This book not only explicates Stalin's thoughts, but thinks with and especially through Stalin - surprising and indeed scandalous as such a task may be. It argues that Stalin often thought at the intersections between theology and Marxist political philosophy - especially in relation to the key issues of socialism in power. Careful and sustained attention to Stalin's written texts is the primary approach used - a rare enough activity in recent studies of Stalin. The result
is a series of arresting efforts to develop the Marxist tradition in unexpected ways. Entering into the growing debate, both within the Russian Federation and internationally, this book appeals to those from various disciplines specifically interested in Stalin, including theologians, religion scholars, philosophers and Marxism scholars.

Starting from a sympathetic attitude toward socialism in power, Boer's book, Stalin: From Theology to the Philosophy of Socialism in Power, has provided us with an extremely insightful interpretation of Stalin's philosophy of socialism.The book will be particularly inspirational for Chinese readers, because the actual intellectual effort to re-read Stalin arises from the author's own reflections on the condition of socialism in the contemporary Chinese context. It is in this sense not only a successful academic effort to re-articulate Stalin's philosophy, but also a creative effort to understand socialism in power in the context of both the former Soviet Union and contemporary China.------- Zhang Shuangli, Professor of Marxist philosophy, Fudan University



How many books have been written to show that communism is just a chapter in the history of Messianic religions? The dominant ideology avoids thus taking seriously and really studying both Messianic religions and Communism. Boer proceeds in a very different direction. From the outset, he states that he intends to carefully analyze Stalin's texts. However, Stalin "was the only world communist leader who had studied theology extensively." How did the reading of the classics of Marxism-Leninism interact with the reading of biblical texts? Boer's book, far from both "veneration" and "demonization" of Stalin, throws a new light on the classic themes of Marxism and the Communist Movement: language, nation, state, stages of the construction of post-capitalist society. It is an original book that also pays great attention to the People's Republic of China, arising from the reforms of Deng Xiaoping, and which is valuable to those who, beyond the twentieth century, want to understand the time and the world in which we live.Domenico Losurdo, University of Urbino, Italy

Author of author of Stalin: Storia e critica di una leggenda nera