aspect of ''sacralization'' related to the institutions contained within the regime and also provides the inner measures traditionally considered to be religious territory, such as ethics, values, symbols, myths, rituals and for example a national liturgical calendar. Political religious organizations, such as the Nazi Party, adhered to the idealization of cultural and political power over the country at large. The church body of the state no longer held control over the practices of religious identity. Because of this, Nazism was countered by many political and religious organizations as being a political religion, based on the dominance which the Nazi regime had (Gates and Steane).〔"Political Religion -the influence of Ideological and Identity Orientation" (2009)〕 Political religions generally vie with existing traditional religions, and may try to replace or eradicate them. The term was given new attention by the political scientist Hans Maier. Totalitarian societies are perhaps more prone to political religion, but various scholars have described features of political religion even in democracies, for instance American civil religion as described by Robert Bellah in 1967. The term is sometimes treated as synonymous with civil religion, but although some scholars use the terms equivalently, others see a useful distinction, using "civil religion" as something weaker, which functions more as a socially unifying and essentially conservative force, whereas a political religion is radically transformational, even apocalyptic.〔Gentile, Emilio: ''Politics as Religion'' (2006) Princeton University Press, s.xxii〕 The term is sometimes used outside academia, often with meanings tangential to or opposite to sociological usage (for example, applying it to a church), with the use intended as a derogatory description of excessive adherence to something political or ideological. Even when used correctly, supporters of an ideology will generally reject the application of the term "political religion". ==Overview== The term ''political religion'' is based on the observation that sometimes political ideologies or political systems display features more commonly associated with religion. Scholars who have studied these phenomena include William Connolly in political science, Christoph Deutschmann in sociology, Emilio Gentile in history, Oliver O'Donovan in theology and others in psychology. A political religion often occupies the same ethical, psychological and sociological space as a traditional religion, and as a result it often displaces or co-opts existing religious organizations and beliefs. The most central marker of a political religion involves the ''sacralization'' of politics, for example an overwhelming religious feeling when serving one's country, or the devotion towards the Founding Fathers of the United States.〔Morris, Benjamin Franklin: ''The Christian Life & Character of the Civil Institutions of the United States; Developed in the Official and Historical Annals of the Republic'' (1864) Philadelphia: George W. Childs〕〔Gentile, Emilio: ''Politics as Religion'' (2006) Princeton University Press, p.22 〕 Although a political religion may co-opt existing religious structures or symbolism, it does not itself have any independent spiritual or theocratic elements - it is essentially secular, using religion only for political purposes, if it does not reject religious faith outright.〔 For a different opinion on this important distinction, see Angela Astoria Kurtz, "God, not Caesar: Revisiting National Socialism as 'Political Religion'" in ''History of European Ideas'', Vol. 35; No. 2 (June 2009) 〕 Typically, a political religion is considered to be secular, but more radical forms of it are also transcendental.〔 Angela Astoria Kurtz, "God, not Caesar: Revisiting National Socialism as 'Political Religion'" in ''History of European Ideas'', Vol. 35; No. 2 (June 2009)〕〔Gentile, Emilio: ''Politics as Religion'' (2006) Princeton University Press, p.20〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Political religion」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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