Carl Raschke

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Carl A. Raschke
Born1944 (age 79–80)
NationalityAmerican
Known for postmodern theology, popular religion, philosophy of religion, philosophy of culture, philosophy of technology, New Age, Satanism, the occult
Academic background
Education Pomona College, The Graduate Theological Union
Alma mater Harvard University
Thesis Moral action, God, and history in the thought of Immanuel Kant.  (1972)

A central focus of Raschke’s work has been on postmodern religious thought and postmodernism. Raschke has been credited with being "one of the first to register the importance of Derrida's work for postmodern philosophies of religion ." [7]

Early work

According to the 2003 The Encyclopedia of Postmodernism, his “work has sought to expose a conceptual tangle in modernity’s approach to language, religion, and the body." [8] Raschke launched this project in the 1970s with the publication of an article in The Harvard Theological Review entitled “Meaning and Saying in Religion: Beyond Language Games,” in which he “argues that the failure of Anglo-American philosophy to adequately account for religious language reveals a deeper failure to account for the process of meaning-formation at the heart of language itself.” [8] His first major book, The Alchemy of the Word: Language and the End of Theology (1979), which was republished in 2000 as The End of Theology, lays out this agenda in detail with reliance in particular on the philosophy of the later Martin Heidegger. Fire and Roses: Postmodernity and the Thought of the Body (1996) explores these interconnections by seeking to “reconcile erotic and tragic discourses through the thought of the Word made flesh.” [8] An earlier work, entitled Theological Thinking: An In-Quiry (1988), investigates the interconnections between the languages of religion and science.

Turn of the millennium

After the turn of the millennium, Raschke turned his attention to the impact of postmodernism on Christian evangelical thought. His book, The Next Reformation: Why Evangelicals Must Embrace Postmodernity, explained how postmodern philosophy might transform present day evangelical theology, comparing it to Reformation thought, in particular Martin Luther’s key doctrines of sola fide (“by faith alone”) and sola Scriptura (“according to Scripture alone"). He writes in this book that “the postmodernist revolution in philosophy…has tendered an environment where the Christian gospel can at last be disentangled from the centuries-long gnarl of scientism, rationalism, secularism, humanism, and skepticism.” [9] Reviewing the book, Brian C. Smith notes in Library Journal that Raschke challenges the conventional evangelical view of "postmodernism" and "exudes an embracing and accepting spirit toward it." [10] A later book, entitled GloboChrist, published as part of a general series by Baker Academic Books, argued that the theory of the “rhizome,” first advanced by twentieth century French philosophers Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari, can be used to model the future of the Christian church in the new era of globalization. In an interview with the Evangelical Philosophical Society in 2009, Raschke explains he borrowed this term because “globalization is an ongoing, simultaneous transformation of nations, cultures, and religious outlooks and practices everywhere on the planet which they term ‘de-territorialization.’” [11] Commenting on GloboChrist scholar Richard Haney criticizes the book for its "breezy terminology", but concludes the book "will challenge Christians to think missionally and philosophically at the same time." [12] In his contribution among three authors to the volume Faith and Reason: Three Views, Raschke has argued that the gospel represented a departure from Greek and Enlightenment philosophies, and that faith and reason are "in tension" with each other. [13] Finally, Raschke has sought to introduce the essential concepts of critical theory to an evangelical audience in his book Critical Theology: Introducing an Agenda for an Age of Global Crisis. Danish reviewer Michael Raubach writes: "Carl Raschke has spent his entire career at the intersection of theology, social theory, political philosophy, and the hurly-burly of practiced American religion, and in his 75th year he remains as provocative and insightful as ever. His recent primer, Critical Theology, is a welcome handbook for those with philosophical backgrounds seeking to ground their study of the Frankfurt school with something like Jürgen Moltmann’s liberation theology, or for those of a theological bent trying to grapple with the dense social critiques of a continental philosopher like Slavoj Žižek." [14]

The Postmodern Reformation is a movement presently taking place throughout Western culture in which Christianity is experiencing a dramatic cultural shift away from institutionally centralized Christian practice closely related to primary Christendom values which have undergirded Roman Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant culture since the 4th century. The movement parallels a number of other characteristic aspects of postmodernity including the adoption of primary extrainstitutional loyalties, a decentralized philosophy of cultural influence emphasizing authentic relationships, personal opportunity and responsibility for global and local contexts, and the localization of lifestyle. It also emphasizes a return to the values of 1st century Christian lifestyle using the tools of 21st century living.

Raschke has also written on the general theory of religion. His book,The Revolution in Religious Theory: Toward A Semiotics of the Event, lays out how postmodern philosophy has impacted and reshaped both classical and contemporary paradigms of how we understand what is meant by the “religious.” In an interview with David Hale, Raschke criticizes many scholars of religion, particularly in regard to "cults", for approaching their subject as a "pseudo-phenomenology" that "does not seek to probe, or dialectically reflect, beyond the bare given." [15] In reviewing the book, McGill University scholar Nathan Strunk writes that Raschke criticizes the history of religious studies as colonializing with a tendency toward "Aryanization", and thus "readers should not be surprised if some areas they consider sacred are tread over lightly." [16]

Political theology since 2015

Since 2015 Raschke's work has focused mainly on political thought and political theology. His book Force of God: Political Theology and the Crisis of Liberal Democracy, leverages the philosophies of Michel Foucault and Friedrich Nietzsche to analyze from what he terms a “genealogical” standpoint the ongoing global economic crisis and the dysfunctions of democracy. In a review in the Journal of Religion Samuel Hayim Brody writes that "Force of God is ostensibly an entry in the genre of critical Schmittianism", but that "it also works on several other levels: as an extended exegesis and application of Nietzsche; as a survey of concepts of 'force' in modern Continental philosophy (as Kraft in Hegel and Schelling, as Gewalt in Schelling and Benjamin, as Macht in Nietzsche and force/pouvoir in his French interpreters); and as an argument for the continuing relevance of the Western philosophical canon to contemporary problems.". [17] New Zealand scholar Michael Grimshaw writing in Syndicate, an online academic forum of major new books in a variety of fields, states that in Force of God "the crisis in liberal democracy is convincingly linked as yet another expression and result of Nietzsche’s death of god." He asks "if Force of God is a prophetical work in being the first political theology of the Trump interregnum; a political theology written before the rise of Trump but existing as both handbook to understanding the crisis in liberal democracy that led to Trump and a manifesto of how to undertake a political theology of resistance?" [18]

His book Neoliberalism and Political Theology: From Kant to Identity Politics is a comprehensive analysis of the contemporary neoliberal world order and devotes specific attention to what political theorist Nancy Fraser terms "progressive neoliberalism." Raschke argues that neoliberalism, which is presided over by a new ruling class - the "knowledge class" - that has replaced the nineteenth century captains of industry, "is not so much an economic or a political formation as it is a value configuration against which much of the world is now in open revolt." [19] What makes Raschke's argument unique, according to reviewer Michael Behrent, is the way he ties neoliberalism to progressive politics. According to Behrent, "Raschke shows how Fraser’s insights were prefigured by Foucault’s claim that liberalism originates in pastoral power—that is, a deterritorialized, shepherd-like authority legitimized by its concern for a flock’s well-being—and by Brown’s insight that the neoliberal idea of the free market is tied to a distorted sense of civic duty, which she dubs 'sacrificial citizenship.'". [20] University of Bonn philosopher Kieryn Wurts observes that "Raschke’s work...is intended to hold up a mirror to us and to make clear through the genealogical method that we are the neoliberals. He does this through a sophisticated Marxist analysis of labor alienation, put rather simplistically, the educated classes if somewhat fatally failed to develop class consciousness." [21]

Commenting on the 2020 George Floyd protests Raschke, drawing on Fraser and Louis Althusser, asserted that

In a word, “oppression” remains invisible because it is coded into the “common sense” of any social organization, while it is correspondingly legitimated and augmented by the communicative and educational apparatuses themselves that preserve a society’s unique “knowledge base.” [22]

Raschke asserted that the New Left had unintentionally contributed to the rise of the Alt-right. [23] [24]

He has served as section editor for The Encyclopedia of Sciences and Religions. [25]

Raschke has written and commented on topics such as Satanism, Dungeons & Dragons , heavy metal music and certain new religious movements. His work in this area as well as his role in the development of the Satanic ritual abuse moral panic of the late 1980s and early 1990s, in particular the book Painted Black (1990), have been much criticized in academia.

Particularly during the late 1980s and 1990s, Raschke regularly commented to the media on matters involving Satanism and the occult, [26] advised the American Family Foundation during the 1990s, [27] and appeared as an expert witness during trials purportedly involving Satanism. [28] Raschke has continued to accept media requests for comment on these topics, such as for an object purportedly involved in the murder of Jessica Ridgeway in 2012. [29]

Reviewing Painted Black in 1991, scholar Jonathon S. Epstein writes: "Painted Black adds additional fuel to the flames of hysteria surrounding satanism [sic] in America", that "what the book lacks is scholarship, it makes up for it in sweeping and unsupportable generalizations", and that … "Painted Black cannot be taken seriously. [30] In 1995, scholar Wouter J. Hanegraaff writes "Raschke's eagerness to include everything "gnostic" into a "genealogy of darkness" (Painted Black, 133) inspires sloppy historical scholarship. … With a similar lack of sensitivity for the power of words and definitions, Raschke routinely uses "satanism" and "occultism" as synonyms (for instance, Painted Black, 35-36). This careless attitude towards terminology leads to painfully inaccurate overviews (esp. Painted Black, chapter 4)." [31] Writing in 1998, scholar Phillip Jenkins cites Raschke's Painted Black next to Maury Terry's Ultimate Evil and Larry Kahaner's Cults That Kill along with an episode of Geraldo Rivera's talk show ( Geraldo , "Devil Worship: Exposing Satan's Underground") as examples of major works that popularized the Satanic ritual abuse moral panic in the late 1980s and 1990s. Jenkins says "For several years, belief in the existence of satanic cults and ritual murder achieved wider credence in the United States than it had in any other society since that of sixteenth-century Europe", where the moral panic subsequently spread to areas of Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. [32]

In an analysis of Raschke's role in adding fuel to the 1980s and early 1990s United States Satanic ritual abuse moral panic, scholar Eugene V. Gallagher (2004) notes that Raschke referred to critics of his works as "cult apologists" but says "the shrillness of Raschke's argument ... ultimately fails to compensate for the paucity of evidence behind it". [33] Referring to Raschke's Painted Black, scholar Joshua Gunn (2005) writes that "Raschke's error-filled tome is frequently cited by seemingly secular academics who profess in a belief of Satanic ritual abuse". [34]

Scholar Arthur Versluis (2006) is highly critical of Raschke's Painted Black, which he describes as an "effort to awaken an American inquisition" and refers to the book as "breathless sensationalism". [35] Versluis cites Raschke's description of the roleplaying game Dungeons & Dragons as a means of initiation into "black magic" as an example and says that "it is scarcely possible to exaggerate the hysterical nature of this book, nor the number of errors in it (although some have tried at least to chronicle them)." [36] Versluis is critical of Raschke's role in the Satanic ritual abuse moral panic, noting the false imprisonments that the moral panic resulted in, and says, regarding Painted Black, "This is dangerous stuff indeed ... Fortunately, Raschke's book didn't have the kind of impact he so clearly wanted: to fully awaken the medieval Inquisitorial spirit. But ... the 1980s and the 1990s 'Satanic panic' was bad enough." [37]

Comparing Raschke's Painted Black to Tipper Gore's 1987 book Raising PG Kids in an X-Rated Society in that Gore "invoked Satan as the seducer of youth", scholar Robert Latham (2007) refers to Carl Raschke as "a tabloid 'expert' on 'cults'". Latham is particularly critical of Raschke's claims that MTV "had put an entire generation of teens at risk of satanic contamination" and writes that "Raschke's indictment of the resultant 'Dionysian frenzy' ... indiscriminately conflated acts of violence, sexual 'deviance', and supernaturalism in a millennial scenario of youth's spectacular degeneracy." [38]

Scholars Asbjørn Dyrendal, James R. Lewis, and Jesper AA. Petersen (2015) provide examples of Raschke "quoting ... misleadingly and out of context" and "hav[ing] forgotten all his academic training, and reverted, in a telling manner, to the folklore of evil". The scholars characterize Raschke as an "until-then well-reputed academic" (referring to the publication of Painted Black). [39] Scholar Joseph P. Laycock is highly critical of statements that Raschke made in the 1980s and early 1990s regarding Satanism in popular culture, noting that Raschke "is one of the few academics who embraced the moral panic over Satanism and role-playing games in the 1980s". [40] Analyzing Raschke's works on heavy metal, scholar Robert Walser (2013) says that "the terrorism of Raschke and similar critics depends upon two tactics: anecdote and insinuation. Raschke himself cites a group of sociologists of religion who determined that there was 'not a shred of evidence' that Satanism is a problem in America, directly contradicting the thesis of Rashke's book." [41]

Raschke's comments regarding Heathenry have also been criticized. According to a 1998 interview with the SPLC, Raschke claimed that "a recent biological terrorism threat in New York City may have come from Asatrúers [sic]" (quote from SPLC 1998, reprinted in Gardell 2003). Citing this claim as an example of the reception of Heathenry in his overview, scholar Mattias Gardell (2003) says "I have found nothing to substantiate the alarmist allegations of Raschke". [42]

In an article on Wicca and media for the Oxford Handbook of Religion and the News Media (2012), scholar Sarah M. Pike describes how a media report during the trial for the West Memphis Three "failed to consult experts on Wicca and Satanism" but rather referred to material by Raschke, who she describes as a "widely discredited 'Satanism expert'". [43]

Raschke has written and commented in the media extensively on contemporary religion, especially regarding the New Age Movement. His most cited and often controversial book on this is The Interruption of Eternity (1980). Other writings of this kind include "The New Age: The Movement Toward Self-Discovery", [44] "New Age Spirituality" [45] and "New Age Economics". [46]

Bibliography

Notes

  1. ↑ "51706472".
  2. ↑ Raschke, Carl (June 1978). "The End of Theology". Journal of the American Academy of Religion. 46 (2): 159–79. JSTOR   1462219.
  3. ↑ "University Lecturer Award". University of Denver. Retrieved July 11, 2021.
  4. ↑ "Carl Raschke | Faculty & Staff | University of Denver". du.edu. 2016. Retrieved January 5, 2016.
  5. ↑ Raschke's contributions to Political Theology Today may be viewed on the publication's website.
  6. ↑ Richard, Alan Jay (2018), "Carl A. Raschke", in Rodkey, Christopher D.; Miller, Jordan E. (eds.), The Palgrave Handbook of Radical Theology, Radical Theologies and Philosophies, Springer International Publishing, pp. 323–342, doi:10.1007/978-3-319-96595-6_20, ISBN   978-3-319-96595-6
  7. ↑ The Blackwell Companion to Postmodern Theology, p 505. John Wiley & Sons, Apr 15, 2008
  8. 1 2 3 Taylor, Victor E.; Charles Winquist (2003). Encyclopedia of Postmodernism. Psychology Press. p. 330.
  9. ↑ Raschke, Carl (2004). The Next Reformation: Why Evangelicals Must Embrace Postmodernity. Baker Academic. pp. 20–21.
  10. ↑ Smith, Brian C. (2005). "Review of "The Next Reformation"". Library Journal: 119.
  11. ↑ "Interview with Carl Raschke: GloboChrist". Evangelical Philosophical Society Blog. Evangelical Philosophical Society. January 18, 2009. Retrieved January 13, 2016.
  12. ↑ Hanaey, Richard (2010). "Review of GloboChrist". Interpretation. 64 (2): 216.
  13. ↑ Wilkens, Steve (2014). Faith and Reason: Three Views. Intervarsity Press, p. 20. ISBN   9780830880232.
  14. ↑ "Critical Theology | Reading Religion". readingreligion.org. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
  15. ↑ Hale, David (2014). "Not Your Grandmother's Theory of Religion: An Interview With Carl Raschke". Journal for Cultural and Religious Theory. 14 (2): 2.
  16. ↑ Strunk, Nathan. Review of "The Revolution in Religious Theory," Religious Studies Review 3(2013), p. 39.
  17. ↑ Brody, Samuel Hayim (January 2018). "Raschke, Carl A. Force of God: Political Theology and the Crisis of Liberal Democracy . New York: Columbia University Press, 2015. xv+189 pp. $55.00 (cloth)". The Journal of Religion. 98 (1): 162–163. doi:10.1086/694594. ISSN   0022-4189.
  18. ↑ "The Force of God". Syndicate. Retrieved February 13, 2020.
  19. ↑ Raschke, Carl (2019). Neoliberalism and Political Theology: From Kant to Identity Politics. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. p. 3. ISBN   9781474454551.
  20. ↑ Behrent, Michael C. (2021). "Carl Raschke: Neoliberalism and Political Theology: From Kant to Identity Politics. (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2019. Pp. viii, 196)". The Review of Politics. 83 (3): 434–436. doi:10.1017/S0034670521000280. ISSN   0034-6705. S2CID   236268554.
  21. ↑ "Critical Conversations 4 – 2020 And The Catastrophe Of The Global Neoliberal Order (Carl Raschke) – THE NEW POLIS". January 3, 2021. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
  22. ↑ "Racism, Anti-Racism, and Marxism – How Poststructuralism Morphed the Emancipatory Project into "Progressive Neoliberalism" (Carl Raschke) – THE NEW POLIS". July 27, 2020.
  23. ↑ https://politicaltheology.com/how-the-new-left-helped-create-the-alt-right-carl-raschke/ https://web.archive.org/web/20220000000000*/https://politicaltheology.com/how-the-new-left-helped-create-the-alt-right-carl-raschke/
  24. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20220307223026/https://jcrt.org/religioustheory/2020/07/05/progressive-neoliberalism-symbolic-capitalism-and-the-global-reproduction-of-the-precariat-interview-with-carl-raschke/ https://jcrt.org/religioustheory/2020/07/05/progressive-neoliberalism-symbolic-capitalism-and-the-global-reproduction-of-the-precariat-interview-with-carl-raschke/
  25. ↑ Runehov, Anne and Oviedo, Lluis, editors. The Encyclopedia of Religions and Sciences. Springer Reference, 2013, p. xi.
  26. ↑ Stowers (1989).
  27. ↑ Anson & Darnell (2006:115).
  28. ↑ Such as Missouri v. Roland. 808 S.W.2d 855 (1991) (viewable online: ), in which Raschke testified for the defense: "The court permitted witness Raschke to testify to the general tenets of satanism [sic], but, because he lacked any training in psychiatry or psychology, excluded his proffered testimony as to the effects of satanic beliefs on individuals. The professor did testify that satanic cults often employed violence and terror in enforcing secrecy and loyalty among their members."
  29. ↑ Regarding an object purportedly connected with the murder of Jessica Ridgeway:
    "Raschke notes that the cross contains three vertical scratches on one side and a zigzag and several nicks on the other. Raschke, who also studies cults, wouldn't speculate on the three vertical scratches, but said the zigzag and nicks could be significant. "The zigzag is a stylized 'S,'" he said. "It's like a lightning bolt. It probably has something to do with somebody who's into magic or wizardry or something like that. It could also be neo-Nazism." Raschke said the nicks adjacent to the zigzag are even more interesting. "Those look like somebody is stabbing the cross with a knife and may very well have been doing that because they hate Christians. It could be some kind of ritual way of showing (their) contempt for Christianity." (Hernandez 2012).
  30. ↑ Epstein (1991:439-440).
  31. ↑ Hanegraaff (1995:X).
  32. ↑ Jenkins (1998:168-169).
  33. ↑ Raschke (2004:188-189).
  34. ↑ Gunn (2005:283).
  35. ↑ Verlius (2006:108).
  36. ↑ Versluis (2006:107).
  37. ↑ Versluis (2006:109)
  38. ↑ Latham (2007:126).
  39. ↑ Dyrendal, Lewis, and Petersen (2015:102-104)
  40. ↑ Laycock (2015:59).
  41. ↑ Walser 2013: 142).
  42. ↑ Gardell (2003:275). The 1998 SPLC interview Gardell refers to may be read online at the SPLC website:
  43. ↑ Pike (2012:289-290).
  44. ↑ Raschke, Carl (1993). "The New Age: The Movement Toward Self-Discovery". In Ferguson, Duncan (ed.). New Age Spirituality: An Assessment. Louisville, KY: Westminster/John Knox Press. pp. 121–43.
  45. ↑ Raschke, Carl (1996). "New Age Spirituality". In Van Ness, Peter (ed.). Spirituality and the Secular Quest. New York: Crossroad Publishing.
  46. ↑ Raschke, Carl (1988). "New Age Economics". In Basil, Robert (ed.). Not Necessarily the New Age: Critical Essays. Buffalo, NY: Prometheus Books.

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The Satanic panic is a moral panic about alleged widespread Satanic ritual abuse which originated around the 1980s in the United States, peaking in the early 1990s, before waning as a result of scepticism of academics and law enforcement agencies who ultimately debunked the claims. The phenomenon spread from the United States to other countries, including South Africa, where it is still evident periodically. South Africa was particularly associated with the Satanic panic because of the creation of the Occult Related Crimes Unit in 1992, described as the "world's only 'ritual murder' task force". According to anthropologist Annika Teppo, this was linked with powerful conservative Christian forces within the then-dominant white community in the last years of apartheid. Christian belief is a prerequisite to serve in the unit. The concern with the alleged presence of Satanism and occult practices has continued into the post-apartheid era.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joy of Satan Ministries</span> Theistic Satanist organization and website

Joy of Satan Ministries, also referred to as Joy of Satan (JoS), is a western esoteric occult organization founded in 2002 by Andrea Herrington. Joy of Satan Ministries advocates "Spiritual Satanism", an ideology that presents a synthesis of theistic Satanism, Nazism, gnosticism, paganism, western esotericism, UFO conspiracy theories and extraterrestrial beliefs similar to those popularized by Zecharia Sitchin and David Icke.

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