"This book offers a needed political and public theology to counter the ecological devastation we urgently face. Yet, Rieger reminds us that with-out an intersectional analysis of ecological issues, we are lost. Rethinking the work of theology for the planet's sustainability and flourishing is this book's great achievement."
Theology in the Capitalocene: Ecology, Identity, Class, and Solidarity
In times of rising pressures and catastrophes, people yearn for alternatives. So does the planet. Protests are often a start, but rebellion is not revolution, nor does it always lead to transformation.
In this incisive and compelling new book, Joerg Rieger takes a new look at the things that cause unease and discomfort in our time, leading to the growing destruction and death of people and the planet. Only when these causes are understood, he argues, can real alternatives be developed.
And yet, understanding is only a start. Solidarity, and the willingness to work at the seemingly impossible intersections of everything--the triad of gender, race, and class, yes, but more beyond--must mark the work of theology.
Without solidarities that match the complexities of our world, the best we can hope for is inclusion in the dominant system but hardly the systemic change and liberation we so desperately need.
- Publisher Fortress Press
- Format Paperback
- ISBN 9781506431581
- eBook ISBN 9781506487151
- Dimensions 5 x 7
- Pages 257
- Publication Date August 30, 2022
Endorsements
Keri Day, Princeton Theological Seminar
"Joerg Rieger has long and persuasively brought theology to bear upon the power of class. Now he binds his challenge to global capitalism with the full-bodied complexity of gender, sex, and race. And most importantly, he embeds this transnational intersectionalism in the precarious vibrancy of the earth. What can be more important--for all of us working earthlings--than his eco-social theology of deep solidarity?"
Catherine Keller, George T. Cobb Professor of Constructive Theology, Drew University Theological School
"Rieger provides trenchant analysis of the stark power differentials inherent in neoliberal capitalism that enable a few to maximize profit at terrible expense to the many and to Earth's ecosystems. In response he calls for a 'deep solidarity' based on the labor and collective agency of working-class people. Of tremendous value are his insistence that privilege does not always equal power, his locating the roots of climate change in the structures of capitalism as a way of life, and his honest inquiry into the roles of theology in either maintaining or undermining oppressive power. This text deftly weaves stark critique together with pragmatic and visionary possibility."
Cynthia Moe-Lobeda, professor of theological and social ethics, Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary of California Lutheran University, and Church Divinity School of the Pacific; director, PLTS Center for Climate Justice and Faith; core doctoral faculty, Graduate Theological Union
"Theology in the Capitalocene is an extraordinary proposal for deep solidarities beyond reductionism. Drawing from a true diversity of voices from disenfranchised communities, Joerg Rieger superbly connects the study of economics, religion, and ecology, effectively unmasking and breaking universalized ideological hegemonies. By doing so he opens novel paths for confronting both capitalist catastrophes and capitalist narratives of catastrophes in the twenty-first century. This is a must-read for anyone interested in political theologies, liberation practices, radical social movements, race and religion, and the most current social and political theories."
Santiago Slabodsky, the Robert and Florence Kaufman Endowed Chair in Jewish Studies, and associate professor of religion, Hofstra University
"This book is a powerful and persuasive theology of catastrophe and solidarity that yields a genuine and mature hope in the face of a commodified globe and racialized capitalism. Joerg Rieger is keeping alive a great prophetic tradition!"
Cornel West, Union Theological Seminary
"Rieger offers a generative exploration of deep solidarity that 'deploys diversity rather than uniformity' and 'brings together the many to stand up for themselves.' Consistently dissatisfied with simplistic framings, he centers labor and class relationships, their significance for Christian theology, and how they matter for rethinking intersectionally about planetary thriving."
Traci C. West, author of Solidarity and Defiant Spirituality: Africana Lessons on Racism, Religion, and Ending Gender Violence