In political discourse religion is currently often reduced to a resource that can easily be instrumentalized by politicians of various political orientations. In extreme cases religion, deprived of critical theological self-reflection, is even abused by neo-integralist actors to delegitimize the secular state and liberal democracy. In order to become a subject rather than a resource of political discourse theology has to participate actively in a dialogue about the political. According to this hypothesis it is not sufficient for political theology to restrict itself to an ethical or a pre-political sphere. Rather theology should tackle influential works on the concept of the political (e.g. by Carl Schmitt) critically as well as with the deconstruction of the former (e.g. Derrida) and ask what theological categories can contribute to our understanding of the political while affirming the secular order and liberal democracy. In order to contribute to that I will 1) refer to recent political theologies that re-examine the concept of sovereignty, its theological relevance as well as its significance for the secular political sphere. 2) use a notion of critique (in the sense of krinein: distinguishing, separating) found in Walter Benjamin's thought to establish a critical potential of divine sovereignty which allows for a distinction between sovereignty and power. - RELIGION AND CRITIQUE -