The Case for God
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Narrated by:
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Karen Armstrong
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By:
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Karen Armstrong
About this listen
Moving from the Paleolithic age to the present, Karen Armstrong details the great lengths to which humankind has gone in order to experience a sacred reality that it called by many names, such as God, Brahman, Nirvana, Allah, or Dao. Focusing especially on Christianity but including Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, and Chinese spiritualities, Armstrong examines the diminished impulse toward religion in our own time, when a significant number of people either want nothing to do with God or question the efficacy of faith. Why has God become unbelievable? Why is it that atheists and theists alike now think and speak about God in a way that veers so profoundly from the thinking of our ancestors?
Answering these questions with the same depth of knowledge and profound insight that have marked all her acclaimed books, Armstrong makes clear how the changing face of the world has necessarily changed the importance of religion at both the societal and the individual level. And she makes a powerful, convincing argument for drawing on the insights of the past in order to build a faith that speaks to the needs of our dangerously polarized age. Yet she cautions us that religion was never supposed to provide answers that lie within the competence of human reason; that, she says, is the role of logos. The task of religion is “to help us live creatively, peacefully, and even joyously with realities for which there are no easy explanations”. She emphasizes, too, that religion will not work automatically. It is, she says, a practical discipline: Its insights are derived not from abstract speculation but from “dedicated intellectual endeavor” and a “compassionate lifestyle that enables us to break out of the prism of selfhood”.
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The Cave and the Light reveals how two Greek philosophers became the twin fountainheads of Western culture, and how their rivalry gave Western civilization its unique dynamism down to the present.
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All of Western Philosphy Leads to Ayn Rand?!?
- By Leslie on 06-22-15
By: Arthur Herman
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Nature's God
- The Heretical Origins of the American Republic
- By: Matthew Stewart
- Narrated by: Michael Quinlan
- Length: 17 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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Where did the ideas come from that became the cornerstone of American democracy? Not only the erudite Thomas Jefferson, the wily and elusive Ben Franklin, and the underappreciated Thomas Paine, but also Ethan Allen, the hero of the Green Mountain Boys, and Thomas Young, the forgotten Founder who kicked off the Boston Tea Party. These radicals who founded America set their sights on a revolution of the mind. Derided as "infidels" and "atheists" in their own time, they wanted to liberate us not just from one king but from the tyranny of supernatural religion.
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Excellent exploration of this subject
- By Caroline on 01-13-15
By: Matthew Stewart
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What Are We Doing Here?
- By: Marilynne Robinson
- Narrated by: Carrington MacDuffie
- Length: 11 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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Marilynne Robinson has plumbed the human spirit in her renowned novels, including Lila and Gilead, winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award. In this new essay collection she trains her incisive mind on our modern political climate and the mysteries of faith. Whether she is investigating how the work of great thinkers about America, like Ralph Waldo Emerson and Alexis de Tocqueville, inform our political consciousness or discussing how beauty informs and disciplines daily life, Robinson's peerless prose and boundless humanity are on full display.
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Unpersuasive and a bit repetitive
- By Adam Shields on 03-07-18
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Jesus and the Lost Goddess
- The Secret Teachings of the Original Christians
- By: Timothy Freke, Peter Gandy
- Narrated by: Rory Barnett
- Length: 8 hrs and 21 mins
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Drawing on modern scholarship, the authors of the international best-seller The Jesus Mysteries decode the secret teachings of the original Christians for the first time in almost two millennia and theorize about who the original Christians really were and what they actually taught. In addition, the book explores the many myths of Jesus and the Goddess and unlocks the lost secret teachings of Christian mysticism, which promise happiness and immortality to those who attain the state of Gnosis, or enlightenment.
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Great information, however now outdated
- By Patriot RN - Doc on 03-12-19
By: Timothy Freke, and others
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Secular Buddhism
- Imagining the Dharma in an Uncertain World
- By: Stephen Batchelor
- Narrated by: Ralph Lister
- Length: 8 hrs and 18 mins
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As the practice of mindfulness permeates mainstream western culture, more and more people are engaging in a traditional form of Buddhist meditation. However, many of these people have little interest in the religious aspects of Buddhism, and the practice occurs within secular contexts such as hospitals, schools, and the workplace. Is it possible to recover from the Buddhist teachings a vision of human flourishing that is secular rather than religious without compromising the integrity of the tradition?
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Good, but repetition of old material
- By Ludwig on 02-25-18
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Battling the Gods
- Atheism in the Ancient World
- By: Tim Whitmarsh
- Narrated by: James Langton
- Length: 10 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
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Long before the European Enlightenment and the Darwinian revolution, which we often take to mark the birth of the modern revolt against religious explanations of the world, brave people doubted the power of the gods. Religion provoked skepticism in ancient Greece, and heretics argued that history must be understood as a result of human action rather than divine intervention. They devised theories of the cosmos based on matter and notions of matter based on atoms.
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We have a history as long and as rich as any relig
- By Glencannnon on 08-13-19
By: Tim Whitmarsh
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A Secular Age
- By: Charles Taylor
- Narrated by: Dennis Holland
- Length: 42 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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What does it mean to say that we live in a secular age? Almost everyone would agree that we - in the West, at least - largely do. And clearly the place of religion in our societies has changed profoundly in the last few centuries. In what will be a defining book for our time, Charles Taylor takes up the question of what these changes mean - of what, precisely, happens when a society in which it is virtually impossible not to believe in God becomes one in which faith, even for the staunchest believer, is only one human possibility among others.
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Needs Guest Narrators for French and German
- By Norman on 06-13-15
By: Charles Taylor
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Deep Thought
- 42 Fantastic Quotes That Define Philosphy
- By: Gary Cox
- Narrated by: Richard Mitchley
- Length: 7 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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As Douglas Adams points out, if there is no final answer to the question "what is the meaning of life?" 42 is as good or bad an answer as any other. Indeed, 42 quotes might be even better! Gary Cox guides us through 42 of the most misunderstood, misquoted, provocative, and significant quotes in the history of philosophy, providing witty and compelling commentary along the way.
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Best philosophy intro ever
- By Fabian on 04-14-18
By: Gary Cox
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Speaking of Faith
- By: Krista Tippett
- Narrated by: Krista Tippett
- Length: 6 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
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In this illuminating story of her life and conversations, the host of public radio's Speaking of Faith describes her journey of spiritual exploration - a journey shared by countless others.
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Clarity of Faith
- By Charles on 06-01-07
By: Krista Tippett
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In the late 20th century, fundamentalism has emerged as one of the most powerful forces at work in the world, contesting the dominance of modern secular values and threatening peace and harmony around the globe. Yet it remains incomprehensible to a large number of people. In The Battle for God, Karen Armstrong brilliantly and sympathetically shows us how and why fundamentalist groups came into existence and what they yearn to accomplish.
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The most important book you haven’t read yet
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Rethinking Violence and Religion
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From the best-selling author of Islam: A Short History comes an important addition to the Eminent Lives book series. A former Roman Catholic nun and winner of a Muslim Public Affairs Council Media Award, Karen Armstrong shows how Muhammad's life can teach us a great deal about our world. More is known about Muhammad than any other major religion founder, yet he remains mysterious.
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down to the man
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The Qur'an
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Few books in history have been as poorly understood as the Qur'an. In this audiobook, the distinguished historian of religion Bruce Lawrence shows precisely how the Qur'an is Islam. He describes the origins of the faith and assesses its influence on today's societies and politics. Above all, he emphasizes that the Qur'an is a sacred book of signs that has no single message. It is a book that demands interpretation and one that can be properly understood only through its history.
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Not quite enough
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In this timely and important audiobook, one of the most trusted and admired writers on the world of faith examines the meaning of Scripture. The sacred texts have been co-opted by fundamentalists, who insist that they must be taken literally, and by others who interpret Scripture to bolster their own prejudices. These texts are seen to prescribe ethical norms and codes of behavior that are divinely ordained: They are believed to contain eternal truths. But as Karen Armstrong shows, such a narrow, peculiar reading of Scripture is a relatively recent, modern phenomenon.
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Good religious history; complete recording
- By Claudia on 02-03-20
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The Battle for God
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The most important book you haven’t read yet
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Fills in the blanks
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Fields of Blood
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From the best-selling author of Islam: A Short History comes an important addition to the Eminent Lives book series. A former Roman Catholic nun and winner of a Muslim Public Affairs Council Media Award, Karen Armstrong shows how Muhammad's life can teach us a great deal about our world. More is known about Muhammad than any other major religion founder, yet he remains mysterious.
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down to the man
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The Qur'an
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Few books in history have been as poorly understood as the Qur'an. In this audiobook, the distinguished historian of religion Bruce Lawrence shows precisely how the Qur'an is Islam. He describes the origins of the faith and assesses its influence on today's societies and politics. Above all, he emphasizes that the Qur'an is a sacred book of signs that has no single message. It is a book that demands interpretation and one that can be properly understood only through its history.
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Not quite enough
- By Leigh A on 06-27-07
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The Lost Art of Scripture
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In this timely and important audiobook, one of the most trusted and admired writers on the world of faith examines the meaning of Scripture. The sacred texts have been co-opted by fundamentalists, who insist that they must be taken literally, and by others who interpret Scripture to bolster their own prejudices. These texts are seen to prescribe ethical norms and codes of behavior that are divinely ordained: They are believed to contain eternal truths. But as Karen Armstrong shows, such a narrow, peculiar reading of Scripture is a relatively recent, modern phenomenon.
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Good religious history; complete recording
- By Claudia on 02-03-20
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Buddha
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This rich, timely, and highly original portrait of the Buddha explores both the archetypal religious icon and Buddha the man. In lucid and compelling prose, Armstrong brings to life the Buddha's quest, from his renunciation of his privileged life to the discovery of a truth that he believed would utterly transform human beings and enable them to live at peace in the midst of life's suffering.
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Eminently Listenable
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Since the beginning of time, humankind has looked upon nature and seen the divine. In the writings of the great thinkers across religions, the natural world inspires everything from fear, to awe, to tranquil contemplation; God, or however one defined the sublime, was present in everything. Yet today, even as we admire a tree or take in a striking landscape, we rarely see nature as sacred.
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More of a political piece than a spiritual one
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His best work yet
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Karen Armstrong believes that while compassion is intrinsic in all human beings, each of us needs to work diligently to cultivate and expand our capacity for compassion. Here, in this straightforward, thoughtful, and thought-provoking book, she sets out a program that can lead us toward a more compassionate life.
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An Accessible, Digestible Manifesto About Kindness
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David Lynch
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At once a pop culture icon, cult figure, and film industry outsider, master filmmaker David Lynch and his work defy easy definition. Dredged from his subconscious mind, Lynch's work is primed to act on our own subconscious, combining heightened, contradictory emotions into something familiar but inscrutable. No less than his art, Lynch's life also evades simple categorization, encompassing pursuits as a musician, painter, photographer, carpenter, entrepreneur, and vocal proponent of Transcendental Meditation.
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Essential listening for Lunch fans
- By Michael P. Mesaros on 08-14-18
By: Dennis Lim
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Islam
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Best-selling author and renowned religious scholar Karen Armstrong presents a concise and articulate history of Islam, the world's fastest-growing faith. Beginning with the Prophet Muhammad's flight from Medina and concluding with an examination of modern Islamic practices and concerns, Armstrong delivers an unbiased overview. She contends that no religion is more feared and misunderstood by the Western world as Islam, and firmly challenges the notion that these two civilizations are on a collision course.
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Read the Book, pass on the audible!
- By J********** on 08-21-06
By: Karen Armstrong
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No god but God
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Though it is the fastest growing religion in the world, Islam remains shrouded by ignorance and fear. What is the essence of this ancient faith? Is it a religion of peace or war? How does Allah differ from the God of Jews and Christians? Can an Islamic state be founded on democratic values such as pluralism and human rights? A writer and scholar of comparative religions, Reza Aslan has earned international acclaim for the passion and clarity he has brought to these questions.
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Informative and Interesting!
- By Kate on 03-14-12
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You Are Not a Gadget
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Jaron Lanier, a Silicon Valley visionary since the 1980s, was among the first to predict the revolutionary changes the World Wide Web would bring to commerce and culture. Now, in his first book, written more than two decades after the web was created, Lanier offers this provocative and cautionary look at the way it is transforming our lives for better and for worse.
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Naive, luddistic, and ultimately pointless.
- By Naomi on 08-22-10
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All Things Shining
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The religious turn to their faith to find meaning. But what about the many people who lead secular lives and are also hungry for meaning? What guides, what approaches are available to them? Distinguished philosophers Hubert Dreyfus and Sean Dorrance Kelly explain that a secular life charged with meaning is indeed within reach.
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Excellent Book that refreshes the classics
- By Tod on 06-14-11
By: Hubert Dreyfus, and others
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Jerusalem
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Venerated for millennia by three faiths, torn by irreconcilable conflict, conquered, rebuilt, and mourned for again and again, Jerusalem is a sacred city whose very sacredness has engendered terrible tragedy. In this fascinating volume, Karen Armstrong, author of the highly praised A History of God, traces the history of how Jews, Christians, and Muslims have all laid claim to Jerusalem as their holy place, and how three radically different concepts of holiness have shaped and scarred the city for thousands of years.
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A truly great history book
- By T on 05-08-22
By: Karen Armstrong
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A Garland of Views
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- By: Padmasambhava, Jamgon Mipham, Padmakara Translation Group
- Narrated by: Simon Callow
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- Unabridged
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A Garland of Views presents both a concise commentary by the eighth-century Indian Buddhist master Padmasambhava on a chapter from the Guhyagarbha Tantra on the different Buddhist and non-Buddhist philosophical views, including the Great Perfection (Dzogchen), and an explicative commentary on Padmasambhava’s text by the 19th century scholar Jamgön Mipham (1846-1912).
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incredible pith instructions.
- By Jennifer A Evans on 02-12-22
By: Padmasambhava, and others
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The Great Transformation
- The Beginning of Our Religious Traditions
- By: Karen Armstrong
- Narrated by: Karen Armstrong
- Length: 12 hrs and 4 mins
- Abridged
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In one astonishing, short period–the ninth century BCE–the peoples of four distinct regions of the civilized world created the religious and philosophical traditions that have continued to nourish humanity into the present day: Confucianism and Daoism in China; Hinduism and Buddhism in India; monotheism in Israel; and philosophical rationalism in Greece. Historians call this the Axial Age because of its central importance to humanity’s spiritual development.
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WTF
- By A.B. Normal on 06-12-11
By: Karen Armstrong
What listeners say about The Case for God
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Nathaniel Mc Mahon
- 02-27-17
Not what I expected, but so much better!
What did you love best about The Case for God?
[TLDR: This is a good book on religion and religious history. It's not threatening to anyone (except for maybe fundamentalists) and I think everyone could find something interesting within it.]
I'm not much of a book reviewer, (I'm not much of a book READER to be honest) but every now and then I come across a book that so piques my interest that I have to share it with others. In this case, it's Karen Armstrong's A Case For God. I pick up a religious book every now and then just to get the perspectives of educated persons on the subject, and what I was expecting was an opinionated attempt to prove or disprove God's existence like I've come across before.
This book, however, went in an entirely different direction. The author instead uses a massive amount of historical data to illustrate the progression and evolution of religion, the historical interactions between religious and non-religious organizations and philosophies, and to illustrate how the modern perspective of God may be fundamentally flawed.
I had honestly always had trouble floundering in the sea between my own perspectives on my personal views on faith and my frustration with modern American Christian organizations, but this book definitely done well to clear the water for me.
I would recommend this book to anyone who has even the remotest interest in the subject of God or religion in general. It approaches said subject from a very Agnostic angle that allows anyone to pick it up and find something interesting within its pages.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Amy Obermayer
- 01-05-13
Slow going
Any additional comments?
I enjoy Karen Armstrong's work and have read several of her books in print form. This however has been a tough slog. I think it's the narration. The author reads the book, and I can't pinpoint what it is that I don't enjoy but I find myself reaching for the pause button soon after I start to listen.
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1 person found this helpful
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- D Mc Sandman
- 03-25-23
A humbling synopsis and history of the interpretation of GOD.
Helps one realize the importance of understanding the meaning of other people’s definitions and understandings if different terms.
Brings ways of understanding and finding peace with other views without judgement.
Focuses on practice of good living vs beliefs in absolutes and doctrines. Myths present possible learning opportunities vs absolute truths.
Avoids debate on a definition of the undefinable. Avoids the need to know the unknowable.
Brings greater insight and tolerance for “other” faiths. Explains why the only faiths that are “real” are those that are practiced.
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- Marcus
- 03-16-19
Which God?
If you believe in the God of creation, the God that intervenes in history, the one and only God, be it Judaic, be it Muslin, be it Christian, Karen Armstrong’s case is weak. If your God lives with you, encompasses all your weaknesses, accepts your moral idiosyncrasies and relates to your history and desires, Karen Armstrong’s case is strong. The book examines the diverse ideas of God through history and gives special attention to the modern and postmodern concepts of a religious life and it opposite, the atheist self. Science and religion are confronted and reconciled, at least the author tries it. Meanwhile, she advances her ideas of a personal God, without dogmas, a God that gives meaning to our life. Her arguments seems compelling. Her book gives the reader a good and well researched overview of the development of the idea of God in the monotheistic religions.
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8 people found this helpful
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- Boone
- 01-16-22
excellent
taking Pride as the first and greatest sin, the common throughline of reverence for apophatic theology (specifically the inevitability of silence in the face of God) suggests a strong case for the practical and moral superiority of Humility in all things
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- Amazon Customer
- 01-27-23
A change of perspective
A lot of these reviews have stated what Armstrong said in the epilogue, this book is long and complicated because it’s supposed to be. This is a book that will not stop until we understand how shallow and normal it is that we approach big questions. I love how she approaches theology and philosophy to help focus not on a view that has to conform, but with a hope to our better selves to see that we just might not know… and that’s ok… but that’s NOT excuse to stop… It’s a hope for us continue asking big questions and trying to find the answers. Please read this book, and then the ENTIRE bibliography, because this is worth it.
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- Shane
- 06-12-22
A Masterpiece
This book was an incredible journey throughout the history of humanity. I felt myself moved and carried through such intricate story-telling. The author's (mostly) neutral point of view allows us to truly feel the shape-shifting nature of ideas through time and understanding the development of belief. I learned so much listening to this book and I hope to find, or write a timeline accordingly so I can better internalize and develop my understanding. Thank you for writing such a masterpiece, I can only imagine the countless devoted hours of passionate research that went in the writing of this great work. 👏🏼
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- John A Ciampa
- 01-04-24
Enormous scope and brilliant insight
Articulate and warm at the same time
This is one of the great minds of our generation
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- Tony
- 01-10-10
the case for god
Just the best. so much information, you'll have to listern many times if you want to talk about this subject.
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6 people found this helpful
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
- Jean
- 07-16-16
Thought-provoking
Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?
I love all of Karen Armstrong's books. Well written, thoughtful, and rational. She is a lovely narrator, too. I leave each book wishing everyone in the world had just read it, too.
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