CHRISTIANITY WITHOUT GOD Maguire_Christianity.indd 1 6/16/14 7:18 PM Maguire_Christianity.indd 2 6/16/14 7:18 PM CHRISTIANITY WITHOUT GOD Moving beyond the Dogmas and Retrieving the Epic Moral Narrative DANIEL C. MAGUIRE Maguire_Christianity.indd 3 6/16/14 7:18 PM Published by State University of New York Press, Albany © 2014 State University of New York All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission. No part of this book may be stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means including electronic, electrostatic, magnetic tape, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the prior permission in writing of the publisher. For information, contact State University of New York Press, Albany, NY www.sunypress.edu Production by Diane Ganeles Marketing by Fran Keneston Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Maguire, Daniel C., author. Christianity without God : moving beyond the dogmas and retrieving the epic moral narrative / Daniel C. Maguire. pages cm Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-1-4384-5405-4 (hardcover : alk. paper) ISBN 978-1-4384-5404-7 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Jesus Christ— Rationalistic interpretations. 2. Christianity—Controversial literature. I. Title. BT304.95.M34 2014 230—dc23 2014002127 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Maguire_Christianity.indd 4 6/16/14 7:18 PM To the American Association of University Professors which stands tall as the defender of academic freedom and integrity. Maguire_Christianity.indd 5 6/16/14 7:18 PM Maguire_Christianity.indd 6 6/16/14 7:18 PM CONTENTS Part I. God Chapter 1. Overture 3 Chapter 2. Deification 15 Chapter 3. Proliferation 33 Chapter 4. The Beginning That Wasn’t 43 Part II. The Divinity of Jesus Chapter 5. The Greatest Story Never Told 59 Chapter 6. From Jesus to Christ 75 Chapter 7. From Christianity to Cross-tianity 91 Part III. The Living Dead Chapter 8. From Hell to Jiggledeegreen 107 Part IV. The Quest for a Global Ethic Chapter 9. When We Are as Remote as Charlemagne 129 Chapter 10. Is You Is or Is You Ain’t My Baby? 141 vii Maguire_Christianity.indd 7 6/16/14 7:18 PM viii CONTENTS Chapter 11. From Prose to Poetry 151 Chapter 12. When History Turned a Corner 163 Epilogue: The God Loss 181 Notes 185 Select Annotated Bibliography 207 Index 217 Maguire_Christianity.indd 8 6/16/14 7:18 PM PART I GOD Maguire_Christianity.indd 1 6/16/14 7:18 PM