God: A Brief History

by John Bowker

Not just in words, but in art, dance, music and silence -- this book is the perfect overview for viewing divinity from every perspective. The history of God cannot possibly be told. How can you write the history of One who is outside time and space, and who has no beginning and no end? Nevertheless, the desire to understand and experience the divine is a fundamental human need. For billions of people, through many millennia, the quest to answer the basic questions of existence -- Why are we born? What will happen to us when we die? and how should we live out lives? -- has become a search for God. A Brief History of God explores the myriad ways in which humans have sought connection to the divine from the dawn of history to the present -- not just through religion and philosophy, but in art and literature, in music and dance, and in science.

Genres: Religion, History, Philosophy, Nonfiction, Reference, Spirituality, Theology

Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

Reviews

[Diāna]

Basic intro in search for God. Must admit that introduction probably was the best part of the book.

[Zhelana]

The first chapter of this book was called "choosing atheism" and it really made the rest of the book read like atheist propaganda rather than a fair "history of God" - Then there wasn't much history to be had. There was some basic description of how different religions work. I really never made it past the India chapter, though. And then there were things that just didn't ring true like I'm pretty sure Buddhism doesn't have 33 ways to Nirvana, and if they did it wouldn't have been stolen from the 33 gods and goddesses of Hinduism. I'm not even sure why we started with India when there are older religious artifacts in other places that got completely skipped over. And there was this one random chapter about Odin right at the start of the book - that story dates to 1000 AD so why it would come second in a history of God, I'm not certain. It was never explained, nor even given any significance. It's almost like the guy bit off more than he could chew and just started talking at random instead of offering a systematic history of anything.

[Rocío Avila]

Muy interesante, más como un libro de consulta. Invita a seguir investigando sobre el tema.

[Vonda]

I am very glad I took the time to read this book. Thought-provoking.

[Roberta]

Is it possible to give a book a negative five starts?

To date, this is the ONLY book that I have ever picked up and been unable to finish.
It reads like stereo instructions. By the time I'd reached four pages of banality and drivel, I was scanning the room for a fork to cleanse my eyes of what I'd put them through.

Being a good trooper I have tried many times to complete it, but the author writes like Ben Stein talks ( no offense meant to such a brilliant mind, but you get what I'm saying ). On my third effort, honest to gosh, I was hearing "bueller... bueller...bueller" over and over in my head.

Maybe someone else enjoyed it, but I sure as heck haven't.

[J. Ewbank]

This is a good book about the history of man's knowledge and search for God. It is not limited to Christianity but discusses the knowledge of God that all religions have.

This is an excellent book for the layperson and a good reference book for the scholar for some of the information it contains.

J. Robert Ewbank author "John Wesley, Natural Man, and the 'Isms'"

[Velvet]

Good basic overview of man's search for God through the ages. Concise information on basic philosophical and theological questions within the "Big Three" religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam), as well as large chapters on Hinduism and Buddhism. Nice if you're looking for a basic primer on world religions.

[ERNEST MORE]

(A gift from Mel)

[Ricardo Robles]

This book is still one of my favorites, since it covers God/god/Gods/gods in a lot of religions...

This is a Must... I'm upping my rating...

[Ron Fitzwater]

Another in the large number if books of God and Spirituality I have read in my search for answers. Nope, haven't found any yet.

[William Ramsey]

Informative and digestible but with a pantheistic sway.