The Case for God by Karen Armstrong

The Case for God

by Karen Armstrong

There is widespread confusion about the nature of religious truth. For the first time in history, a significantly large number of people want nothing to do with God. Militant atheists preach a gospel of godlessness with the zeal of missionaries and find an eager audience.

Tracing the history of faith from the Palaeolithic Age to the present, Karen Armstrong shows that meaning of words such as 'belief', 'faith', and 'mystery' has been entirely altered, so that atheists and theists alike now think and speak about God - and, indeed, reason itself - in a way that our ancestors would have found astonishing.

Does God have a future? Karen Armstrong examines how we can build a faith that speaks to the needs of our troubled and dangerously polarised world.

Reviewed by wyvernfriend on

4 of 5 stars

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This one took me a while to read while I digested some of it, this was not an easy read, some of it felt like it was skirting the issue a little. It argues against absolutism and for religion that is built of acceptance and love of other and self.

I had minor issues with some parts of it, the thought that logically religion moves from mono to poly-theism doesn't sit well with me and ignores some religions that are still happily co-existing with monotheistic thought.

Still, for someone interested in religion and thoughts on the change of the concept of god within western tradition it's an interesting read, but impossible to try all in one go.

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  • Started reading
  • 18 July, 2012: Finished reading
  • 18 July, 2012: Reviewed