Dr Tommy Lynch
Reader in Political Theology

About
Dr Tommy Lynch is Reader in Political Theology and the Programme Coordinator for the BA (Hons) Philosophy and Ethics. He is interested in political theology, continental philosophy and the role of religion in contemporary politics.
Research
Dr Lynch has two primary research interests. The first is philosophical work on apocalypticism.
In his book Apocalyptic Political Theology: Hegel, Taubes, and Malabou, he traces the development of an apocalyptic strand of philosophical thought from German Idealism through political theology (Carl Schmitt and Jacob Taubes) and into contemporary philosophy.
He argues that reflecting on contemporary global crises (economic, ecological, social and political) reveals the need for apocalyptic thinking.
Political theology offers resources for thinking about the end of the world without collapsing into apathy.
The second is an interdisciplinary effort to understand the connects between the concepts ‘religion’ and ‘race’ in the history of Western philosophy.
In a number of articles and essays, he has argued that these concepts emerge together and that contemporary treatments of religion, especially in political discussions of religious minorities, often ignore its racial dimensions.
He is particularly interested in the ongoing connection between religion and race in the context of a secular Europe and the implication of these connections for political thought.
PhD Supervision
Dr Lynch is open to PhD proposals focusing on the following:
- Hegel
- Contemporary continental philosophy
- Philosophy of religion
- Political theology
Research Output
Articles
Lynch, T. (2022) Epistemic injustice and the veil: Islam, vulnerability, and the task of historical revisionism. Culture and Religion, 21 (3). pp. 280-297. ISSN 1475-5629 10.1080/14755610.2022.2115524
Lynch, T. (2020) Hegel, Islam, and Liberalism: Religion and the Shape of World History. Philosophy & Social Criticism, 47 (2). pp. 225-240. ISSN 0191-4537 10.1177/0191453720909406
Lynch, T. (2017) Divining history: prophetism, messianism and the development of the spirit. Jewish Culture and History, 19 (1). pp. 111-113. ISSN 2167-9428 10.1080/1462169x.2017.1410301
Lynch, T. (2017) Social Construction and Social Critique: Haslanger, Race and the Study of Religion. Critical Research on Religion, 5 (3). pp. 284-301. ISSN 2050-3032 10.1177/2050303217732133
Lynch, T. (2017) Transcendental Materialism as a Theoretical Orientation to the Study of Religion. Method & Theory in the Study of Religion, 29 (2). pp. 133-154. ISSN 0943-3058 10.1163/15700682-12341387
Lynch, T. (2010) Religion and Revolution: Slavoj Žižek’s Challenge to Liberation Theology. International Journal of Zizek Studies, 4 (4). ISSN 1751-8229
Book Sections
Lynch, T. (2021) ‘Just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they’re not after you’: Populism, political theology and the culturally repugnant other. In: The Spirit of Populism: Political Theologies in Polarized Times. Political and Public Theologies, 1 . Brill, Leiden, The Netherlands, pp. 40-56. ISBN 9789004498310
Lynch, T. (2014) Making the quarter turn: liberation after Lacan. In: Theology After Lacan: The Passion for the Real. Cascade Books, Eugene, pp. 211-231.
Books
Lynch, T. (2019) Apocalyptic Political Theology: Hegel, Taubes and Malabou. Political Theologies . Bloomsbury, London. ISBN 9781350064744