The faith of the faithless Experiments in political theology

Simon Critchley, 1960-

Book - 2012

The return to religion has perhaps become the dominant cliché of contemporary theory, which rarely offers anything more than an exaggerated echo of a political reality dominated by religious war. Somehow, the secular age seems to have been replaced by a new era, where political action flows directly from metaphysical conflict. The Faith of the Faithless asks how we might respond. Following Critchley's Infinitely Demanding, this new book builds on its philosophical and political framework, also venturing into the questions of faith, love, religion and violence. Should we defend a version of secularism and quietly accept the slide into a form of theism--or is there another way? From Rousseau's politics and religion to the return to... St. Paul in Taubes, Agamben and Badiou, via explorations of politics and original sin in the work of Schmitt and John Gray, Critchley examines whether there can be a faith of the faithless, a belief for unbelievers. Expanding on his debate with Slavoj Zizek, Critchley concludes with a meditation on the question of violence, and the limits of non-violence.

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Subjects
Published
New York : Verso Books 2012.
Language
English
Main Author
Simon Critchley, 1960- (-)
Item Description
Includes index.
Physical Description
291 p. ; 22 cm
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN
9781844677375
  • 1. Introduction
  • Wilde Christianity
  • A Simple Enough Summary of the Argument
  • 2. The Catechism of the Citizen
  • Why Politics Is Not Practicable without Religion and Why This Is Problematic
  • Althusser and Badiou on Rousseau
  • Why Are Political Institutions Necessary? The "Violent Reasoner" and the Problem of Motivation in Politics
  • The Being of Politics, or the Misnomer of the Social Contract
  • The General Will, Law, and the Necessity for Patriotism
  • Theatre Is Narcissism
  • The Authority of the Law
  • The Paradox of Sovereignty
  • The Problem of Civil Religion
  • Dollar Bills, Flags, and Cosmic War
  • Fictional Force: How the Many Are Governed by the Few
  • The Politics of the Supreme Fiction
  • Why Badiou Is a Rousseauist
  • 3. Mystical Anarchism
  • Carl Schmitt: The Political, Dictatorship, and the Importance of Original Sin
  • John Gray: The Naturalization of Original Sin, Political Realism, and Passive Nihilism
  • Millenarianism
  • The Movement of the Free Spirit
  • Becoming God
  • Communistic Consequences
  • Mysticism Is Not about the Business of Fucking
  • Do Not Kill Others, Only Yourself
  • Some Perhapses: Insurrection and the Risk of Abstraction
  • The Politics of Love
  • 4. You Are Not Your Own: On the Nature of Faith
  • Reformation
  • Paul's Address
  • Troth-Plight: Faith as Proclamation
  • Heidegger on Paul
  • Paul and Mysticism
  • Parousia and the Anti-Christ
  • As Not: Paul's Meontology
  • The Powerless Power of the Call of Conscience
  • The Null Basis-Being of a Nullity: Dasein's Double Impotence
  • Crypto-Marcionism
  • Faith and Law
  • 5. Nonviolent Violence
  • Violent Thoughts about Slavoj Zizek
  • Violence and Nonviolence in Benjamin
  • Divine Violence and the Prohibition of Murder
  • The Resistance of That Which Has No Resistance: Violence in Levinas
  • Resistance Is Utile: Authoritarianism versus Anarchism
  • The Problem with Principled Nonviolence
  • 6. Conclusion
  • Be It Done For You, As You Believed
  • Notes
  • Index
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review

In this thoughtful, illuminating exploration into the complex relationship between religion and politics, New School for Social Research philosophy professor Critchley (Infinitely Demanding) uses this topic to link several essays, beginning with Rousseau's writings on government and the "social contract," and the almost magical process by which, in a democracy, the majority of citizens believe their elected officials represent their wishes. He then analyzes the ways in which heretical mystical groups of the Middle Ages, such as the Movement of the Free Spirit, represent radical socialist and anarchist elements within mainstream Christianity, and follows with explorations of Heidegger's thoughts on the apostle Paul and his writings, revealing that one of Christianity's first thinkers held ideas that could be considered mystical and anarchist. Critchley concludes with an argument against fellow philosopher Slavoj Zizek, who contends that the best course of action against political oppression or tyranny is what he calls "divine violence": simply stepping back and waiting for the situation to crumble on its own. Critchley makes the case that people must actively engage against government abuses of power to force change, even resorting to violent action if necessary. Erudite and measured, this book demonstrates the ways religion can alter the political status quo. (Feb.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved