Recent Work on Reinhold Niebuhr

Abstract

Since September 11th, there has been a renaissance of interest in Reinhold Niebuhr and Christian Realism. Niebuhr’s name has been invoked to support several, often conflicting projects in theology and politics. He has been called ‘Obama’s Theologian’ and has been invoked to support Bush administration interventions around the world. This article surveys recent treatments of Niebuhr in order to provide a context in which one can locate and begin to assess the various readings of Niebuhr available today. The article explores Niebuhr’s place in contemporary theology, debates about Niebuhr, American empire, and American foreign policy, the use of Niebuhr’s work in thinking about globalization and global society, and the development of ‘hopeful realism’ in Niebuhr studies.