God According to God: A Scientist Discovers We've Been Wrong about God All Along

by Gerald Schroeder

Book Overview

"This is as important a book on this subject as I recall ever having read."
-- Huston Smith

"Brilliant.... Schroeder's book demands the attention of anyone who wonders if God must be exiled from the modern, enlightened mind."
-- David J. Wolpe, author of Why Faith Matters

In his first book since 2002's acclaimed The Hidden Face of God, popular scientist Gerald Schroeder combines decades of scientific research and biblical study...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0061710164
• ISBN13: 9780061710162
• Release Date: May 2010
• Publisher: HarperOne
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.3" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

One of the most profound, informative and interesting works I have ever read

I was totally absorbed by this book. I found it to be one of the most profound, informative and interesting works I have ever read. It deals with the question or questions about the character of God and the meaning of human life. Its central thesis is that mankind ordinarily misunderstands God attributing to God an all- controlling Omnipotence and Omniscience which is in fact untrue to God's own idea of God. According to Schroeder the correct understanding of God is that God has contracted and voluntarily limited His Power so as to enable all of creation to have varying degrees of freedom. The highest level of this freedom is given to humanity which has a power of consciousness and creation beyond that of any other known element in the universe. He sees `freedom' operating at all levels from the level of quantum mechanics up with higher degrees of freedom entering as creation becomes more and more complex. He pictures the universe as having begun with the Big Bang with the singular explosion of Energy which then is transformed into Light and then i from hydrogen and helium to the heavier elements and on towards the creation of the universe as a whole. Critical steps on the way are the formation five billion years ago of the Solar System of planet Earth and then life on earth beginning from the simplest and moving towards the more complex. Schroeder chides those who speculate on Multi-verses and contends that there is One Universe created by One God. In one especially fascinating section of the book he describes the unique physical conditions required to sustain human life on earth. He shows the vast improbabilities involved in those conditions being attained anywhere else in the universe. In effect he implicitly makes a kind of argument from Design in which he says the unlikelihood of human life on Earth coming into being by Chance is so great that the preponderant judgment must be that there is a Designer. I learned a great deal from his descriptions of these physical conditions but honestly am not competent enough in knowledge or understanding of them to really venture a strong opinion on what he writes here. In the second part of the book which is more given to Biblical exegesis Schroeder attempts to fill out in greater detail the picture he has given of God. Using Biblical stories and examples he tries to show that the God of Abraham and Isaac, the God of Job and Moses is One who wants to be argued with and questioned, who wants Mankind to be actively involved in creation of the world. The voluntary self- contraction of God has come so that Mankind can use its power of choice and creation. In this part of the work I especially enjoyed learning from Schroeder's Biblical commentary. He points out that Abraham's not arguing for Yitzhak as he had previously argued to save the citizens of Sodom is understood by God as a failing - a failing which leads God to never directly communicate with Abraham again. In speaking of God's Revelation to Mose

Interesting & Enlightening

As a believer I am a fan of Gerald's work and have read all of his books. It's actually fair to say that his work has done more to bolster my faith in God than any other single person I have encountered or read, except perhaps my current Pastor. This book is a departure from his usual science-in-laymen's-terms work. While his earlier works deal far more with what God's creation says about God, this one takes a journey through what God says about himself in his word. Some of the concepts explored will challenge many of the preconceptions of believers who read it, which in my mind is a very good thing. The challenge of the "problem of pain/evil" is a real stumbling block for believers and unbelievers alike. This book presents a very different picture of God than does post-modern Christianity, and one which seems far truer to scripture, the early church fathers, and the experience of life. I think the true depth of the idea of a dynamic God who "will be that which [he] will be" and who can "repent", will be something I will ponder for a long time. I have to say that combined with the concept that God, in creation, "contracted" and in doing so relinquished his total control and created a partnership with mankind in which he participates but doesn't totally dictate, really rather completely changes my image of God, I think, very much for the better. Certainly many things I have wrestled with begin to make a little more sense. I highly recommend this and Gerald's other work to anyone who is willing to think outside the box and discover some deeper than superficial truths about the mysterious God we serve.

Redefining the nature of God, and getting it right

I loved this book in spite of the fact that it wasn't what I was expecting. I've read all Schroeder's other books about the harmony between science and the Bible, and expected this to be yet another take on his increasingly well-honed arguments. The author's insights seem to grow and mature with each book, and although this book opens with the usual discussion on origins, it quickly becomes a book about theology and how we've all incorrectly defined God over the millennia. For anyone who's been paying attention, there has always been a big gap between the somewhat vague, "feel-good" conceptual God of western culture, and the God we find within the Bible (when we take the time to actually read it in its entirety). In this wonderful book, Schroeder does a beautiful job of repairing this harmful breach of understanding. One of the single most important points he makes is showing that the God who's under attack from "The New Atheists" is this conceptual, cultural God that we've invented, but the God of the Bible is far more consistent with the God we encounter on a daily basis, a God who is capable of omnipotence, but has chosen to give us far more control than many of us are prepared for. This is a God who never attempts to micro-manage our lives, and who often allows us to do all sorts of horrible things to each other because this is the same God who has given us dominion over the earth, and often lets us stew in our own juices when we foul up. This God, whom we actually find in the Bible, is a far cry from the micro-managing God put forth every day on TV programs and espoused from prosperity gospel pulpits. It's a healthy and good thing to examine our beliefs, and Schroeder does an excellent job of encouraging us to look beyond our comfort zone so that we might bring reality into alignment with our perceptions. I think it's time that western theologians addressed this issue with much more force, and this book is a great place to begin the argument. This is more than an important book...it is also a very profound book and I hope it reaches a wide audience in the years to come.

Schroeder continues to amaze with the growing scope of his work

I've been a fan of Gerald Schroeder since reading "Genesis and the Big Bang" about three years ago. Immediately after finishing that book, I had to have his other two, and was amazed how much his wisdom, vision and grasp of the issues seemed to grow with each book. This book continues that pattern, and does so in an amazing fashion. However, the approach of this book might not meet the expectations of those expecting another book based largely on science. While this book opens with a scientific analysis, the bulk of the book is devoted to a philosophical and theological treatise on the true nature of God. While he often touches upon the same "origins" questions in each book, the manner in which he does so reveals a surprisingly sharp uptick in his growing breadth of knowledge. Many scientists seem to fall into a comfortable groove at mid-life, as evidenced in their writings, but Schroeder's understanding seems to be growing in leaps and bounds, and shows little sign of slowing down. This is a good thing...a Very Good thing. I continue to read a number of authors who deal with the harmony of Genesis and Science, and among them, Mr. Schroeder has risen like cream and sits atop the heap. I should note that I'm typically stingy about heaping praise on anyone, if for no other reason that I don't want to contribute to a complacency that might cause them to "coast" a bit, but I don't think that's a possibility here. As my own understanding of these scientific/theological issues has grown over the years, I have often found myself reluctantly letting go of traditional beliefs I held dear, and embraced new ideas. It's difficult at times, but ultimately rewarding as these new ideas open up a fresh understanding of God and how He operates within this realm. I was therefore very surprised and happy to see him discuss an observation that I had arrived at on my own just a few years ago. The issue is the parallels between science and the Torah with regards to the birth of the Universe, the arrival of the species and the arrival of self-aware Homo sapiens. All three of these issues are problematic for anyone building a case for a purely natural universe, as they present origin problems that cannot easily be addressed with scientific facts or testable models. These three issues have strikingly clear parallels in Genesis with the creation of the heavens and the earth, the arrival of the first complex life in the oceans, and the arrival of Adamic Man. The Hebrew word "bara," which describes a unique creative act of God, is only used on these three occasions, and nowhere else in the first chapter of Genesis. Coincidence? I think one would have to be willfully self-deceptive to not see the clear parallels. You're free to disagree with Schroeder's conclusions, but it's difficult to ignore the fact that these scientific and Biblical parallels exist. But by far the most important issue in this book is how it shapes (and hopefully, reshapes) our flawed image of t