多维视野中的美国政教关系 宪法、政治和文化的分析

Relationship between State and Church in America from Multiple Perspectives Constitutional,Political and Cultural Analyses

20世纪七十年代始的全球宗教复兴及宗教在公共和政治生活中的最终强势回归,使政教关系问题再次引起了学界的关注。这也引发了美国政教关系研究的又一个高潮。日益显明的是,长期以来的美国政教关系是一个包括宪法、政治和文化等多维度在内的稳定结构:在宪法安排上,政府和教会这两大组织机构、两大权力中心被要求保持适当距离;在政治生活中,教会是政府的密切伙伴,新教是美国政治体制和法律体系的根基;在社会文化上,新教信念和新教价值观居于美国文化的核心,提供了共和国必需的身份认同和民族凝聚力。当代美国深陷"文化战争"和"路线之争"的窘境,根源即在于这一稳定结构因多元主义极度扩张和新教共识被打破而几近坍塌,极端的政教分离做法在此过程中则起到了推波助澜的作用。美国的政教关系观念和实践有其不可复制的独特性,不宜于被奉为公认的法律或政治准则予以普遍适用。

The global religious renaissance since the 1970s and the strong return of religion in public and political life have once again aroused academic attention.It has also led to another research climax in the relationship between state and church in America.It is increasingly clear that there for a long time has been a multi-dimensional stable structure in America:In constitution,the government and the church are required to maintain a discreet distance.In politics,the church is a close partner of the government,and Protestantism is the foundation of the whole political regime and legal system.Socially and culturally,Protestant beliefs and values lie at the heart of American culture,and provide the identity and national cohesion required by the Republic.Contemporary America is deeply in the dilemma of"cultural war"and"line struggle",which is rooted in the collapse of this stable structure due to the extreme expansion of pluralism and the break of Protestant consensus.Extreme separation of politics and religion has helped fuel the flames in this process.American concepts and practices of state-church relationship are unique and irreproducible,and therefore are not suitable for universal application as generally accepted a legal or political norm.