The Problem With "God": Classical Theism Under The Spotlight - Great Review
My recent ebook (reasonably priced, don't you know) The Problem With "God": Classical Theism Under The Spotlight has just been reviewed by a Top 500 Reviewer, and I am more than happy with the review, which adds to the two 5* reviews it already has:
4.0 out of 5 stars Provocative Collection of ArticlesBy Book Shark TOP 500 REVIEWER on February 8, 2016Format: Kindle Edition Verified Purchase
The Problem with “God”: Classical Theism under the Spotlight by Jonathan M.S. Pearce“The Problem with “God” is a provocative collection of blogged articles. Professor of Philosophy, Jonathan M.S. Pearce provides the readers with a series of articles that covers a wide-philosophical spectrum of theological topics regarding the Christian God. This entertaining 178-page eBook includes thirty-seven topics and a forward by James A. Lindsay
Positives: 1. Accessible and entertaining. Pearce is engaging.
2. The always stimulating topic of religion in the capable hands of Professor Pearce.
3. The tone is provocative and prodding but never disrespectful. It has an informal feel at times like armchair philosophy with a touch of humor.
4. Interesting selection of topics covered. Links to articles and supplementary material provided which is one of the big advantages of an eBook.
5. The foundation of philosophy exuded throughout this eBook, asking the right questions. “If there was nothing but God, then what good reason could God have for creating us, that thing there, cancer, some fluff, or, well, anything?”
6. A look at free will. “What’s more, according to Paul (who said in Romans 6:7 “he who has died is freed from sin”) people who die and go to heaven are freed from sin, but potentially from the will, too. Does this mean that free will is not available to those in heaven?”
7. Does a good job of defining concepts. “Process Theology is a position that involves an understanding that God is fluent and evolving, not classically immutable and unchanging.”
8. One of the strongest features of this book is Pearce’s insistence on addressing the strongest arguments against his position. The frequent reference to William Lane Craig lends to better and more challenging responses since he is considered one of the best defenders of the Christian faith. “Craig’s approach is to establish our morality in a reflection of God’s commands (such as “Love thy neighbor”), but to deny God the same moral obligation: Since God doesn’t issue commands to Himself, He has no moral duties to fulfil.”
9. Persuasive argument, God is a consequentialist. “From every design facet to every death in the bible, to every unit of pain and suffering experienced in the world, God must be valuing his own actions and omissions on the basis of their consequences. I can see no way around this conundrum.”
10. One of the most provocative articles, “God Loves Abortion!” “It is estimated that three out of four eggs that are fertilized do not fuse their DNA correctly, and therefore either do not attempt to implant or fail at implantation.”
11. The problem of evil takes center stage. “The fundamental dilemma of theodicy is the problem of evil, its continuing existence and God’s apparent inability or unwillingness to eradicate it.”
12. Thought-provoking statements. “The fact that Judaism was based on a monotheistic idea of God whereas Christianity was based on a Trinitarian idea of God (who had been a Trinity of persons from all eternity) reveals that both religions were man made and not divinely revealed.”
13. Provides a better version of the Problem of Evil.
14. Explains the problems with the Divine Command Theory (DCT). “The first problem with any DCT is that we have no evidence that there even is the requisite God, much less which God’s commands are the commands of that God.”
15. The issue of conditional love. Love me or else. “Why does God continually require acceptance (belief) from humans in order for them to receive his love?”
16. One of Pearce’s favorite arguments. “Why don’t humans and all animals photosynthesize?”
17. Valerie Tarico contributes to this anthology, “Rather than evoking the humility, wonder and delight of the unknown, they offer the comfort of false knowledge.”
18. A fascinating look at Yahweh and why such concept is disconnected from current conceptions of God.
19. A look at heaven and hell. “If there is free will in heaven, and no suffering in heaven, why cannot this be made so on earth?”
20. And much more…
Negatives:
1. The anthology is a little uneven and at times repetitious.
2. I was disappointed that the topic of slavery never took center stage.
3. The problem with the soul was not addressed.
4. There are many good book references, a consolidated bibliography would have added value.
In summary, as expected Pearce doesn’t fail to be provocative and entertaining. This anthology actually gets better as you read on and everyone will have their favorite topics and aha moments. The only minor issue is a bit of repetition and the problem of slavery not getting its due. That aside, I recommend it.
Further recommendations: “Beyond an Absence of Faith” and “The Little Book of Unholy questions” by the same author, “Everybody is Wrong About God” by James A. Lindsay, “Fighting God” by David Silverman, “Why I Became an Atheist: A Former Preacher Rejects Christianity", "The End of Christianity”, and “The Christian Delusion” by John W. Loftus, “Natural Atheism” by Dr. David Eller, "Man Made God: A Collection of Essays" by Barbara G. Walker, ”Faith vs. Fact” by Jerry A. Coyne, “Why I’m Not a Christian” by Richard Carrier, “Atheism for Dummies” by Dale McGowan, “The Atheist Universe” by David Mills, “Nailed” by David Fitzgerald, “The Portable Atheist” and “God is Not Great” by Christopher Hitchens, “The God Argument” by A.C. Grayling, “50 popular beliefs that people think are true” by Guy P. Harrison, “Godless” by Dan Barker, “Moral Combat” by Sikivu Hutchinson, and “Society Without God” by Phil Zuckerman.
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Back to me. Although I am not a Professor of Philosophy, I appreciate being named as such... I liked this review as there are lots of nuggets about the book in there. I don't think slavery fits as a topic into the philosophical ideal of an OmniGod - that gets into the finer particulars of the revelation entailed in the Bible. But there you go. Anyway: Whoop!
Anyhow, please grab yourself a copy!