Der Intelektuelle als religiöse Projektion – der Fall Masaryk

The article argues that the role of T. G. Masaryk in Czech as well as Austrian society before 1914 can best be understood as an intellectual expert on religion. It analyzes letters sent to Masaryk by his followers in order to show, that the unusually far-ranging influence he commanded was based on his perception as a sincere champion of a new kind of religion, which transcended simple, anticlerical confrontation. This function of a religious intellectual expert could work precisely only because Masaryk did not specify what kind of religion he sought, but rather appeared as a "religious type", that very different – and conflicting – opinions could relate to.