A Conversation with an Atheist: An Ancient, Reasoned and Radical Approach to Knowing God

by Daniel McKenzie

In 'A Conversation with an Atheist,' Daniel McKenzie takes on the thorny topic of God. Countering religion's simple faith-based answers to life's biggest questions, McKenzie uses everyday logic and the teachings of non-dual wisdom to make a clear case for God-knowledge over God-belief.

The book begins with a contentious dialog between an atheist and a sage who shares a vision of God that isn't in conflict with reality. Taking inspiration from the Upanishads and the 'Bhagavad Gita' ("The Song of God"), the author shows that in order to understand God we must first see it as two different operating principles before seeing it as a unified whole - what he calls God 1 and God 2. The result is a cognitive shift that changes not only our view of God, but how we perceive ourselves, and our connection to each other and the cosmos.

Genres: Religion, Nonfiction

192 pages, Paperback

Published June 1, 2023

About the author

Daniel McKenzie writes in the context of traditional Advaita Vedanta—an ancient and venerable wisdom tradition that is a proven means for understanding the nature of experience. Dan's writing includes essays, short stories and books on various topics related to Vedanta and how it relates to modern life. Dan lives in California with his family.

Reviews

[Nina Wheeler · Rating 2 out of 5]

Suggests/popularizes a much more logical and spiritual approach to the idea of god, which I appreciate, but I can't get past the introduction. Let me elaborate.

The actual conversation between the atheist and the sage only makes up a small portion of the book, but it feels so poorly thought out that it made me lose momentum for the rest. Throughout the introduction, they go back and forth. The sage is depicted as a calm, forgiving presence, and the atheist is the sage's annoyingly unintelligent, impatient counterpart. This already raises suspicion that McKenzie doesn't actually want to make a strong case for "God-knowledge", he just wants to make readers subconsciously trust the sage's wisdom because of how his personality clashes with that of the atheist. Probably the most glaring example of this was at the end of the conversation, when the sage does a sort of mic-drop, saying: "You cannot deny that what you're witnessing is being simultaneously created, maintained, and recycled by a power greater than you. This you cannot deny, my friend. Call it nature if you will, I'll stick with God." Okay, but then what makes this alternate concept of God... an alternate concept?!? It's true that it is completely reasonable, unlike other understandings of God (cough cough, christianity) but how is "God-knowledge" different from trust in nature? The sage literally identifies them as synonyms, and says he'll "stick with God" without providing an actual reason why "God-knowledge" is a superior philosophy.

I find a lot of wisdom in some parts of the book, like the idea McKenzie repeats to let go of the illusion that things could've gone any other way. I think that concept truly distinguishes "God-knowledge" from "God-belief", because "God-belief" involves prayer and criteria, actions that must be completed to get God to give you what you want. In "God-knowledge", there is no pleading with God. Again, while this is a smarter idea, it's not new at all. It's called nature: there is no pleading with nature. Letting go of the illusion that things could've gone any other way is giving into nature.

I'm not trying to shut down anything spiritual just because it's not fully based in fact, I'm just trying to point out that McKenzie's interpretation of "God-knowledge" is a repackaging of... nature. If the book were to be written without the religious context, I think McKenzie has some wonderful ideas! But right now, it doesn't work as an argument against atheism or traditional religion.

[Ron Badgerow III · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first real introduction to Hinduism.
The actual conversation from the title only makes up the introduction of the book, setting the stage for McKenzie's delve into the Vedic teachings of Hinduism via exploration of the Upanishads and the Bhagavad Gita. Very interesting, including some intersectionality with Christian mythos and teachings. A new way (at least to me) of viewing the concept of "God" and our relationship to Him/It and all of creation.

[Cat. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this is a good approach to defining what atheism and theism is but it's not for me as I already agree with him and found a hole in every single argument in the first 10 pages, so I'm tossing it back for others.

[J. · Rating 3 out of 5]

These are interesting ideas to consider.