The Transcendence of Desire

The “secular age” is not a smooth, untroubled process of accumulation and advance but an uneven and unpredictable series of clashes of interest. Charles Taylor’s “immanent frame” cannot be construed merely as a phenomenon within religion and culture but urgently needs to be understood in political and economic terms–i.e., as a class project. The failure of the secular, vividly displayed in the crumbling legitimacy of global institutions and in the spectacle of police violence, both calls for and makes possible a renewal of political agency. Tom James and David True argue that a theology of the cross has a distinctive potential today: it can pierce the sacred aura of normalcy around the consensual anti-politics of the neoliberal order so that a vision of a world beyond today’s racialized capitalism can emerge. But they contend that we don’t need to forsake the emancipatory aims of modernity nor retreat to local communities. As an alternative to these weak strategies, theyoffer a constructive and cruciform account of political agency that includes both prophetic resistance and practical wisdom, each embedded in contemporary struggles for freedom that, they argue, embody divine desire for a common world.

“Is there a political theology that gets real, sees plainly the carnage of neoliberalism, respects but avoids the apocalyptic temptation, and enables a renewal of effective political agency? Tom James and David True make a splendid case for "yes" in this astute, compelling, and challenging book explicating the unexpected politics of a theology of the cross.” (Gary Dorrien, Author, American Democratic Socialism: History, Politics, Religion and Theory)

“This book draws upon a divergent group of thinkers in order to formulate a theological vision of political agency amidst the overwhelming power of modern capitalism. In a refreshing move, James and True retrieve the concept of eros as the foundation of the prophetic spirit and moral discernment that constitutes political agency. A must-have for anyone interested in political and public theology.” (Rachel Sophia Baard, Director of Public Theology Center, Union Presbyterian Seminary)

“James and True’s book will remind secularand/or non-Christian political theorists of just how much transformative power remains coiled up in Christian theology.” (Aakash Singh, Professor of Politics, Philosophy and Law, Jindal Global University, and Ashoka University, Delhi, India)

“In an age of broken politics, Tom James and David True present a bold and innovative response to a world trapped by the iron cage of racial capitalism. This is an insightful, much-needed, groundbreaking work in the field of political theology.” (Ilsup Ahn, Author, Just Debt: Theology, Ethics, and Neoliberalism)

“The Transcendence of Desire is both a sophisticated work of political theology and a bracingly concrete call to action. It offers a Christian realism that transcends capitalist realism. And it calls churches to give up pretenses of solvency and lean into their precarity in order to discover new solidarities with their neighbors and connect with the deep desire that has the power to transform politics. This remarkable book performs the prophecy for which it calls.” (Ted A. Smith, Associate Dean of Faculty; Charles Howard Candler Professor of Divinity, Emory University)

“The authors unveil a robust theological proposal for transcending the constraints of neoliberalism's scions. With its clear-eyed appraisal of the contemporary North Atlantic political landscape, perhaps the most impressive aspect of this project is its refusal to withdraw into resignation or quietism, opting instead to discern the work of the Spirit in emancipatory communities of prophetic resistance. This is a vital new contribution to the often tedious genre of public theology.” (Franklin Tanner Capps, Director of the Miller Youth Institute, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary)

“James and True move us beyond the worn-out debate between the new traditionalists and naive liberals fighting over imagined histories and impossible futures. Offering a penetrating analysis of the malaises of secular modernity, they look beyond standard solutions. This is innovative political theology–not for the faint of heart, but for those willing to engage with the real problems of our world.” (Kevin Carnahan, Professor of Philosophy and Religion, Central Methodist University)

“Amid the ‘ruins of neoliberalism,’ Tom James and David True provide us with a way forward. This book imagines a compelling theological vision of human collectivity capable of reinvigorating a commitment to the common.” (Elizabeth L. Hinson-Hasty, Author, The Problem of Wealth: A Christian Response to a Culture of Affluence)

“Is politics possible? Against the ironic critiques of naysayers left and right, Tom James and David True answer a resounding: YES! Resisting secular enclosure within an immanent frame, they champion prophetic politics oriented toward desire. On their compelling account, it is the “common desire for the common” that sustains political struggle.” (Kyle Lambelet, Assistant Professor in the Practice of Theology and Ethics and the Director of Formation Communities, Emory University)

“Tom James and David True face squarely contemporary capitalism and racism. Written with earnest clarity, the fruit of wide reading and serious reflection, The Transcendence of Desire will appeal to those in and beyond the academy.” (Vincent Lloyd, Director Africana Studies Program and the Center for Political Theology at Villanova University)

“James and True argue that the transcendent breaks through the iron cage of secular and capitalist modernity in desires that call for permanent revolution.  They frame a political theology that draws on twentieth-century crisis theologians and liberative critiques and offers an important alternative to naïve turns toward premodern medieval society and local democracy.” (Douglas Ottati, Craig Family Distinguished Professor of Reformed Theology and Justice, author of A Theology for the 21st Century)

“Tom James and David True argue convincingly that love (in the form of desire) can motivate communal political action. This book is a must-read for any Christian invested in the highest values of our democracy.” (Emerson B. Powery, Interim Dean, School of Arts, Culture and Society, Messiah University; co-author of The Genesis of Liberation: Biblical Interpretation in the Antebellum Narratives of the Enslaved)

“Scholars often construe secularization as a dispute between religion and culture, neglecting its impact on other spheres of life. James and True focus their analysis of secularization on the erosion of political agency to offer a politically engaged theology informed by prophetic voices, from liberation theology to Hannah Arendt to Black Lives Matter.” (Rubén Rosario Rodríguez, Clarence Louis and Helen Steber Professor of Theological Studies Saint Louis University)

“This book achieves something rare, giving us a valuable guide for recognizing how theological habits can reinforce or resist neoliberal valuesby training a more responsible Christian imagination.” (Michelle C. Sanchez, Associate Professor of Theology, Harvard University, author Calvin and Resignification of the World: Creation, Incarnation, and the Problem of Political Theology)

“James and True have written an ambitious, nuanced, and important book, one that displays both inter-disciplinary and theoretical creativity, both spiritual depth and political insight, as it translates across discourses of political theory and Christian theology. It tells a sophisticated story about the current impasses in a secular modernity founded in neoliberal capitalism and white supremacy, but it also discloses resources by which to imagine and build a future on different terms.” (George M. Shulman, Professor Emeritus, New York University and author of American Prophecy: Race and Redemption in American Political Culture)

“The Transcendence of Desire: A Theology of Political Agency is a timely and important contribution informed by a political reformation grounded in a theology of prophetic wisdom.” (Angela D. Sims, President of Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School and author of Lynched: The Power of Memory in a Culture of Terror)

Tom James is a pastor in Toledo, Ohio. He is the author of In Face of Reality: The Constructive Theology of Gordon D. Kaufman (2014) and co-author of A Philosophy of Christian Materialism (2015).

David True is a visiting scholar at Pfeiffer University and is co-editor of the journal Political Theology. He is the co-editor of Paradoxical Virtue: Reinhold Niebuhr and the Virtue Tradition (2020) and the editor of Prophecy in a Secular Age: An Introduction (2021).