The writings of Jean-Jacques Roussea

Finally, the writings of Simon Weil demonstrated to us that even though these philosophers disregard religion, their new and radical views still institute a sort of religion into society. In the case of Karl Marx, "It is simply a case of two different expressions of the same fundamental thought. But the second expression is defective. It is a badly constructed religion. But it is a religion. There is, therefore, nothing surprising in the fact that Marxism has always possessed a religious character. It has a great many things in common... to quote Marx's own formula, as the opium of the people. But it is a religion devoid of mystique, in the true sense of the word (Weil, pg. 163)." Although each of the philosophers discussed had successfully eliminated the present religious system, they could not help but to replace the existing views with new ideas that constituted a religious character. Further, Weil was a proponent of God and believed it was impossible for society to exist without His presence. Weil argued that people generally contradict each other, and the stronger contradiction always comes out on top. This is how society works. Society involves some sort of power and strength. And this power, the repressing beast from Plato as Weil described it, is exactly what leads to the need for God. Humans can only survive so much without lending their faith and need to God himself. Without God, humanity can only support themselves to a certain extent; after that, if the death of God occurs, humanity will be lost forever.

u had lasting effects on American democracy that are still felt today. His book The Social Contract entails how societies should interact and how governments should be run. Rousseau stressed that in order for a government and its society to effectively exist that one must be a dedicated citizen. Here is where Rousseau discredits Christianity and the role of God in humanity. Rousseau disputed that Christianity expected too much from its followers and that it construed the way a government was administered. "The consequence of this doubling of powers has been a perpetual conflict of jurisdictions, which has made it impossible for there to be any sound polity in Christian states; and no one has ever been able to say whether obedience was due to monarch or priest (Rousseau, pg. 161)." He argued that a good Christian who was true to their faith could not be a good citizen. For how could a person love their country and their religion when certain ideas contradict each other? He uses the example of war. According to Rousseau an upright citizen would bear arms when their was a war and would kill to protect their country while a good Christian would not fight or shed blood but instead love their neighbor. The general will replaces the will of God for Rousseau and Christianity is replaced by the civil religion. Ultimately, Rousseau argued that Christianity and God hindered the ability for a sound society and government to exist. God to Rousseau seems to get in the way of everyday life for humans. No longer pay attention to what Bible says, people should use reason and science to understand natural and human (social) world. Rousseau argued that politics and religion are the same thing in antiquity; and not until Christianity and a jealous God do we have a split. If you take religion seriously and to a certain extent, then you can't be tolerant of other religions.

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 2291
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page double spaced)