In his sharp, fiery, and often hilarious polemic, God and His Demons , the acclaimed political historian (best known for The Assassination of Julius Caesar and Democracy for the Few ) turns his materialist lens toward the heavens. And what he finds isn't a loving father, but a celestial tyrant.
There is a certain etiquette when discussing religion in polite company. You can critique a policy, a priest, or even a particular church’s history. But the deity itself? The architect of the cosmos? Usually, that’s where the conversation stops. god and his demons pdf
More provocatively, Parenti notes that Satan is often the more reasonable character in the Book of Job. Job’s "comforters" insist he deserves his suffering; Satan suggests Job is only faithful because he is rich. God then tortures Job to win a bet. Parenti asks: Who is the real demon here? By flipping the script, he forces the reader to confront the moral bankruptcy of blind obedience. For Parenti, the belief in an afterlife isn't a comfort; it is a weapon of the ruling class. "Don't worry about your poverty, starvation, or abuse," the doctrine whispers, "You'll get your reward in heaven." In his sharp, fiery, and often hilarious polemic,