Criticism of Theology provides a detailed and critical commentary on the continued fascination with religion by yet more significant Marxist philosophers, historians and critics: Max Horkheimer, E.P. Thompson, G.E.M. de Ste. Croix, Michael Löwy, Roland Barthes, Gilles Deleuze, Felix Guattari and Antonio Negri. Simultaneously critique and construction, Criticism of Theology carefully analyses their work through close textual readings, with a view to locating hidden gems that may be developed further. The book continues the project for a renewed and enlivened interaction between Marxism and religion, being the third of five volumes in the Criticism of Heaven and Earth series.

Table of Contents:
Preface Introduction 1. The Superstitions of Max Horkheimer Religion as resistance Longing for the totally other The founder On freedom and the individual Atheism and resistance Honest religion Religion betrayed The state On the Jewish state Liberal theology Religion in the bad sense, or, the dialectic of evil Conclusion: Modalities of the dialectic of religion 2. The Dissent of E.P. Thompson Corrupt parsons and the impetuous Irish The ‘psychic terror’ of Methodism Religious terrorism Moral machinery Political reaction Radicals in the ranks The ambivalence of the Methodists William Blake and the politics of radical dissent Antinomianism, or, justification by faith Muggletonian Marxists Radical dissent Poetry and apocalyptic Anti-nuclear Political Christmas Conclusion 3. The Zeal of G.E.M. de Ste. Croix The politics of style Theology Chora versus polis From chora to polis: property, slavery and women Assessment Fall narratives On contradiction Religion as primary cause … And history Class Trade and property Mode of production Conclusion: Ste. Croix among Marxists and theologians 4. The Alchemy of Michael Löwy Elective affinities Emergence Untidy corners and sexy dialectics Liberation theology Roman-Catholic social teaching The ontological reserve One or many? Conclusion 5. The Myths of Roland Barthes Between description and accusation Basics Baleful deformations of language Desperate resistance Dialectics of opposition Hiding something? Producing and concealing opposition Preserving rebellion The cunning of myth Alternative myths Towards utopia Conclusion 6. The Flights of Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari Going tribal, or, primitive pre-signifiers Numbers and nomads, or, the counter-signifying régime In bed with the despot, or, the signifying régime The scapegoat’s arse From outside to inside Oriental despots On the tail of the scapegoat, or, the post-signifying régime Conclusion 7. The Radical Homiletics of Antonio Negri Radical homiletics Philosophical commentary Kairós and ákairos Measure and immeasure The olitics of cosmogony Negri’s aporia Excursus on the Messiah Back to the whirlwind Conclusion Conclusion References Index