Drury regards the political problems of the modern world to be thoroughly Biblical. In the politics of the 21st century, we find two equally arrogant and self-righteous civilizations confronting one another. Each is convinced that it is on the side of God, truth and justice, while its enemy is allied with Satan, wickedness, and barbarism. The language of diplomacy and compromise has been replaced by the language of jihad or the struggle against the cosmic forces of evil. Life is radicalized; and all choices are polarized. Politics properly understood is eclipsed. Drury urges us to transcend the Biblical view of the world. Instead, she argues in favor of a genuinely liberal, secular, and pluralistic understanding of politics.

""Terror and Civilization is nothing less than a tour de force. Critically examining Christianity's oldest and deepest ideological roots, regardless of our own religious convictions or convictions about religion Drury compels us to reflect on our beliefs for the subtle ways they unwittingly implicate us in the violence we thought we had opposed. Required reading for religious and anti-religious thinkers, moralists and anti-moralists, for truth seekers and critics of truth, for idealists and realists of all persuasions. A fine scholarly work, yet written with a clarity that makes it accessible to audiences outside the academic community.""--Morton Schoolman, SUNY Albany