从11世纪中叶至14世纪初,政教之争在欧洲政治事务中占据着至关重要的位置,亨利二世与托马斯·贝克特的争执及贝克特的殉道是其中最富戏剧性的一幕。政教之争并非世俗与神圣之间的矛盾,倒是意味着将所有具体问题抽象为原理间的对抗,它并不意味着俗界权贵与教界权贵的两分,而是要求各界、各地权贵普遍分裂。既在原理的旗帜下集结,又按各自的历史积怨和现实利益划分敌我,灵巧地在阵营间转变,动用制度内外的一切手腕重新分配权势。在这个意义上,亨利二世与托马斯·贝克特之间的争执,并非为后世自由宪政开启一扇门户,相反,正是由于建立起一套足够强韧的制度以容受各类争执,民族国家才超越过去诸多政制,克服政教之争等政治自然状态的反复发作,成为欧洲近代政制的首要形式。 From the mid-11th century to the early 14th century, the dispute between church and state occupies a crucial position in the political affairs of Europe. The dispute between Henry II and Thomas Becket and the martyrdom of Beckett are the most dramatic scenes. The dispute between church and religion is not the contradiction between the secular and the sacred, but touches the abstraction of all concrete problems as the confrontation between the principles. It does not mean dichotomy between the caste of the vulgar and the priest of the clerical community, but requires that all walks of life, Split. They are not only assembled under the banner of the principle, but are also divided according to their historical grievances and real interests, deftly changing their camps and using all means inside and outside the system to redistribute their power. In this sense, the dispute between Henry II and Thomas Beckett is not to open a door to a liberal constitutional government in the future. On the contrary, it is precisely because of the establishment of a sufficiently robust system to withstand all kinds of disputes, Only when the state surpassed many political systems in the past and overcame the repeated political and political conditions, such as the dispute between state and religion, became the most important form of modern political system in Europe.