The Politics of Heaven: America in Fearful Times

by Earl Shorris

An unsettling account of the events, ideas, and minds behind the nameless political movement that governs America today. The movement transcends political parties, has no formal structure, no acknowledged leaders, and no sworn loyalty except to God, whose will it interprets according to its fears and desires. Yet it is not an abstraction. It elects our presidents and legislatures and informs their decisions while in office.The movement started at the end of World War II when nuclear weapons, the Holocaust, and then the Cold War led to the fear of mass death that infected American views of justice, ethics, and global politics. It gradually replaced the New Deal.As conversations with religious and political leaders, churchgoers, and pollsters make clear, after 9/11 the nation became increasingly pessimistic. Americans more than ever embraced simplistic, self-serving solutions to questions of personal and national destiny.To regain the best in the American character, we must recognize the existence of a new national movement, define it, and learn how it grows. This book is a first step.

Genres: Politics, Religion

384 pages, Hardcover

First published August 6, 2007

About the author

Earl Shorris was an American writer and social critic. He is best known for establishing the Clemente Course in the Humanities, named after baseball great and humanitarian Roberto Clemente. The Clemente Course is an "educational institution founded in 1995 to teach the humanities at the college level to people living in economic distress." He was critical of Western culture as "sliding towards plutocracy and materialism." Shorris published extensively on Mexico and Mexican history. Shorris made the acquaintance of Miguel León-Portilla, who published a widely-read anthology of accounts of the conquest of Mexico from Aztec viewpoints, The Broken Spears. The two subsequently published an important anthology of Mesoamerican literature, bringing to a mass market the existence of significant body of writings by indigenous Mexicans.

Reviews

[Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thought-provoking book, full of brilliant insights. Shorris attempts to provide an explanation for the replacement of the previous New Deal, progressive consensus by the now dominant conservative political culture - to explain why politics in no longer interested in building a more just society, a better world - why our culture has turned from loving God and our fellow man to fearing both. Unfortunately, Shorris, in searching for reasons for this change is handicapped by being a thoroughgoing rationalist and by his strong faith in democracy, in the wisdom of the common man. So he does not consider the possibility that a well-financed propaganda campaign, or the personal ambitions of demagogues, or simple greed might play a role in the growth of right-wing ideology. Rather he seeks the cause in modern philosophical and theological thought. In doing so, he provides illuminating analyses of a wide-range of contemporary thought, both philosophical and theological. His reflections on these are brilliant, on individual thinkers and schools astute, memorable. I found his lengthy discussion of Leo Strauss personally illuminating, having been for years puzzled by the mystery of why this esoteric professor of political philosophy at Chicago, a Platonist even, could inspire cult-like devotion, by why his worshipful devotees rose to heights of influence in the Bush Administration and by why that influence has consistently been disastrous. Shorris illuminated this mystery. The value of the book is here, in the analysis of the thought of others - not in his own theories, which are much less convincing. For example, he believes that the fear of death plays a significant role in recent politics. He posits a recent significant intensification and qualitative change in this fear as motivating the conservative movement. Where, in the past, the fear was of individual death, now it is a more apocalyptic - is the death of all, of the earth. Individual death may be ameliorated by considerations of posterity, by being remembered, by posthumous fame, by leaving the world a better, more just, place. This type of comfort is no longer available - not with the death of everything , whether by nuclear holocaust, or environmental catastrophe, or collision with an asteroid, etc. Therefore, there is no sense in caring about the earth or about social justice or our fellow man. Everything is temporary, everything is doomed. The only available escape, the only remaining hope, is heaven. Getting there is the only value. And the liberal agenda threatens this. Condoning homosexual marriage, assenting to the availability of abortion, tolerating other faiths, other belief systems, believing in evolution, etc, - all these might anger God and jeopardize the passage to heavenly bliss. The only role government should play is to keep us and our money safe and secure and pure until then. Good grief. This sort of explanation is unconvincing - is musty with the scent of the ivy tower. Is hard to believe that "ideas matter" to this extent - can bear this determinant force. Mankind does not need rational reasons to be selfish, to be fearful of the stranger, to hate. All he needs is someone to tell him that these things are acceptable - some demagogue to appeal to his baser nature.

[Curt · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book is certainly worth reading. It lacks a linear structure which leads to some redundancies, but that is an intentional element of the author's view of the modern political movement in America. It is a confluence of forces instead of a linear cascade of dominoes.

What I found really interesting is the line that is drawn from Plato through Leo Strauss to the current administration. To weakly paraphrase, there are different categories of men. The best run government is one that is run by the wisest people. Whenever the less-wise are allowed to voice their opinion or, even worse, influence policy, the quality of that policy declines. Ideally the less wise should just get out of the way and let the truly wise do what's best. I suppose this is the basic idea that supports a representative democracy or republic.

But what's always annoyed me about politicians, and certainly our current group of leaders falls into this category, is their "We know what's best. Don't even think about it. Really, don't ever think about it. Go watch American Idol." pedantic craziness.

Of course, on further reflection, I often feel that I understand the theory. How often have I looked at the results of a poll and thought, "That percentage of Americans are just insane. They shouldn't be allowed to elect leaders just because there are more of them. I know what's best."

I have not resolved this yet. (Which I refuse to admit is proof that I don't know best.)

[Bill · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a tremendous work of political philosophy from somebody who has been around the block a time or two.
The main premise of the book is that the American political system has gone from an emphasis on love of God and man to fear of both entities because of the advent of weapons of mass destruction by multiple nations.
Shorris also writes a lot about the philosophical genesis of neo-conservatism.
This was one of those books I didn't want to put down!

[Stacy · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book bothered me from the beginning even though the jacket info was enough to get me interested in reading it. I felt uncertain the whole first half of the book. The author seemed to be making a specific point but I could never really tell what "side" he was on. I felt over and over again that there was another "side" to the story. After a few days of feeling like I was doing homework everytime I picked it up I decided to quit.

I'd love to hear what others thought.

[Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found the section on the origins of neo-con thinking very interesting.

[Michael]

http://www.observer.com/2007/fear-and...

[Anthony Faber · Rating 5 out of 5]

A kind of meandering look at the new right. Occasionally, he gets mean spirited towards them, but it's an interesting read, if not an easy one.