Power and Transcendence

Once considered a one-dimensional advocate of pure realpolitik, revisionist work on the legacy of Hans Morgenthau has uncovered transcendent themes in his thought on the importance of morality in statecraft. Bridging the gap in existing literature, M. Benjamin Mollov's important work brings new understanding of the very real impact which anti-semitism and Morgenthau's own German-Jewish moral and spiritual heritage had on his political thought. A liberal rather than a classical realist, Morgenthau's writing and teaching on issues ranging from Soviet Jewry to Israel, nuclear proliferation, and the Vietnam War reveal a moral, philosophical, even spiritual, approach to the 'mission' of political science. This is an important work for students of political science and international relations seeking a greater understanding of the very real impact of religion on the makers of Cold War foreign policy.