Customer Reviews

The Hidden Face of God: Science Reveals the Ultimate Truth

5 star:		(39)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

As a physicist, I have been seduced by the awe and mystery (to borrow from "The Outer Limits") of quantum mechanics for years. Still, the esoteric nature of subatomic physics was never adequate to convince me of an intelligent design of the universe. Schroeder, however, has succeeded in convincing me of an underlying wisdom in nature through his eloquent description of the mind-boggling complexity of molecular biology. I came away from this book with a perplexing and contradictory sense of calm and breathlessness.

Schroeder succeeds where others have failed; namely, he has convinced me that an honest and compelling argument can be made for the existence of God/Creator/universal intelligence without resorting to fundamentalist dogma or pseudo-science.

Be warned: parts of the book are tedious; Schroeder admits this. If you are unwilling to put some thought behind the subject matter, then this book isn't for you. But if you're not afraid to think, then by all means read his book; your soul will thank you.

Noted Israeli physicist Gerald Schroeder presents a compelling case that our universe is readily reducible to simply this -- an immaterial wisdom. "The solidity of iron is actually 99.9999999999999 percent startlingly vacuous space made to feel solid by ethereal fields of force having no material reality at all." And what is that tiny portion of an "atom" of matter that we describe as supposedly being "matter", that is, the quarks and electrons? They are incredibly precise (i.e., specified) packets of 'frozen' energy, highly tuned to interact with these highly tuned "ethereal fields." It seems that such objects are essentially intellectual constructs, as are all the "objects" of the so-called particle zoo. We call "something" a quark (or a photon, electron, etc) only because we can assign a certain behavior to "it". But what is "it"? Apart from saying that "it" is specified information, nobody knows. Within the quantum mechanical framework, these "objects" are essentially mathematical objects. As Einstein told us, what we call matter is merely condensed ("frozen") energy. And it turns out that energy is merely information. But what incredibly elegant information it is! (If it were not, neither people nor stars nor any "material" thing could exist). The materialist paradigm of our age is decidedly uneasy with the revelation that "matter" is but an elegant creation of a nonmaterial and extra cosmic entity. Why should we have an "Elegant Universe"? Philosophical pre-commitments seek a "blind" non-thing as an explanation, actually demanding a clumsy series of explanations other than the theist's Creator. (Interestingly, this approach is mislabeled "reductionism" and/or "positivism"!) "Consider the 'coincidences'" of nature's wisdom, asks Schroeder, and explanations other than a wise Creator "must seem a bit forced," even to the atheist.
The only detraction that I will offer is that the author subscribes to a kind of 'process theology'. Overall, this may be a minor problem. Schroeder's central thesis is itself elegant (and modestly eloquent, and yes, obvious to anyone who isn't psychologically pre-committed to rejecting it out of hand).

Schroeder is a wonderful teacher. He sees the sublime in science and his prose is at times beautifully poetic. He delves in both the macrocosm as well as microcosm using both to show that there is an inherent design to the universe and the life within it. This is a book that is well suited to those who would run from the usual creationist palaver yet feel that all of the wonder we see in this universe has to be more than an accident.

Gerald Schroeder, with his unusual background (expertise in biology and physics, and a very broad knowledge of world religions)is one of those rare people with the qualifications to write a book such as this. And it's a good thing, too, in an age where the empiricism of many scientists minimizes or eliminates the role of God in our universe. His main thesis--that science helps us uncover the hidden code in creation which clearly reveals that God is more than just a Creator--is demonstrated by his own experience and that of other scientists as well as by illustrations of God's plan inherent in the world around us.
I've read this book twice and I will probably read it yet again. Along with Paul Davies's book The Mind of God, this book is a must for anyone wishing to explore the ways science can prove God's existence and plan.

The Hidden Face of God: Science Reveals the Ultimate Truth by Gerald L. Schroeder has the potential to strike and interest in believers and non-believers alike. Schroeder takes a very disturbing position for some due to the face that he turns the ideas of science and uses them to support religious ideas. Most people in the world of science and religion would find this blasphemous, but when looked at closer I feel that Schroeder is on to something rather phenomenal. Gerald uses a great amount of scientific knowledge to prove his point and I would like to further examine this argument made by him.
I found that the best way to fully review Schroeder's work would be to go chapter by chapter, due to the science is divided up that way in his book. Not to mention this just makes more sense to follow the organization style of the book when reviewing it. So let us begin with Chapter one in Schroeder's evaluation of science and the capabilities it has to help the argument for religious believers.
Chapter One is entitled The Puzzle of Existence: An Overview and takes on the great feat of taking on an understanding of the metaphysical and therefore he argues that you cannot describe theology without insights of science, since the physical is needed to describe the metaphysical. I found this and ingenious way of thinking of things and must say that I agree with him. His second chapter ties into this, as well as all of the others, but one question he raised was, "How does one imagine, or even relate to, images [absolute]?" Another interesting concept that was brought up was how the universe was born as an undifferentiated unity, and how science today is trying to rediscover this.
Moving on in this book I was constantly amazed at how Schroeder would use specific scientific examples and tie them into the concept of using them to support faith. I love how he never directly comes out and says this supports this, but allows the reader to go along with him on the journey and make discoveries on their own. Basically, Schroeder takes his readers into the physics, anatomy, and metaphysics of human life and the world, as we know it. I find that he does a wonderful job and can't say enough good things about it.
One critical thing about this book is that you must have a firm background in science in order to read this. If you don't then you will find yourself looking up all the concepts he brings forward like Laplace's theory of determinism, Planck's constant, and metabolism. You also must have a good grasp on religious concepts, Biblical figures and other religions other than Christianity for this book to make better sense. I find that if you are not a believer of any religion you may read this book and find it difficult, but very rewarding in the end, due to the extensive research that was put into this work. His diagrams of the visual cortex and other brain structures help to keep one on track with what Schroeder is talking about in chapter seven.
Finally, I would just like to say that this is a wonderful text for anyone who wants to learn more about themselves and their surroundings, as well as ways to support their beliefs. This text is pushing the envelope with what it has to say, but is very clear and concise even when speaking about the relationship of DNA and RNA, meiosis, and the bringing about of life. This book has it all and marvels at how nature has these vast connections that science is trying to reveal. Schroeder's, The Hidden Face of God is a must read in my opinion because he comes at the argument of knowing that God is, but not knowing what God is in a very tactful scientific manner. Another five star read, from a man of great talent.

I thought Maimonides "Guide to the Perplexed" would come close to letting me understand God... but it didn't.. only opened up even more perplexing problems with my observations of the universe and the religious view of "what it all means". Schroeder's book tied together many thoughts and concepts that have bothered me for many years and suddenly made it seem, as it should, that these are indications of the work of this universal "higher order". Schroeder's insight was the key to me understanding the relationships I knew where there in thermodynamics, quantum mechanics, and classical physics in trying to understand of God. The "conciousness" of a bunch of chemicals in the biological world had to be imbued by an influence, and that influence certainly couldn't have come from within the universe! Maybe after reading this book, it makes sense to reread some Kabalist works...

This book expands upon ideas presented in his book THE SCIENCE OF GOD. Schroeder extends his thinking to the area of biology and the study of the brain/mind connection.

I found this book very interesting, especially for the light it sheds upon ideas from other reading, such as Greene's THE ELEGANT UNIVERSE and Ramachandran's A BRIEF TOUR OF HUMAN CONSCIOUSNESS. Schroeder may be on the verge of a new "Grand Unified Theory" linking Biblical theology and cosmology. Ideas are presented for further study/consideration by the reader.

I especially enjoyed the image that we are all composed of electromagnetic fields of particles, in an unimaginably vast collection of miraculous interrelationships occurring on the cellular and atomic level, with its origins in the stardust of the Big Bang.

I avidly await future works by Schroeder, further developing his paradigms.

While reading this book I found myself repeatedly gasping in delight. I must have audibly whispered (or shouted) "Oh my gosh" dozens of times.

Before reading this book I was not an athiest, but as well I was not totally convinced of a God or a creation either. But it's all changed now. It all makes perfect sense. Everything is simply information and knowledge...it's all metaphysical. In the beginning of Genesis, the Bible says, "In the beginning, God created the Heavens and the earth." Shroeder points out that actually this english translation of Hebrew is a bit off. Instead, it should read more like this -- "With infinite knowledge God created the Heavens and earth." Very provocative when you consider that everything is simply condensed versions of knowledge.

This book should be required reading for everyone who doubts a creator. Shroeder doesn't push the Creator down your throat, he lets you find Him on your own.

This book has changed me. I'm so glad I found it.

Although this book doesn't flow very well, I thought that some of the concepts were simply amazing.

This is a book that will make you think about not only about your existence here on Earth, but what else could be out there. As stated in other reviews, there was alot of general information about science givin in the first half of the book, but after you get through all of the physics mumbo-jumbo Schroeder does a great job of disproving the widespread perception that "Science is against religion"

Mr Schroeder's clear and concise analysis of molecular biology, and quantum theory in relation to the internal wisdom of the universe is refreshing. His application of all the above information to a refutation of Evolution as an explanation for the existence of life on earth is nothing short of brilliant. Making the information accessible to the lay reader is a gift and a joy. Thank you Gerald Schroeder.