The Ghost in the Universe: God in Light of Modern Science [Hardcover]

Edis starts with philosophical proofs of God: 'A perfect being must exist, since if it did not, it would not be perfect. Having made God pop into existence by sheer force of logic, we now break out the champagne.' They carry little weight, even among believers, who are more likely to favor stories of a God who created and maintains the universe. Even the argument that there has to be a first cause God is a strong one that withers under quantum physics. We are used, in day to day life, to examining causes and effects, but we are guilty of looking only in our own scale of neighborhood. In the quantum world, things happen without being caused, and the Big Bang was a quantum event; the chain back to the first cause is broken. Of course Evolution is covered, in only a chapter, which shows that Edis's book is about much more. Edis shows how the physics of the universe has a random foundation, and randomness can be harnessed to ratchet up to increasing complexities. No designer, intelligent or otherwise, is needed. He critiques the scriptures, including the Quran, as human creations. He shows that psychological and neurological evidence indicates that our brains are engaged in examining an unmagical world, and spirits, souls, or direct contact with some ultimate reality are all equally unlikely. He sees no transcendent moral reality, no good and evil 'out there'; morals instead are a product of our genes and our social, collective effort to live together and incorporate conflicting interests.

Believers should be grateful that they have such a gentle critic. It could only be a fundamentalist of insecure faith who would accuse Edis of trashing religion. In fact, in intelligent opposition, Edis has shown a great deal of respect for the religious view. He also reveals himself to be a fan of the stories religions tell, because they can explain a good deal about ourselves. Most will think that this will be giving the stories too little credit, but as he repeatedly says in acknowledging how little certainty we have, it is good enough. His book is certainly good enough to benefit believers and nonbelievers alike.

Edis's book synthesizes a lot of material from history, theology, philosophy, and science. He deftly addresses not only Christianity, but also Judaism and Islam. The material is very in-depth, though, requiring some sort of elementary understand of the aforementioned subjects prior to reading the book.

In stark contrast to Christian apologists, Edis takes a rather passive approach to God and other theological matters, free from insults and judgements. He never identifies himself as an atheist - only as a skeptic. And it becomes clear to the reader at several points in the book that Edis has a profound and legitimate interest in the concept of God - far from the idea, perpetuated by many Christians, that non-Christians are just out to get Jesus. Edis has a quiet respect for some elements of religion, and a quiet disgust for some of the fundamentalist interpretations of reality.

Because Edis's book is so full of all kinds of information, there is little I want to say about the arguments presented against God. It's not like that, really. I mean, the book has a lot of value, in a lot of different areas. Edis merely shows the reader that the arguments FOR God are lacking quite a bit - especially evidence and coherence! He does not attack God or believers, though.

A very fulfilling read for anyone with a little background or a little interest in these subjects.