Eric Voegelin’s Political Readings

Bernat Torres is an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Humanities of the Universitat Internacional de Catalunya and secretary of the Societat Catalana de Filosofia (Institut d’Estudis Catalans), Barcelona, Spain. He is interested in Ancient Philosophy and Political Philosophy, as well as the Anthropology of Corporality and Health. Bernet Torres has been a member of the Eric Voegelin Gesellschaft e.V. (EVG) since 2019.Josep Monserrat-Molas is Full Professor and Dean at the Faculty of Philosophy of the University de Barcelona, Spain. He leads the research group EIDOS: Platonism and Modernity and he has been an evaluator of doctoral programs of the Ibero-American University Graduate Association.

"This book provides a unique approach to understanding Voegelin by looking at how he read both ancient and modern thinkers and how these thinkers, in turn, influenced Voegelin’s own thought. By seeing how Voegelin read past political thinkers, we can see how Voeglein’s own thought is indebted and yet differed from Plato, Aristotle, Augustine, Hobbes, Weber, and Kelsen."Lee Trepanier, Professor of Political Science, Samford University"This collection fills an important gap concerning the work of Eric Voegelin: how did Voegelin engage over the course of his scholarly lifetime with his major philosophical interlocutors? What enduring influences did these thinkers have on his work?"Thomas Heilke, Professor of Political Science, The University of British Columbia

• Foreword: The open dialogue Introduction: Eric Voegelin’s search for order, between the past and the future 1. Eric Voegelin’s reading of Plato: Discovering the soul as a source of order 2. Eric Voegelin’s reading of Aristotle: Exploring a new kind of philosophy 3. Eric Voegelin’s reading of Saint Augustine: Exploring the Symbolism of history and politics 4.Eric Voegelin’s reading of Hobbes: Restoration or destruction of the eschaton? 5. Eric Voegelin’s readings of Max Weber: Struggling with the grip of scientistic rationalism 6. Eric Voegelin’s debate with Hans Kelsen: Struggling with political modernity