Wolff Peace – Max Weber & Abdul Ghaffar Khan

Power, legitimacy, and the courage of nonviolence.

In this episode of the Wolff Peace series, host Avis Kalfsbeek explores political philosopher Max Weber’s stark definition of the modern state as the “monopoly on the legitimate use of physical force,” and pairs it with the bold life of Abdul Ghaffar Khan—the Muslim pacifist known as the “Frontier Gandhi.”

While Weber wrestled with the ethics of power and governance, Khan led a movement of over 100,000 nonviolent Pashtun activists against British colonialism, grounded in faith, discipline, and love. Together, these thinkers raise urgent questions: Can peace be built without force? And what kind of power heals rather than harms?

This episode includes:

• A look at Max Weber’s Politics as a Vocation
• A portrait of Abdul Ghaffar Khan and the Khudai Khidmatgar movement
• Two reflection questions to apply the episode to real life

Visit aviskalfsbeek.com to learn more about the podcast, books, and upcoming episodes in the Wolff Peace series.

Music: Dalai Llama Rides a Bike by Javier “Peke” Rodriguez. Bandcamp: https://javierpekerodriguez.bandcamp.com/ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3QuyqfXEKzrpUl6b12I3KW

Robert Paul Wolff’s book Political Man and Social Man on Amazon (I am not an affiliate)