Carl Schmitt, Political Theology:

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Carl Schmitt, Political Theology

• All significant concepts of the modern theory of
  the state are secularized theological concepts
  not only because of their historical
  developmentin which they were transferred from
  theology to the theory of the state, whereby, for
  example, the omnipotent God became the omnipotent
  lawgiverbut also because of their systematic
  structure, the recognition of which is necessary
  for a sociological consideration of these
  concepts. (Schmitt, Political Theology, MIT, p.
  36)

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Jean Bodin (1530-1596)

• Born in Angers, France, and studied law at
  Toulouse.
• Middle class (represented the third state in
  1576)
• Worked for the government of Henry III
• Problem the unity of France was in risk due to
  religious struggle (Wars of Religion)
  Challenge to counterbalance
• The Church, the Empire, and forces from within
• Bodin is the best-known theorist of the
  Politiques (345)
• Six Books on the State

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Sovereignty

• By coining the concept of sovereignty, Bodin
  advances the separation between state (the
  sovereign structure) and government (the exercise
  of sovereignty) and allows to bring about the
  consolidation of the power of the state before
  Church, Empire, and other minor competitor
  forces.
• -Secularization of a theological concept the
  concept of sovereignty comes from the Bible where
  God is designed the Sovereign (Augustine also
  uses it, but just to refer to God)

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The State

• is a lawful government, with sovereign power,
  of different households and their common
  affairs. (348)
• Let us now examine each part of the definition
  of the state. we speak of the state as of
  lawful government in order to distinguish it
  from bands of robbers and pirates(348)

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Sovereignty

• Sovereignty is the absolute and perpetual power
  of the state, that is, the greatest power to
  command. (348)
• The main point of sovereign majesty and absolute
  power consists of giving the law to subjects in
  general without their consent. (350)
• Sovereignty power of making the law
• Germanic (medieval) tradition sees the law as
  resulting from the custom of the land, the law
  of nature, and the will of God. (E E 345)
• The prince/kings sovereignty is absolute only in
  what attains to human laws (349).

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Only he is absolutely sovereign who, after God,
acknowledges no one greater than himself. (349)
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Sovereign Pilot

• The Sovereign has to have the laws in his power
  in order to change and correct them according to
  the circumstances 375

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The King never dies...
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Separation...

• The Sovereign is separated from the people
• Two parties
• the sovereign
• the people

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Whatever power and authority the sovereign
prince confers upon others, his own person
remains excepted. He always retains more
authority than he gives away (348)
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Law ? Contract
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Laws

• A prince is not bound by the laws of his
  predecessors and much less by his own laws and
  ordinances. it is impossible, in the nature of
  things, to give to oneself a law that depends on
  ones own will (349)

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Promises, Agreements, and Contracts

• The sovereign is bound by the promises and oaths
  he/she has made, as any private individual (350)
• God himself is bound by his promise

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The Prince vs. the Tyrant
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? Saint Paul
For it is the law of God and of nature that we
must obey the edicts and ordinances of him to
whom God has given power to us, unless his edicts
are directly contrary to the law of God, who is
above all princes.
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Also, the laws that concern the state of the
kingdom and its basic form must be respected
because they are annexed and united to the crown
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Is the sovereign bound to the contracts of
his/her predecessors? (349)

• if the kingdom is hereditary, the prince is
  fully bound to the contracts of his
  predecessor The same holds if the kingdom is
  transferred by testament to someone other than
  the next in line
• But if the kingdom is transferred to the next in
  line by testament
• if he accepts it, he is bound to it
• if s/he renounces the succession, and claims the
  crown in virtue of the custom s/he is not.

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to the sovereign... And must proceed by
People (and the Estates) owe

• Subjection
• Service
• Obedience

• Supplication
• Request

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In a monarchy, the People

• must swear to keep the laws and take an oath of
  loyalty to the sovereign monarch, who does not
  himself owe any oath except to God alone, of whom
  he holds his scepter and his power.

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The Sovereign and the Estates...

• Consultation due to Custom
• The Estates have no power of determining anything
  (neither in France nor in England)
• The entire sovereignty belongs to the kings and
  the Estates are only witnesses (350)
• The sovereignty of the monarchs is in no way
  altered by the presence of the Estates

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Emperors, either Charles V or Roman Emperors, are
not sovereign
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Religion.

• if the prince follows the true religion
  without sham or make-believe, he will be able to
  turn the hearts of his subjects to his religion,
  without using violence or punishments. In so
  doing he will avoid hard feelings, troubles and
  civil war, while leading the subjects who had
  gone astray into the haven of salvation. (352)

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Against War

• One must therefore beware of raising a warlike
  spirit among the subjects, guiding them toward
  such an execrable life, nor seek war under any
  circumstances, except when it is a matter of
  repelling violence in an extreme emergency. (354)

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Bodins state is strong but not aggressive
monarchical but not tyrannical.It became the
model for the new national state (E E 347)