I See Satan Fall Like Lightning – by Rene Girard

One of Girard’s most important books, and one highly recommended for beginners –especially those interested in the religious implications of his work. It starts exploring the tenth commandment, which Girard believes is really an injunction against mimetic rivalry, and goes on to explain the apparent similarities between mythology and the Gospels. In Girard’s view, the similarities don’t threaten the uniqueness of Christianity but are rather the basis on which its uniqueness is made obvious. The Gospels are truly revelation, the Myth to end all myths…because it reveals the falsity of myths and the truth that lies underneath all of them.

The Falsity of Myths

This book’s chapters are as follows:

PART ONE: The Biblical Knowledge of Violence

  1. Scandal must come
  2. The Cycle of Mimetic Violence
  3. Satan

PART TWO: The Enigma of Myth Resolved

4. The Horrible Miracle of Apollonius
5. Mythology
6. Sacrifice
7. The Founding Murder
8. Powers and Principalities

PART THREE: The Victory of the Cross

9. The uniqueness of the bible
10. The uniqueness of the Gospels
11. The Triumph of the Cross
12. Scapegoat
13. The Modern Concern for Victims
14. The Twofold Nietzchean Heritage

Check out I See Satan Fall Like Lightning on Amazon.