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Black Mass: Apocalyptic Religion and the Death of Utopia

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It's not easy categorising John Gray. He's generally listed as a "philosopher", but he rarely delves into the roots of human behaviour. His philosophy is founded on recorded history. Like most modern "philosophers", his arena is the canon of Western European tradition and practice. That approach, at least in Gray's hands, makes him more political commentator than philosopher. The shift of emphasis doesn't erode his thinking prowess nor his ability in expressing what he has derived from it. His prose is clean and unpretentious, almost hiding the power of the thinking behind it. In this exciting little work, Gray examines the history of modern "utopian" ideas - their misconceptions and their persistence.

The idea of utopias has long diverted us from confronting realities, Gray suggests. This self-generated departure tends to hide consequences of our acts until it's too late to deal with them successfully. Naturally, one of his glaring examples of this situation is the Anglo-American invasion of Iraq. Gray demonstrates how it was planned intentionally long before the causes were manufactured for it. The planning was clearly utopian in that the intentions were delusionary and inappropriate. Both governments declared their intention - based on false pretenses - to "extend democracy into the Middle East". This ambition was expressed without any perception of whether it would be welcomed. It's an underlying principle of utopian thinking, Gray observes, that a society can be re-created from within or imposed from the outside. The failure of such thinking is readily apparent in Iraq - a war that has lasted longer for the US than WWII. Utopian ideas have been seeded on infertile soil.

In explaining how the utopian idea arrived in the Middle East by way of the US-UK "special relationship", Gray skips lightly over Thomas More's original idea to the Enlightenment era. There is a link, however, in that while we are generally taught that the Enlightenment thinkers were building a secular world, they were relying on Christian precepts to expound their ideas. "Improvement" was the means of overcoming disparities in the human condition, and the State could replace the Church in making beneficial change. Among other virtues of this thinking was that it seemed realisable within human timespans. In the 20th Century, a wide variety of such proposals were tried, and Gray brings Marxism, the hippie communes of the 1960s and the Fascist-Nazi movements into the same paddock. Once thought as a "Leftist" ideal, Gray is unsurprised that it is now the policy of choice of the "neo-cons" and their supporters on the "Christian Right". Yet, it seems that no matter where on the political spectrum utopians arise, they continue to commit similar blunders. The goal blinds them to the perils of trying to achieve it and utopia becomes tragedy.

It's easy to peg Gray as grim or dismal. That's a common label pinned on those who seek to have us confront reality and think more deeply about our decisions. In this sense, Gray takes a long view of the role of Christianity in Western thinking. The shift of utopia from heaven to Earth, while seeming to provide improvement, was just as likely to introduce anarchy. He compares two contemporary thinkers, Thomas Hobbes and Baruch Spinoza, in their approach to this problem. Modern liberals declare the unrestrained State as the greatest threat to freedom. Hobbes understood that anarchy was an even greater threat and government was needed to quell it. Spinoza, on the other hand, while unwilling to grant the state power to stomp on emerging anarchy, had a different proposal. Humans are part of the natural world, and turning to the state for salvation of any kind was erroneous. His realistic view was that disorder and peace are natural cycles of the human condition. We must approach this situation realistically, without any fixed or unattainable goals to repress the one to gain the other. Such simplistic thinking can never succeed. Gray has offered an exceptionally rational set of pointers on avoiding such single-mindedness. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]

Although it is written in a studious manner, the book gives a realistic warning to those who pursue the idealistic goals of a utopian based world. This warning applies to both the theological and politically liberal based groups who view the changing of world dynamics as part of their creed. The mechanization of state decisions should be based on realism and not idealism. This realism points to the fact that throughout history civilization has shown itself to always be a violent and far from perfect place. This dynamic will continue in the immediate future and we must not delude ourselves that it will not.

This is a book that I have re read four times. It is axiomatic that we believe what we are taught in infancy. We are taught that we can achieve(and that there can be)a perfect world to come. That universal hope however can only be achieved in the propogation of the particular utopian dream being promoted and in the hierarchy that its politisization demands. We are taught that this perfect world is not just a vision but a reality that will follow the second coming in Christianity,the first in Islam and the first in Judaism. This longing has persisted universally notwithstanding the historic and tragic knowledge of all of the gods that failed.

In this dream of perfection believers will gain access to the perfect realm while unbelievers will be punished and cast out for eternity. The secular religions in imitation, teach the infalability of the charismatic founder of the vision as one who has been prophesied to come forth. He will deliver the believer from bondage.It was as true of Lenin Hitler and Stalin in their day as it is of present North Korea. All of these leaders were supposed to be the possessors of superior wisdom. They were seen to be called forth from the hand of destiny to save their people from the satanic embrace of the unbeliever.

This space is not the forum for discussing the mechanisms that induce the need to believe in fantasy and why the world's people have always had "believers". It is rationaly strange that people will entertain belief systems that enunciated by one person would be considered a by product of mental illness. but spread among the fertile brain needs of millions becomes established and sacrosanct religion.

Factually wrong narrative in biblical sources which are proven wrong in the light of knowledge are nevertheless maintained or reinterpreted rather than discarded. Religion always seeks to maintain its power base as a first priority over the individual needs of its parishoners.It hangs its authority on the emotional skeleton of the need people have for a counter to the dayly problems that being alive presents.

John Gray rightly examines and points to the not abvious fact that communism, facism, national socialism, Maoism were and are religions in their utopian message which admits believers to the fold but excorciates the "other". All of these "belief systems" take their imagery from Christianity and from Islam.

In the past religiously inspired wars were limited in their carnage capability by the quality of the weapons at hand. Today even a small group of people can acquire the means to perpetrate genocide. In a smaller world armed to the teeth, mutually opposing religious belief systems especially among the secular religions are an existential threat.There is no certainty in this world and no chance of a "next world". This is a truism that most people can not maintain since they want one more chance to set their lives right. That is why so many are willing to kill themselves and others for a childish and preposterous vision of a life to come. We owe a debt to John Gray.

Sidney Freedman

Man's search for meaning has been the cause of triumph and despair. We, of the "Western Intellect" want a narrative, a place in the grand scheme of things, a reason for being. Why else the suicide bomber or the American/British invasion of Iraq? History moves toward a grand design understood by secular society as Heaven on Earth and the Religious community as Heaven Beyond. Why believe either? Why do we have to understand our place? Why does religion have to be separate from our everyday existence? Why does everyone have to be the same? Is that even possible? Is a capitalist economic system under liberal democracies the "End of History" or just naive speculation? These are all questions addressed by Mr. Gray who describes how the religious and secular movements of today are essentially the same, visions of utopia. Prophesies, he says, are immensely destructive to our collective well-being. Realism may not be utopia, but it is an alternative. Black Mass is a dense, very satisfying read with every page providing new and exciting revelations worthy of contemplation.