The European Katechon: A Note on the Political Theology of Present-day Christian–Muslim Engagement*

Abstract

ABSTRACT The Iranian Revolution, the 9/11 attacks, the Arab Spring, the appearance of the Islamic State movement and other similar events have caused a shift in inter-faith engagements such that inter-religious dialogue, maintaining a balanced politico-religious discourse, has become imperative in international relations. This imperative is reshaping world politics. We observe that inter-religious engagements in response to such political events have had a steady katechontic character. The katechon, originally a biblical concept, refers to political institutions and cultural mechanisms used by sovereign actors, be they religious bodies, churches or states, to restrain [apocalyptic] chaos. Katechontic mechanisms essentially diffuse messianic zeal within a given community while redrawing how its members imagine the shape of things to come. Given the current trends in global culture, the katechontic character of inter-faith dialogue makes it most likely that, in the future, the world will be mainly animated by numerous simultaneous inter-cultural and inter-faith relations and modes of engagement, while the major political players seek to formulate a new vision for the future of the world.