A Communist looks at Teilhard

This little pamphlet is actually the fourth chapter of a much larger book, "Evolution, Marxism and Christianity. Studies in the Teillhardian Synthesis", published in 1967 by the Pierre Teilhard de Chardin Association.

I think.

At least, the pamphlet comes with a slip mentioning this work. Why the fourth chapter has been published separately, as well, is unknown to me.

"The Meaning of Life and History in Marx and Teilhard de Chardin" was written by Roger Garaudy, at the time a prominent member of the French Communist Party. He seems to have been the party expert on religion and religious affairs. Interestingly, Garaudy was expelled from the Communist Party in 1970, converted to Catholicism and later became a Muslim and prominent Holocaust denier. His most notorious book is called "The Founding Myths of Modern Israel". But that was still in the future when Garaudy wrote this little appraisal of Teilhard.

Since the article is quite short, it's not really that interesting, unless you have some kind of serious theological crush on Teilhard. Garaudy is very positive towards Teilhard, and believes that his theology is very similar to Marxism. Indeed, he credits Teilhard of having rediscovered ideas developed by Hegel and Engels. The idea that evolution is central, that the universe becomes meaningful only through man, and that progress is both possible and necessary - these are obvious points of contact between Teilhard and Marxism, at least in Garaudy's interpretation. The Communist senator writes that religion is an opiate for the people if it denies human progress by turning its back on the real world. This implies that Teilhard's version of Christianity might be different, i.e. a religion that (curiously) *isn't* a rectionary drug.

Garaudy seems to understand that Teilhard really does believe in Christ and "Omega", but nevertheless implies that such ideas should be seen as symbolic. He tries to "spin" Teilhard as much as possible in an allegorical manner, and also shows a soft spot for Karl Barth, Karl Rahner and Rudolf Bultmann, who each in their own way attempted to modernize and de-historicize Christian theology (at least Barth and Bultmann - I'm not that familiar with Rahner). Garaudy also claims that the first dialogue between Christians and Communists took place in Paris in 1960, with the Christian side represented by Teilhardian Catholics!

There is also some muted criticism of Teilhard in the article. Apparently, Teilhard had shown a certain interest for fascism during the 1930's, and always saw Marxism as a competitor. Besides, Marxists are materialists, as the Communist author points out at several turns (pro forma, I suspect). At one point, he gleefully attributes the following quote to Teilhard: "As I like to say, the synthesis of the Christian God Above and the Marxist God Ahead is the only God whom we can henceforth adore in spirit and in truth". Amen?

Interestingly, Garaudy lacks the deterministic perspective typical of dogmatic Marxism (certainly Soviet Marxism), and therefore sees yet another affinity between himself and Teilhard in the fact that none considers the perfect society inevitable. Garaudy was worried about the possibility of a thermonuclear war, while Teilhard in general had an open-ended view of human evolution.

This, then, is the general content of this little article, which I bought mostly for my own higher amusement. I happen to have a whole book by Roger Garaudy on my shelf. It's about religion, promotes atheism and materialism, and even uses Stalin's (very partial) rehabilitation of the Orthodox Church as evidence for "religious freedom" in the Soviet Union. (The book doesn't seem to be available in English.) I was therefore somewhat amused by the fact that the very same author later became religious himself! Who knows, maybe his contribution to a Teilhardian collection was a way station on that path? Of course, his anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial are just disgusting.