As if God existed : religion and liberty in the history of Italy / Maurizio Viroli ; translated by Alberto Nones.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Print version record.

Republics protected by God -- Images of the civil religion -- Republican and monarchical religion -- A religion that instills virtue -- Sacred laws and sacred republics -- Republican religion and religious reform -- A religion to live free -- Within the soul -- The twilight of republican religion -- Without God -- After the revolution -- The new alliance -- Literature and hymns of the religion of liberty -- Apostles and martyrs -- Masters -- Regrets and the quest for new faiths -- Two clashing religions -- In the name of Christ -- Inner liberty -- The religion of liberty -- A religion that instills hope -- The religion of duty -- As if God existed -- Only a god can expel a god -- Leaving life -- Twilight.

Religion and liberty are often thought to be mutual enemies: if religion has a natural ally, it is authoritarianism--not republicanism or democracy. But in this book, Maurizio Viroli, a leading historian of republican political thought, challenges this conventional wisdom. He argues that political emancipation and the defense of political liberty have always required the self-sacrifice of people with religious sentiments and a religious devotion to liberty. This is particularly the case when liberty is threatened by authoritarianism: the staunchest defenders of liberty are those who feel a deeply religious commitment to it.

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