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The Byzantine Civilisation
The Byzantine civilisation developed in contrast to the Roman West. The basic difference was in the attitude to religion. In the Latin civilisation, the Catholic Church has achieved a total doctrinal independence from the state. Moreover, it has achieved a right to criticize the state or the ruler for acting in an unethical manner. In Poland, this became most obvious in the 1174 conflict between St. Stanis?aw, then the bishop of Krakow and the king, Boles?aw Krzywousty. The bishop criticised the king. The king killed the bishop. As a result of this, the king had to loose his crown. Not because he lost an election or a battle but because he lost morally. He had to exile himself. This incident established the norms in the Polish Church-state relations. In Poland, it is improper for the state to criticise the Church. On the other hand, the Church is not only entitled to but is expected to criticise the state when issues of moral significance so require.
In Byzantium, the situation was decidedly different. The emperor had executive powers also over the Church. He treated the Church as one of the elements of his power, much like he treated the judiciary or the army. The emperor dictated religion to his subjects. Constantine the Great made Christianity the state religion. He decreed so from the throne. He called synods and councils. He decided what the subject for discussion would be. As a consequence, the state became above ethics. Its main purpose was to be efficient and not necessarily ethical. In the Byzantine civilisation, the realm of politics is not limited by ethics. It is free of it and therefore it is often barbaric. As an example, one can mention the blinding, in 1018, of the conquered Bulgarian soldiers by emperor Basil Bulgaroktonos (the Bulgar-Slayer) and sending them home on foot with only one one-eyed soldier per 100 to lead the way.
The German Holy Roman Empire took up, together with the imperial name, this very mode of communal life organisation. As a result, when in Poland the king who killed a bishop had to loose his throne, at the same time the German Emperor fought with the pope for supremacy (Caesaropapism). At one time he would go to Canossa in repentance and at another would impose his will on the pope. Since that time and until today, there is a civilisational struggle in Germany between the Latin and the Byzantine civilisations. In the East of Germany, Byzantine influences always dominated. In the West, particularly in the Rhineland, there was more Latin influence. The return of the capital from Bonn to Berlin is likely to be civilisationally, an unwelcome development.
When the Teutonic Knights were Christianising with the sword, our Pawe? W?odkowic spoke up for the rights of the heathen (see footnote no. 1). When religious wars ravaged Germany, in Poland, we had a state without witch-hunts and stakes. When they had the barbaric principle of cuius regio eius religio (whose rule, his religion) and citizens frequently had to change denominations, we had religious tolerance and many exiles from the German religious wars found refuge in Poland.
Even Catholic Austria was Catholic only by the will of the ruler. The emperor had a habit of interfering in Church matters, even on such issues as the liturgy. He would use a veto right to the election of a pope that he did not like (last time in 1903). This habit is often referred to as Josephinism, after the emperor Joseph II who was very much involved in imposing his will on the Church. Catholicism did not prevent Maria Theresa from participating in the obviously unethical partitioning of Poland together with Russia and Prussia in 1772 and 1795.
Germans have a habit of calling those rulers "great" who were successful, such as Friedrich der Grosse and Bismarck in spite of the fact that they were unethical in their political actions. Hitler was considered great while he was winning. However not now, since he lost. His unethical methods did not pay, they proved unsuccessful.
Byzantinism does not like variability, inconsistency, or unevenness. While in Rome and now in the Latin civilisation, unity of purpose unites but methods and forms may be very different, in Byzantium and now in Germany, a state imposed uniformity is the norm. Henceforth, the generally esteemed cleanliness and functionality in Germany is established. This comes from the universal readiness to follow state orders. Befehl ist Befehl! A command is a command! And this is generally accepted by all. On the other hand, within the Latin civilisation, we are individualists. We prefer to do things in our own way.
Drill and obedience has also a negative side to it. It mechanizes communal life. It stifles grass root, organic activity and introduces, from above, a centralized and bureaucratic uniformity (witness the mode of functioning of the overregulated European Union, basically steered by the Germans). This transfers responsibility for actions to those who commanded the orders. It even justifies crimes.
It is well known that all German war criminals have been defending themselves on the ground that they have been only obeying orders and that they were told to act as they did. For them, the responsibility did not fall on them but on the government. In the extreme interpretation, only Hitler was guilty. In postwar Germany, a law came into force that forbids the extradition of Germans. As a result, most war crimes were judged in Germany, according to their standards and not in the countries where they were committed.
On the other hand, it is noteworthy that even in communist Poland, it was unimaginable for the murderers of Fr. Jerzy Popie?uszko to defend themselves on the ground that they were only carrying out orders of the secret services they served in. Everyone is personally responsible in front of a court of law. Criminal orders should not be obeyed. It is as simple as that.
Associated with this issue is the typical for Byzantine thinking superiority of form over content. Since it is not the aim that is common but the form in which something is done, it tends to dominate, however, at the same time it becomes empty of content. In the Latin civilisation, the aim is of primary importance and the form is of little significance. We adapt it to our own understanding of what in the given moment would be most proper. As a result, we constantly search for improvements, frequently making mistakes along the way. The Byzantine Germans have perfected the mode of decreeing forms from above. It was plain to see that in Germany, both capitalism (BRD) and communism (DDR) functioned efficiently. Fascism also functioned efficiently.
We tend to be impressed by German efficiency. We often envy them. We dream of having such law and order, such functionality and such affluence as they have.
However, all of this is paid for by the Byzantine readiness to submit to the state in all matters. Our strength lies in diversity, in the readiness to criticize the government and we should defend these values against the German intention of regulating everything from above - today from Brussels, rather than from Berlin. The overregulation so prevalent in the European Union is obviously of Byzantine and not of Latin origin.
Furthermore, there is a growing tendency in the European Union and also in many countries traditionally of Latin civilisation, to accept the Byzantine readiness to conduct politics without ethics. As distinct from the Turanian civilisation, the politician or ruler should himself be ethical in his private life and he is judged from that perspective. However, he is free to conduct policies unlimited by ethical concerns. This concerns not only those who practice politics in an immoral way but also those who believe that politics is an immoral field and therefore, stay away from it, concerning themselves exclusively with their own affairs. This attitude amounts to leaving politics only in the hands of those who are unconcerned about ethics. It is also a Byzantine attitude. The attitude proper for the Latin civilisation is to get involved, act ethically and demand from others that they also act ethically, both in internal and in international politics. The fact that opponents are not restricting themselves by ethics is of no relevance here. The police must also act ethically while dealing with criminals.
We all sin but everyone should desire to act ethically, responsibly and in conformity with what one believes to be proper. Abandoning this desire in the field of politics is the main danger that lies for the Latin civilisation in its contact with the Byzantine one.