Cults, Martyrs and Good Samaritans

Religion in Contemporary English Political Discourse

By (author) James Crossley

Ebook (VitalSource) - £90.00

Publication date:

20 July 2018

Length of book:

256 pages

Publisher

Pluto Press

ISBN-13: 9781786803092

James Crossley holds a mirror up to English politics, examining how Christianity is often used to legitimise ideological positions and parties.

From the paternalistic Christianity used to justify ever-intensifiying neoliberalism, to the ethnonationalist and economic protectionist Christianity of Theresa May and Brexit, and encompassing the socialist constructions of Christianity by Jeremy Corbyn and a resurgent Left, Crossley guides us through politics' love affair with Christianity.

Drawing on interviews with politicians, leave and remain voters, activists, and revolutionaries, Crossley reveals how religion is linked to positions relating to class, capitalism and foreign policy: obfuscating potential causes of unrest, justifying military intervention and challenging dominant class interests.
'Crossley shifts decisively to analysing the last decade of English politics and its intersections with religion - all in the context of Brexit, Islam and the rediscovery of a socialist left. Sharp analysis, insights aplenty, a major contribution to serious political debate in the UK'