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Denis Janz argues that the encounter with Marxism has been the defining event for twentieth century Christianity. No other worldview shook Christianity more dramatically and no other movement had as profound an impact on so many. Now the Cold War is over and as we approach the end of the century we ...

Denis Janz argues that the encounter with Marxism has been the defining event for twentieth century Christianity. No other worldview shook Christianity more dramatically and no other movement had as profound an impact on so many. Now the Cold War is over and as we approach the end of the century we need, Janz says, to ask ourselves what happened. This book is the first unified and comprehensive attempt to analyze this historic meeting between these two antagonistic worlds of thought and action. The intellectual foundation of this antagonism is to be found in Karl Marx himself, and thus the book begins with an account of Marx's assault on Christianity. All the diverse philosophical and political manifestations of Marxism were ultimately rooted in Marx's thought, and supporters based their greater or lesser hostilities toward Christianity on their reading of his critique. Janz follows this with an overview of Christian responses to Marx, extending from the mid-19th century to the onset of the Cold War. He argues that within this time frame Christianity's negation of Marx was not absolute; the loud "no" to Marx bore with it an important, if muted, "yes." With this intellectual groundwork in place, Janz turns to an examination of the encounter as it unfolded in specific national contexts: the United States, the Soviet Union, Poland, Nicaragua, Cuba, China, and Albania. The experiences of these countries varied widely, from Poland where Christianity maintained its strongest independence, to Nicaragua where a Christian alliance with Marxism contributed to revolutionary change, to Albania where a Stalinist government attempted to abolish religion entirely. From this survey emerges the evidence that world Christianity has clearly internalized some of the prominent features of its antagonist, suggesting that the "Marxist project" is not as utterly defunct as many have assumed.

"This is a wonderful book, well-conceptualized, written with style and wit, and impressive for its ambition, reach and achievement. R. Marie Griffith brings to the scene learning, theoretical subtlety, critical acumen, historical skill, and humane sensibility. She has emerged as one of the most ...

"This is a wonderful book, well-conceptualized, written with style and wit, and impressive for its ambition, reach and achievement. R. Marie Griffith brings to the scene learning, theoretical subtlety, critical acumen, historical skill, and humane sensibility. She has emerged as one of the most sophisticated and insightful scholars of the Christian body in any period of Christian history."--Robert Orsi, Harvard University

""Born Again Bodies is extraordinary. It uncovers an arena of knowledge never before looked at with this level of critical attention when examining American religious culture; Griffith's strength is that she looks across the 'evangelical' denominations. Her work is elegant and truly original."--Sander L. Gilman, author of "Difference and Pathology and "Jewish Frontiers

"This is an extensive study of the theorizing about sexual norms and proprieties of certain major Greek philosophical traditions on the one hand (Platonism, Stoicism, Pythagoreanism), and various key figures of the Judeo-Christian tradition on the other (Philo of Alexandria, Paul, Tatian, Clement ...

"This is an extensive study of the theorizing about sexual norms and proprieties of certain major Greek philosophical traditions on the one hand (Platonism, Stoicism, Pythagoreanism), and various key figures of the Judeo-Christian tradition on the other (Philo of Alexandria, Paul, Tatian, Clement, Epiphanes), in order to demonstrate what the author terms their 'discontinuity.'. . . [Gaca] examines the history of these concepts in the Hellenic and the Judeo-Christian traditions more clearly and comprehensively than I have seen it done elsewhere. The book is of considerable importance in understanding the roots of the early Christian attitude to sexuality--something that still has repercussions today."--John Dillon, Trinity College Dublin

"This book is a gold mine of information for anyone interested in the dynamics of sexual morality in Western culture. General readers, students, and scholars will find surprising data about sexual views, theories, practices, and politics in ancient Greek and Roman society,,Hellenistic Judaism and philosophy, and early and patristic Christianity. Gaca's dynamic prose is exciting to read. Her detailed footnotes are a virtual encyclopedia of sexual morality in Western culture."--Vernon K. Robbins, Winship Distinguished Research Professor of Religion, Emory University