Making Sense of "God": What God-Talk Means and Does - Hardcover

by Norman Solomon (Author)

All over the world people talk about God and argue endlessly about what God said and what, if anything, we should do about it. Do they know what are they talking about? Do they ever seriously consider what it might look like or feel like if God actually spoke to you? How could you tell, if someone said God spoke to them, whether they were deluded, bluffing, or high on drugs? The reflections, dialogues, and arguments in this book address such questions, often with humor, sometimes provocatively as when the author suggests the ancient gods have returned to invade the institutions of our great religions, or when two spirits, William and James, viewing the world from afar, voice their doubt as to whether the human species will ever attain the pinnacles of cooperation, reason, beauty, and love. Ancient texts from the Mayan Popol Vuh through the Bible to the Chinese classics are invoked, and the discoveries of modern science from anthropology to zoology are brought into play as the reader is gently led to an appreciation of the role of religious language in modern society.

Author Biography

Norman Solomon was born in Cardiff, S. Wales. His career has included periods as pulpit rabbi, university lecturer, and interfaith consultant. He is a member of Wolfson College Oxford and past president of the British Association for Jewish Studies. His publications include Judaism and World Religion, A Very Short Introduction to Judaism, Historical Dictionary of Judaism, The Talmud: A Selection, and Torah from Heaven, as well as numerous articles and reviews.