Reimagining the sacred : Richard Kearney Debates God with James Wood, Catherine Keller, Charles Taylor, Julia Kristeva, Gianni Vattimo, Simon Critchley, Jean-Luc Marion, John Caputo, David Tracey, Jens Zimmermann, and Merold Westphal / edited by Richard Kearney and Jens Zimmermann.

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Leading philosopher Richard Kearney engages Julia Kristeva, Gianni Vattimo, James Wood, Charles Taylor, Catherine Keller, Simon Critchley, Jean-Luc Marion, and John Caputo on the place of religion in a secular world.

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Publishers Weekly Review

Kearney (Anatheism), philosopher and phenomenologist at Boston College, provocatively asks, what is still sacred after the death of God? Expanding German theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer's notion of a "nonreligious interpretation of Christianity," Kearney seeks a philosophy of God that can resacralize a postreligious English-speaking world. With philosopher and theologian Jens Zimmermann, Kearney engages nearly a dozen philosophers and cultural theorists, including Julia Kristeva, Jean-Luc Marion, and Catherine Keller, in conversation over his highly esoteric hermeneutic of "anatheism" (described as the study of God after God). The book garners the results of their exchanges about Kearney's hypothesis that, in the postmodern age, we are approaching a moment of radical encounter with the Divine, one that flourishes not only within religious structures but also in meeting the Other, an experience of dialogue rather than dogma. "Anatheism's call to hospitality in order to recover God after the death of God is a vital initiative for our current cultural and political climate," Zimmermann summarizes. This rigorous, forward-thinking intellectual treatise opens new space for religious humanism amid cacophonous secular, political, and religious debate. (Dec.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

CHOICE Review

Six years ago, Kearney (Boston College) published a provocative book titled Anatheism: Returning to God after God (CH, Jul'10, 47-6185). It was part of a strain of post-theological work that tends to accept the death of the metaphysical God but refuses to give up entirely on some notion of the divine. This collection of essays allows a number of important postmodern scholars--e.g., Julia Kristeva, Jean-Luc Marion, John Caputo--to engage with Kearney's ideas in pursuing the "God after God." More traditional scholars of religion and philosophy, such as Charles Taylor and David Tracy, also have a say. As with many recent books in theology, this one requires readers to be familiar with the postmodern vocabulary (often opaque to nonspecialists). But the sharp critical reflections in the dialogues with Kearney are well worth the effort it takes to get into them. The book's structure is a little confusing: it is not clear when the interlocutors are conversing face-to-face and when they are writing more extensively after the conversations. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty. --Frank G. Kirkpatrick, Trinity College (CT)