In any highly political society, as a liberal society is, whatever lacks political legitimacy to appear in the public square loses its raison d’être altogether. Internal religion, regarded as the only form of religion that could be tolerated if it wanted to retain this quasi-protection, had to seek some political respectability, and the only way to do it was, first, to dispel any suspicion that it might undermine liberalism in human souls, and furthermore, to prove that it motivates people to do things that are politically useful, such as bringing about peace, preaching the attitude of
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