Prof. Graziano's Book on the Relationship Between Religion and Politics to Be Published this Month

Professor Graziano's latest book on the relationship between religion and politics is coming out in Italian this month, under the title Guerra Santa e Santa Alleanza: Religioni e disordine internazionale nel XXI secolo (release date: January 15th). It is published by Italy's leading publisher of political works, Il Mulino (Bologna). The English version will be published this year by Columbia University Press under the title Holy War and Holy Alliance: Religions and International Disorder in the 21st Century.

This book addresses the relationship between religion and politics in this troubled era of shifting balance of power: it shows how this relationship is often seen in a partial perspective emphasizing only Islam and some of its most fundamentalist versions, while over the past decades, all traditional religions have reentered the political arena. Various theories of international relations have been formed about this phenomenon, such as that of the “clash of civilizations.” This book aims to show how the “holy war” is but one form of the interference of religions with politics. In the current crisis of politics as an autonomous sphere and of the state as a source of sovereignty, the author questions the possibility of a “holy alliance” between the main global religions, aimed at bringing a “universal morality” in the heart of the polis. See information on publisher's website (in Italian)

The author is currently looking at publishing a French translation of the book.