Christianity without God [Paperback]

Lloyd George Geering (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2002

Belief in God — understood as a supernatural spiritual being who created the universe and continues to sustain it — has long been assumed to be the irreplaceable foundation of the three monotheistic religions. But just as the bible ceased, in the nineteenth century, to be convincing as the repository of divinely revealed knowledge, so the twentieth century witnessed the death of the conventional image of God. Lloyd Geering asks whether this "death of God" spells the imminent death of the whole Christian tradition or simply means the end of conventional Christian doctrine.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Lloyd Geering refuses to let faith stagnate. He speaks eloquently for a Christianity vital to a rapidly changing world. -- Phyllis Trible, Baldwin Professor of Sacred Literature, Emerita, Union Theological Seminary, New York

About the Author

Lloyd Geering was made Principal Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit topping New Zealand's new year's honors list for 2001. This is the first time the strictly New Zealand honors have been given. Previously New Zealand granted Imperial Honors, under which Lloyd Geering would have been made a knight commander.

Previously honored in 1988 as a Companion of the British Empire, Lloyd Geering is a public figure of considerable renown in New Zealand where he is in constant demand as a lecturer and as a commentator on religion and related matters on both television and radio. In 1966, he published an article on "The Resurrection of Jesus" and, in 1967, another on "The Immortality of the Soul," which together sparked a two-year public, theological controversy that culminated in charges by the Presbyterian Church of New Zealand—of which he is an ordained minister—of doctrinal error and disturbing the peace of the church. After a dramatic, two-day televised trial, the Assembly judged that no doctrinal error had been proved, dismissed the charges and declared the case closed.

Product Details

• Paperback: 168 pages
• Publisher: Polebridge Press (September 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0944344925
• ISBN-13: 978-0944344927
• Product Dimensions: 0.4 x 6 x 9.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #492,009 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

42 of 49 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Searcher for Truth in Tacoma January 1, 2003

By Heather Halabisky

Format:Paperback

This morning in front of a warm fire on the first day of 2003 while rain pelted down outside, I read this book from cover to cover. Professor Geering has given us a page-turner as he step-by-step builds his case for why Christianity must take leave of God in order to be suitable for the global age we are entering. With just enough explanation for the average lay person he describes the progression from the belief in a personal, all-powerful God to the need for humans to take leave of that God so they can take full responsibility for their lives. In showing how Christianity has been changing through the ages to arrive at this point, Geering references many theologians. One I would especially like to read more about is Ludwig Feuerbach who is quoted as saying, "The real essence of Christianity.. is not that Jesus became God but that God became human."

14 of 17 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A vital, honest, and essential Christian view July 25, 2006

By J. Jacobson

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Geering's challenging title should not dissuade Christians from picking up this book. Geering is a clear headed writer and a wonderful Bible scholar who brings it all together in this little book for an exciting vision of spiritual (Christian) maturity. The old notion of the external authoritative God in the clouds interacting on an arbitrary basis with the world needs to set free of it's cage. Geering's vision of secularity challenges us to take more responsibility for our earth and our lives and sets forth a divinized future for all life. This is the best religious book I have read in quite some time! (and I have a library full of them).

22 of 29 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing. "Christianity without God" is just secular humanism. So why call it "Christianity without God" at all? August 23, 2006

By Jason Mierek

Format:Paperback

When I first saw this title on Amazon, I was ecstatic, and I was equally excited when I received it as a gift from J. As someone who (usually) agrees with John Spong that Christianity must (re)discover a non-theistic a/theology (e.g., an apophatic theology, perhaps) in order to survive, I thrilled at the possible non-theistic Christianities that I assumed Geering would describe. Alas, I was let down.

Instead of describing a spiritually vibrant post-theistic Christianity akin to the other non-theistic wisdom traditions like Buddhism and Vedanta, this book simply reduces non-theistic Christianity to secular humanism and the corollary idea of a divinized humanity (i.e., ethical nontheism). To say that this conclusion disappointed me is is not to say that I find secular humanism bad or lacking; on the contrary, the contributions of humanism to the last few centuries have been unparalled. Rather, Geering's thesis simply raises questions like, why is the author still talking about Christianity at all, since we already have the phrase "secular humanism"? Or, why muddy the water and call secular humanism "Christianity without God"? I never found answers to those questions in this book and that is what I found disappointing.