
The Uses of Idolatry
William T. Cavanaugh(Author)
Oxford University Press Inc
Published on 26. February 2024
Book
Hardback
504 pages
978-0-19-767904-3 (ISBN)
Description
In The Uses of Idolatry, William T. Cavanaugh offers a sustained and interdisciplinary argument that worship has not waned in our supposedly "secular" world. Rather, the target of worship has changed, migrating from the explicit worship of God to the implicit worship of things. Cavanaugh examines modern idolatries and the ways in which humans become dominated by our own creations.
While Cavanaugh is critical of modern idolatries, his argument is also sympathetic, seeing in idolatry a deep longing in the human heart for the transformation of our lives. We all believe in something, he argues: we are worshipping creatures whose devotion alights on all sorts of things, in part because we are material creatures, and the material world is beautiful. Following an invisible God is hard for material creatures, so we-those who profess belief in God and those who don't-fixate on things that are closer to hand.
Ranging widely across the fields of history, philosophy, political science, sociology, and cultural studies, Cavanaugh develops an account of modernity as not the condition of being disenchanted but the condition of having learned to describe the world as disenchanted. For a better description of the world, Cavanaugh turns to scriptural, theological, and phenomenological accounts of idolatry as inordinate devotion to created things. Through deep explorations of nationalism and consumer culture, The Uses of Idolatry presents a sympathetic but critical account of how and why we sacrifice ourselves and others to gods of our own design.
While Cavanaugh is critical of modern idolatries, his argument is also sympathetic, seeing in idolatry a deep longing in the human heart for the transformation of our lives. We all believe in something, he argues: we are worshipping creatures whose devotion alights on all sorts of things, in part because we are material creatures, and the material world is beautiful. Following an invisible God is hard for material creatures, so we-those who profess belief in God and those who don't-fixate on things that are closer to hand.
Ranging widely across the fields of history, philosophy, political science, sociology, and cultural studies, Cavanaugh develops an account of modernity as not the condition of being disenchanted but the condition of having learned to describe the world as disenchanted. For a better description of the world, Cavanaugh turns to scriptural, theological, and phenomenological accounts of idolatry as inordinate devotion to created things. Through deep explorations of nationalism and consumer culture, The Uses of Idolatry presents a sympathetic but critical account of how and why we sacrifice ourselves and others to gods of our own design.
Reviews / Votes
Throughout, the book is highly organized and clear, managing tocover a vast range of sources across disciplines, without resorting to plodding paraphrase. The author has the teacher's gift for homing in on the essential points and presenting them in a lucid and compelling way. * Isaac Slater, Cistercian Studies Quarterly * Understanding the dynamics of this migration is essential work for contemporary theologians, and there is no better text for navigating this complicated terrain than The Uses of Idolatry. * Matthew T. Eggemeier, Theological Studies * Cavanaugh'sThe Uses of Idolatry is well worth a read beyond the Christian theological context, especially for those who are wondering why Christians, like any other type of people, are susceptible to misplaced priorities, and how those misplaced priorities can turn intoidentities and obsessions that lead to bad politics. * Laurie M. Johnson, The European Legacy * The Uses of Idolatry contains a powerful theological anthropology, which explores the various forces in contemporary times: nationalism, consumerism, and faith that promises transcendence. * Aaron Klink, Englewood Review of Books *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
New York
United States
Dimensions
Height: 156 mm
Width: 235 mm
Thickness: 32 mm
Weight
830 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-19-767904-3 (9780197679043)
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Schweitzer Classification
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William T. Cavanaugh
The Uses of Idolatry
Book
02/2024
Oxford University Press Inc
€37.50
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Person
William T. Cavanaugh is Professor of Catholic Studies and Director of the Center for World Catholicism and Intercultural Theology at DePaul University. His degrees are from Notre Dame, Cambridge, and Duke universities. He is the author and editor of numerous books and articles, including The Myth of Religious Violence (OUP, 2009). He has lectured on six continents, and his work has been published in seventeen languages.
Author
Professor of Catholic Studies and Director of the Center for World Catholicism and Intercultural TheologyProfessor of Catholic Studies and Director of the Center for World Catholicism and Intercultural Theology, DePaul University
Content
1: Max Weber's Polytheism
2: Charles Taylor's Naivete
3: Idolatry in the Scriptures
4: Augustine on Idolatry as Self-Worship
5: Marion on Idolatry as a Mirror to the Self
6: The Splendid Idolatry of Nationalism
7: The Unsplendid Idolatry of Consumerism
8: Incarnation and Sacrament
Index
Bibliography
2: Charles Taylor's Naivete
3: Idolatry in the Scriptures
4: Augustine on Idolatry as Self-Worship
5: Marion on Idolatry as a Mirror to the Self
6: The Splendid Idolatry of Nationalism
7: The Unsplendid Idolatry of Consumerism
8: Incarnation and Sacrament
Index
Bibliography