Customer Reviews

God's Mechanics: How Scientists and Engineers Make Sense of Religion

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Brother Guy is a Vatican astronomer who specializes in the study of meteorites and dwarf planets. He's also a regular at various science fiction conventions, and the thing I liked most about his book, aside from his techie sense of humor, is he gives a very interesting answer (or set of answers) to the question, how do scientists, who are trained to be skeptics, make sense of religion.

Here's a brief sample from his book:

"So if doing science is ultimately a religious act, why does the story of a split between science and religion exist in out culture today? Because too many religious people have been scared away from science by the very stories of this split. Because most scientists keep their religion private, as is their right. Because the religious people most likely to be heard in the news are those whose strong bent in engineering hides their very limited education in science: the creationists. Because the scientists who do speak publicly about these topics have been precisely those whose very limited education in religion (people like Richard Dawkins or Stephen Jay Gould) have made them "science fundamentalists"," every bit as narrow as the religious fundamentalists and probably not the best representatives of their fields--just the best known." (p. 169)

Highly recommended.

Brother Guy Conssolmagno has exceeded his presentation of the synthesis of religion and science he began in Brother AstronomerBrother Astronomer: Adventures of a Vatican Scientist. In his presentation of believing in God and religion Consolmagno claims to be taking a techie point of view. He defines a techie as someone whose world view pragmatic, logical and functional. Techies want to know how things work. It is this attitude that gives them an understanding of God as "all modern science developed precisely because the medievals believed in a creator God,and thus they had the confidence to assume that this apparently chaotic universe did make sense (and was worthy of study)." On the matter of religion, he likens it to the scientific community which through peer review of experimental results leads to a better understanding of the world. His chapters specifically directed to his Roman Catholic religion (he is a Jesuit) apply to almost any main stream catholic, orthodox or protestant organization because it deals with his humanity and how that requires him to deal with other humans, God, and his creation. Consolmagno raises points of disagreement, but explains his position in a clear enough manner that you can argue with him, which makes the book fun as well as enlightening. His easy to read style and clear presentation of ideas make this book a page turner even if it is non-fiction.

A very interesting book on religion from the point of view of techies. The author is a Jesuit brother and also an astronomer, with advanced degrees from MIT and Arizona. The book exposes how techies think about God(s) and religion(s), the supposed "gap" between science and religion, and how different parts of religion (such as an organized religion, rules, etc...) make sense when analyzed analytically and pragmatically. The author did some research interviewing scientists on their views, and extracts some interesting ideas on how techies approach religion. The second part of the book is about the author own experiences, and how he makes sense of his faith and the life he has chosen.
I greatly appreciate that when he has no rational answer to some question, he says so, and makes himself clear when he says some of his views are biased. It is a book that could spur many interesting talks with friends, religious or not. It is easy to read and entertaining, and even the author makes some fine geeky jokes here and there. (It would have been interesting if the book included some bibliography or "further reading" section at the end of the book.) Recommended.

People of all religions (or none) should find this book interesting as a source of information not available elsewhere. I expect it to be attacked by the anti-religion crowd, and that will only underscore its value.

I read Brother Guy's book "Brother Astronomer" a few years back and really enjoyed it, with his new book Brother Guy has really out done himself. This is a really great read (I am an Electrical Engineer) that does a wonderful job of looking at what makes scientists and engineers different and how they approach a faith life. The informal research done by Brother Guy seems very much on target with my co-workers. Being a convert to the Catholic faith later in life I can appreciate much of what Brother Guy covers and thought the last few chapters explaining why he is a believer in Jesus and in particular why he is Catholic were some of the most inspirational I have read.

I found this book to be very thought-provoking. The author explores many different ways to look at the connection between science and religion.
I think it would have been just as effective, if not more so, if he had not used three pages (206-208) opinionating as to why other Christian religions are not as good as Catholicism.
The rest of the book seems unbiased and attempts to answer many questions shared by scientists and engineers.

God's Mechanics is about Br. Guy's personal journey to try to understand what purpose religion has for "techies," and to illustrate some of the ways religion works for him. By "techie" he mostly means science and technology geeks, and includes himself in the group. If that premise excited you, than this is really a good read. If that premise doesn't strike you as interesting, than the book wont either. Thankfully for me, this is exactly the kind of book I've been looking for. It is smart and humorous, manages to stay interesting through all 230 pages, and deals with a topic I find endlessly fascinating.

The book is set up loosely like this. Br. Guy talks about religion and his theories on what a religion is and how someone with a "techie" way of thinking might understand and participate in it. He interviews scientists of different ages and backgrounds and discusses the role of religion in their lives. As the book goes on he starts to realize that generalizing "techies" thoughts on religion is a lot more complicated than he thought. But he makes some good attempts to find patterns and explain them to the reader. Br. Guy then spends the last part of the book using himself as an example of how a techie thinks about religion. I really enjoyed reading about his own thoughts, and admired his honesty in admitting he was biased toward Catholicism. I suppose he could have been more sensitive to other religions by leaving out his feelings towards them, but then we wouldn't have really gotten to see an honest look at his thought process.

One of my favorite things about this book is how Br. Guy effortlessly uses scientific examples as metaphor's for religious experiences. Here is an example: "...as quantum physics has emphasized, any attempt to make a measurement invariably alters the thing being measured. If, by presenting yourself to be judged by the standards of your religion, you try to twist yourself into a shape that perhaps is easier to measure but is no longer you, you've defeated the reason to have a religion." It's statements like that one which really impress me. If that line get's you excited, too, than please take the time to give his book a try.
I've got a longer review on my blog: [...]

Guy Consolmagno has a very unique and interesting take on the way we view religion as techies. As a techie born into a devout religious family, I am at a point in my life where I am really asking Consolmagno's three questions about religion, but I do not want to accept what I've been handed without fully researching the variables (other religions#. I have also sought out books #this being one of them# that I thought would tackle religious philosophy without prejudice and in a neutral fashion. The first 2/3 of this book deserves a five-star rating. The author keeps his promise of being non-partisan and I couldn't put the book down. His viewpoints seemed to go stride by stride with what I had been feeling #but couldn't quite figure out while learning my religion from non-techie people#. The author helped me gain an understanding of religion that I haven't found in other books.

However, 2/3 of the way through the book, he suddenly attacks two religions (Scientology and Mormonism), which caught me off-guard since I had been expecting not to run into any such thing about any religion. He then spent a good chunk of the last chapters proselytizing Catholicism. As somebody who is wanting to understand what I'm feeling, the book did its job, but as somebody who is looking for a book non-biased for or against any religion it fell greatly short.

By the end of the book (and to the author's own admission), it became somewhat apparent that he has not studied very many religions besides his own Catholicism. His attack on Scientology and Mormonism had no argument to them, only a declaration that they were the two religions that `nobody would join'. Surely there are hundreds or even thousands of "strange" religions out there, why the attack on these two? Now I feel tainted (on my quest to study all religions) that if I even look at those two religions I am an idiot.

I did my best to trudge through the Catholic sales pitch (I hate not finishing any book) and I did it with one ear shut (since my ultimate goal is to only learn about each religion from a non-biased source). At the end, the book did help me sort out my feelings to a greater degree than any other book has done. Surprisingly it helped me dedicate myself to my current faith, even though I still am studying daily the other religions of the world. It helped me gain a sense of the "community" that my religion offers me. It also helped me separate what the church does vs. what men do.

In my opinion, techies who are trying to figure out religion should read this book, but you may want to stop when Consolmagno, the "non-biased writer", starts criticizing other religions besides his own. To me it went downhill from there.

This is a very personal book by s Jesuit astronomer about his and other scientist friends' searching for the nexus of science and religion. It is well written and interesting and illuminates many aspects of the subject. If you are a scientist or engineer, you will rally like this book.

Excellent, excellent, excellent. Finally someone who is able to clearly and concisely help clear some of the misunderstandings that have led to the myth of the war between science and religion. Helpful in understanding the "techie" mind and what appeals to it. Any religious leader would do well to pick up a copy of this book to develop a better understanding of how to serve the techies in their congregations. Amazingly accessible, both in terms of the science and the theology Br. Guy discusses. Full of excellent analogies. He's an even better speaker than he is a writer: see him at [...]