It is the secularization of messianism, not messianism itself, that makes it dangerous
Evidence
Scholem may be considered as one of those who participated in the construction of the Zionist meta-historical narrative, but at the same time he was also one of the most sensitive critiques of secular Zionism. … Scholem repeatedly and consistently warned against messianism. But what should be emphasized here is that his warnings were not directed against “messianic speculations” as such, or against “religion,” but rather toward the interpretation it may gain in the context of “secular Zionism” – of “Jewish readiness for irrevocable action in the concrete realm,” namely, the nationalization and so-called secularization of the Jewish messianic perceptions. Even if the contents of the various images attributed to “messianism” are ancient, Scholem emphasizes that it is “the modern Jewish readiness for irrevocable action in the concrete realm,” the secularization of messianism, that “conjured up” the messianic crisis. — Nadim N. Rouhana and Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian, When Politics Are Sacralized, 350
Categorization
- XREF: Mirrors the reader’s theme that dressing political action in sacred frames (making the concrete feel irrevocable) hardens it against compromise — here framed specifically as the danger of messianic perception undergoing secularization rather than remaining religious. — connects to: Secular political movements can weaponize religious claims they do not believe. — Nadim N. Rouhana and Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian, When Politics Are Sacralized:…, 495; Religious sacralization of politics produces tyranny no differently than secular ideology — Nadim N. Rouhana and Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian, When Politics Are Sacralized:…, 1752; Secular ideologies have caused genocides comparable to religious ones (+2 more)
Broader Connections
- Secular political movements can weaponize religious claims they do not believe.
#corroborates(0.85) — Nadim N. Rouhana and Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian, When Politics Are Sacralized, 495 - Secular ideologies have caused genocides comparable to religious ones
#corroborates(0.78) - Religious sacralization of politics produces tyranny no differently than secular ideology
#corroborates(0.75) — Nadim N. Rouhana and Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian, When Politics Are Sacralized, 1752