Totalitarismo, gnosticismo e pneumopatologia: um estudo a partir da filosofia de Eric Voegelin

Abstract

This article contains discussions about the analysis promoted by the German philosopher Eric Voegelin (1901-1985) about the factors that contributed to the insurrection of the totalitarian movements. From the Voegelinian point of view, the basis for the emergence and adherence to these movements must be sought not only in political-juridical forms and institutions, but in aspects associated with spiritual factors, such as modern secularism and the “state of mind” of citizens attracted by totalitarianisms. The problematic that permeates this work revolves around the following question: what conditions favored the advent of totalitarian movements? The hypothesis developed is based on the idea that Gnostic values, conceptions and ideals influenced the ideological foundations of totalitarian regimes and contributed to the “spiritual decay or disorder” of the individuals involved in these movements. This spiritual disorder is a kind of intellectual and ethical illness which Voegelin calls pneumopathology, a disease of the spirit. The reflections and discussions that underlie this company will be promoted through literature review, having as main references the works The New Science of Politics and Hitler and the Germans. The purpose of this paper is to understand the spiritual factors that eventually contributed to the rise of totalitarian regimes, focusing the analysis on the phenomenon of peneumopathology as one of the conditioning elements of adherence to the movements mentioned, by giving way to conditions that favored totalitarian ideological manipulation. The paper will be arranged as follows: the initial discussion will present the reflections concerning Gnosticism, aiming to highlight the influence of symbols, conceptions and ideas of the religions of immanentist creed on the insurgency of totalitarian movements; In the following section, there will be an exposition of the discussions dedicated to the characteristics of the “spiritual illness” that affected the individuals seduced by the totalitarian movements.