The Insistence of God

A Theology of Perhaps

John D. Caputo

Narrated by Ron Dewey

Available from Audible

Book published by Indiana University Press

The Insistence of God presents the provocative idea that God does not exist, God insists, while God’s existence is a human responsibility, which may or may not happen. For John D. Caputo, God’s existence is haunted by “perhaps,” which does not signify indecisiveness but an openness to risk, to the unforeseeable. Perhaps constitutes a theology of what is to come and what we cannot see coming. Responding to current critics of continental philosophy, Caputo explores the materiality of perhaps and the promise of the world. He shows how perhaps can become a new theology of the gaps God opens.

John D. Caputo is Thomas J. Watson Professor of Religion Emeritus at Syracuse University and the David R. Cook Professor of Philosophy Emeritus at Villanova University. He is author of The Weakness of God, which won the American Academy of Religion's Award for Excellence in the Study of Religion in the Constructive-Reflective Studies category.

REVIEWS:

“John D. Caputo is at the top of his game, and he is not content to reiterate what he has already expressed, but continues to develop his own ideas further by way of a thorough engagement with the fields of theology, Continental philosophy, and religious thought.”

—Clayton Crockett, University of Central Arkansas

“For those allergic to theological certainty—whether of God’s existence or of God’s death—Caputo delivers storm-fresh relief: the theopoetics of God’s insistence.”

—Catherine Keller, Drew University

“Challenging, combative, witty, and incisive, this is Caputo at his best. The Insistence of God is a cry in the postmodern desert for a fuller life to come, not elsewhere, but here among the least of these. It makes bold the mission of radical theology to haunt and disrupt the slumber of confessional theology. It awakens troubling thoughts and solicits deep responses. This is a work of audacity and insight, but above all—though the word is discreetly traced—of love.”

—Richard Kearney, Boston College

“This is a valuable theological contribution for those with ears to hear.... Recommended.”

—CHOICE

“The Insistence of God is a tour de force of novel, provocative ideas expressed in Heideggerian, Derridean, and Deleuzian rhetoric. It reads like a manifesto for a new wave of Christian theologians who re-imagine theology under the name of theopoetics.”

—Bibliographia

“Caputo's Insistence of God is an excellent text that opens the way into new forms of theological thinking. He puts forward an argument that must be wrestled with and brings to light new avenues for both religious and theological thought. Caputo is not for the faint of heart as his style is, at times, trenchant; but, in the end, wrestling with his work makes one better on the other side.”

—Reviews in Religion and Theology