La pensée politique du père Teilhard de Chardin (1881-1955)

Was Pierre Teilhard de Chardin a political thinker? It may seem surprising to ask such a question at the beginning of a study devoted to the political thought of this extraordinary man, but the intellectual career of this "nomad of science" did not intend him to be classified as a political thinker, at least if we stick to academic criteria. Teilhard de Chardin's writings on the political regimes and major events of the first half of the twentieth century do not propose any consistent political theories, but his philosophy is the bearer of a great political project: to politically reorganize humanity in order to allow the continuation of the planetary process, to support the constitution of the Noosphere and thus to help mankind move towards the Omega point, the ultimate goal of Creation. In this sense, it can be said that Teilhard de Chardin's thought is essentially political. The planetization of humanity, this great human project that Teilhard de Chardin wanted and that he seemed to perceive in the evolution of the human species, is by nature a political phenomenon. It presupposes the bringing together of men, not only geographically, but also politically. While waiting for the outcome of the great human convergence, socialization continues and requires a regulation of human relations. This led Teilhard de Chardin to take an interest in political regimes and to propose an analysis of them that evolved, on the one hand, as his theory became clearer and, on the other hand, in accordance with the events that marked the first half of the 20th century. Finally, the evolution of humanity is characterized by population growth and continuous scientific progress which places the human species before the responsibility for its own future, confronting it with the risk of its disappearance