Book Description

This book has important and stimulating things to say to a far wider circle of readers (be they humanists or Christians) than those whom the author originally had in mind. He writes as a committed atheist Marxist for Marxists, with the aim of warning his fellow-Marxists of dangers inherent in the communist system. In essence, the author's thesis may be summarised as follows: Christianity: Jesus' original message consists of two chief assertions: 1. A New Age will dawn, effected by man's own efforts. 2. This New Age is not merely in the future but has an immediate reference to the present in that it makes claims on man here and now and determines his conduct today. Unfortunately, this clarion call has been increasingly obscured by Jesus' self-styled followers. Instead of being a force for renewal and progress, it has become the mainstay of a system in which people are prepared not, as Jesus intended, for the fight for justice in this world, but for peace and happiness in the next; and in which the churches purvey the 'opium' of 'interiority' and 'piety' which have no impact on the causes of world poverty, instead of committing themselves totally to alleviating human misery. Christianity is not dead, but it is crippled. And yet, such is the power of Jesus' message that it cannot be stifled; it still lives. Marxism: Marx proclaimed a similarly prophetic message, and his followers have subjected his message to a similar process of distortion and weakening. Marxism is still a potent ideological force, and today it is Marxists rather than Christians who have respected Jesus' legacy of 'longing for redemption and for radical inner change'. But Marxism will impede rather than promote justice if it is not prepared to learn from the example of history and in particular the horrors of Stalinism (which are discretely evoked in the first chapter). Many will question the author's thesis, both in its essence and in its detail. Christian in particular will feel that many of his statements and conclusions must be qualified and they are unlikely to accept his picture of Jesus of Nazareth in its entirety. Nevertheless, the observant reader will welcome the clear though indirectly stated admission from the heart of philosophical Marxism that applied Marxism has, so far, not 'worked' as Marx intended, and has promoted a tighter and more unjust system of subjugation to the State than the world has ever seen before. Christians too, will be grateful for this comparatively rare example of a Marxist writing in a sympathetic and enlightened way of Jesus and Christianity, in contrast to traditional naive and uninformed denunciation. Every reader, no matter what his views, will recognise and appreciate the passionate questions which underlie all the author's thinking: How can we ensure that power does not turn into a fanaticism which abuses and ill-treats men? How can a message of justice and brotherhood avoid falling into the hands of unscrupulous or misguided men wo misuse it for their own ends? In his Introduction, Peter Hebblethwaite sets the book in its context and describes it as a minor but indispensable Marxist classic which will stimulate and challenge Christians and open the eyes of Marxists. -Publisher