Barth and Zizek: Can they get along?

This fall I'm doing a directed study on the theological perspectives of Barth and Moltmann as a part of my PhD program.  One part of this will be comparison - seeing how they are similar and different - while the other part will be constructive.  It's the constructive part I'm excited about.  This past summer (sad to speak of summer in the past tense already...) I did a directed study on Zizek, Caputo, Vattimo, and Badiou in which I wrote a final paper putting them into conversation with Moltmann.  I found that The Crucified God shares much in common with Zizek's part of The Monstrosity of Christ.  Both rely on Hegel.  Both see the crucifixion as the death of God and the obliteration of the metaphysical articulations of God.  While there are certainly differences (important ones) - there are fascinating connections that remain to be explored.

Barth, on the other hand... I'm not sure.  Last night I started the reading for this study - focusing on book IV of the Church Dogmatics.  In a certain way I'm reading Barth through the lens of Zizek - meaning I'm looking for connections or disagreement.  I underlined a few statements last night and put Zizek's name in the margin - there are points of contact.  Barth talks about the Word as "event" - that God is known in his action, that we ultimately cannot fully apprehend or conceptualize God.  Barth talks of kenosis - he speaks of the death of God - he talks of how God, in Jesus Christ, took upon himself human weakness and vulnerability.  He even talks of how our understanding of God must be guided and reworked in the context of the life and work of Jesus Christ.  Yet... Barth doesn't want to let go of some of the metaphysical buzz words.  For someone who doesn't want to build philosophical towers to God... he doesn't seem to be able to let go of the "omnis."  In some ways it seems then that God's "being" remains untouched by the human condition.  Does this really lead to an understanding of "God with us" and "We with God" that is, in the end, very helpful?  If God's divinity - if God's person - enters the experience of humanity without really being affected by it - where does that leave us?

Maybe this will be one of the points of departure for Moltmann.  This is probably where someone like Zizek would dismiss Barth's thought... it wants to cling to the old categories of transcendence.  We'll see... should be a fun ride.