The Case for God: What Religion Really Means
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'She writes well, is fair and judicious, and is extremely well read' --Evangelicals Now, 15 February 2010
Book Description
An essential book for our times: Karen Armstrong answers bestselling atheists Richard Dawkins and Christopher Hitchens and argues that faith still has a fundamental role in the modern world.
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158 of 163 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
A brilliantly refreshing, readable and clear run-through of the history of religion and mysticism, mostly Christianity, and looking more at the writings of scholars rather than the experience of the laity. Armstrong doesn't really make a case for God (as in the existence of God) but rather a case for the argument that we cannot know anything about God. She clearly explains why any attempt to understand God intellectually, or to define "him", is pointless and tends to lead to idolatry. Her argument is that seeking to define the nature of God is largely a product of the scientific age, but her evidence for a more uncertain approach to God being typical previously comes from the writings of certain Greek and early Christian mystics, which she paints as typical of their times, rather than unusual - something I'm not in a position to verify.
Importantly, she argues that religion is a matter of practice not "belief" (a word that now means an acceptance of something as fact, but which in the past had the connotation more of commitment, like love), and that where it is entered into, it is best done with the understanding that it is not based on any knowledge of God's nature.
This book could be seen as an argument for mysticism, but there is no attempt at conversion here. The book doesn't itself suggest why someone not already on a religious path should follow one. Religious practice might be rewarding, but no one could be expected to know that until they were well on it, after much hard work they could otherwise have avoided. My reading of the book is that those disposed to religious practice (by circumstances, upbringing or genetics) should follow the one that best suits them, but on the understanding that the choice of practice itself is of little consequence, as long as it is entered into without any belief in its factual superiority. Meanwhile, those not so disposed to do so, should not be expected to. In the end, it is an erudite plea for a greater acceptance of the state of Unknowing. Whether such a plea will find many listeners in an age where factual knowledge and certainty are held in such high regard remains to be seen.
Importantly, she argues that religion is a matter of practice not "belief" (a word that now means an acceptance of something as fact, but which in the past had the connotation more of commitment, like love), and that where it is entered into, it is best done with the understanding that it is not based on any knowledge of God's nature.
This book could be seen as an argument for mysticism, but there is no attempt at conversion here. The book doesn't itself suggest why someone not already on a religious path should follow one. Religious practice might be rewarding, but no one could be expected to know that until they were well on it, after much hard work they could otherwise have avoided. My reading of the book is that those disposed to religious practice (by circumstances, upbringing or genetics) should follow the one that best suits them, but on the understanding that the choice of practice itself is of little consequence, as long as it is entered into without any belief in its factual superiority. Meanwhile, those not so disposed to do so, should not be expected to. In the end, it is an erudite plea for a greater acceptance of the state of Unknowing. Whether such a plea will find many listeners in an age where factual knowledge and certainty are held in such high regard remains to be seen.
51 of 54 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
In this book Karen Armstrong takes a calm and measured look at religion from the Palaeolithic era to the God debate of the 21st century, continuing some of the themes in her previous work on The Great Transformation (2006) and The Bible, The Biography (2007).
Her key argument is that humankind has always used mythos (religion) and logos (the logical exploration of the world) as allies in dealing with the challenges of life. Since 1500 logos has progressively taken over, delivered modernity, and demanded that religion should be subject to the same "scientific" laws as the rest of human experience.
Obviously the atheist attack by Dawkins, Hitchens and others on "the god delusion" is the latest instalment of a long debate. Armstrong contends that they set up Christian fundamentalism as an easy target, and they dismiss it without addressing mainstream theology, which has long come to terms with scientific thought and evolutionary theory.
She reminds us that God has always been a contested idea, and atheism is as old as religion. Her own preference is for a mystical, non-institutional form of religion - the Sufis in Islam, yogic Hinduism and Denys The Areopagite in medieval Christianity. They represent the "apophatic" (silent. mystical) approach to the supreme being/God/the infinite. Their theology is not easy - religion is hard work.
There is no "killer app" which tells us what religion means, just as there is no answer to the "does God exist?" question. But Armstrong steers us with assurance through the ways that humankind have tried to find meaning and purpose in their lives. She is a truly scholarly, humane and intelligent guide through the religious arguments of three millennia.
Her key argument is that humankind has always used mythos (religion) and logos (the logical exploration of the world) as allies in dealing with the challenges of life. Since 1500 logos has progressively taken over, delivered modernity, and demanded that religion should be subject to the same "scientific" laws as the rest of human experience.
Obviously the atheist attack by Dawkins, Hitchens and others on "the god delusion" is the latest instalment of a long debate. Armstrong contends that they set up Christian fundamentalism as an easy target, and they dismiss it without addressing mainstream theology, which has long come to terms with scientific thought and evolutionary theory.
She reminds us that God has always been a contested idea, and atheism is as old as religion. Her own preference is for a mystical, non-institutional form of religion - the Sufis in Islam, yogic Hinduism and Denys The Areopagite in medieval Christianity. They represent the "apophatic" (silent. mystical) approach to the supreme being/God/the infinite. Their theology is not easy - religion is hard work.
There is no "killer app" which tells us what religion means, just as there is no answer to the "does God exist?" question. But Armstrong steers us with assurance through the ways that humankind have tried to find meaning and purpose in their lives. She is a truly scholarly, humane and intelligent guide through the religious arguments of three millennia.
32 of 34 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
When I heard that Karen Armstrong was writing a book called `the Case for God' I thought it might well prove to be one of the most important books on religion published for many years. Unfortunately, having now read it, I doubt that it will prove as ground-breaking as I had hoped. The reason for this, paradoxically, comes back to a point Karen well recognises - that the concept of God is so abstruse that people throughout history have found it incomprehensible and too remote from their everyday lives to have any real meaning. Instead they have latched on to more simplistic ideas of God that might meet some immediate psychological needs but which are so shot full of contradictions as to be almost laughable to serious rational thinkers. Karen charts in lucid detail how this transformation in thinking has taken place and how theologians have struggled to put the genie back in the bottle, but it is doubtful that unsophisticated religious people will read her book, let alone understand it and assent to it. Her scholarship and erudition, impressive though they are, might in this case just be barriers to comprehension for many people. This would be a pity, as her overall message is actually quite simple - that the way for people to find meaning, hope and happiness in their lives is through their deeds and actions, to `live generously, large-heartedly and justly and to inhabit every single part of their humanity'. It would be a shame if this essentially humanist message got lost in the noise.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
The God Disillusionment
I feel, well, disillusioned having just finished this book. I bought it looking for an intelligent counter-argument to the current batch of literature advocating Atheism. Read more
Published 11 days ago by D. J. Wiltshire
Compassionate and intelligent
Am greatly enjoying this book. Slow going for me , but so thought-provoking, compassionate and impeccably researched. This is a work to return to time end again
Published 1 month ago by Honeybee
well-referenced
Some might find this heavy going, but I found it a well-referenced history of religious thought, and has helped me get my head round my own - for want of a better word -... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Sandra DELEMARE
Not an easy read but...
Having not read anything of Karen Armstrong before, and having heard someone speak abpout her work and thought I was keen to read this book for myself. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Wes Blakey
Karen Armstrong The Case for God
I got this book for a recent 2-day workshop. I found the coverage very wide and the first chapters fascinating, especially putting early history and religion into context. Read more
Published 6 months ago by D. Sutherland
Is it really?
As a practising Christian I bought this book in the hope that it would help me with the most important quandary I face - i.e. Read more
Published 11 months ago by T. V. Davies
Comprehensive and well paced - Karen at her erudite best
The Case for God is slightly misleading. What we have from Karen is her unique blend of scholarship and tightly woven information. Read more
Published 12 months ago by Rev. J. G. Hetherington
Deceptive book title
It really is a shame that Ms. Armstrong, who is clearly an excellent writer and thinker, should have allowed the title of this book to imply that it was a possible refutation of... Read more
Published 14 months ago by StackSix
Misleading title
This book has to be the worst book I have ever read. I have been now trying to finish it for months but can only manage a few pages at a time. Read more
Published 17 months ago by Benbik
An academic and difficult to read book
Having read and enjoyed a number of Karen Armstrong's books, from her autobiographies through to books about Buddha and religion in general, I was surprised at how difficult it was... Read more
Published 18 months ago by alextorres
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