In Search of Radical Theology

"The radical theology of the distinguished visionary thinker John Caputo is a great breath of fresh air in our claustrophobic and catastrophic time. He goes to the deep roots-the inner disturbance and generative inflection-of our existential crisis and political lockjaw. Caputo's powerful prophetic call flows from his philosophical subtleties and deep respect for religious traditions. His courageous voice is timely for us all!"-Cornel West Capturing a career's worth of thought and erudition, this rich volume treats readers to creative thought, careful argumentation, and sophisticated analysis transmitted through the lucid, accessible prose that has earned John D. Caputo a wide readership of academics and non-academics alike. In tackling "radical theology," Caputo has in mind the deeper stream that courses its way through various historical and confessional theologies, upon which these theologies draw even while it disturbs them from within. They are well served by this disturbance because it keeps them on their toes. When we read about professional theologians losing their job in confessional institutions, the chances are that, by earnestly digging into what is going on in their tradition, they have hit upon radical theological rock. Unlike modernist dismissals of religion, radical theology does not debunk but reinvents the theological tradition. Radical theology, Caputo says, is a double deconstruction-of supernatural theology on the one hand and of transcendental reason on the other, and therefore of the settled distinctions between the religious and the secular. Caputo also addresses the challenge for radical theology to earn a spot in the curriculum, given that the "radical" makes it suspect among the confessional seminaries while the "theology" renders it suspect among university seminars. From the academy to contemporary American culture, the book offers a captivating presentation of radical theology for our time. John D. Caputo is Thomas J. Watson Professor Emeritus of Religion at Syracuse University and the David R. Cook Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at Villanova University.