Customer Reviews

History of God, A: The 4000-Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity and Islam

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Karen Armstrong has put together an impressive work that examines in depth the evolution of God and our perceptions of the transcendent. It's a wonderful starting point, however a dedicated reader should certainly explore other books to round out topics that the author touched lightly upon (Paul) or even omitted entirely (the influence of Eastern religions).

I think some of the criticisms levied at this book are misplaced. There seems to be a theme in these reviews that the author tends to slam Western Christianity and goes easy on Islam. This seems true to a certain extent, yet deliberate. The book is obviously aimed at Western readers; Christianity is so deeply imbued in so much of our culture that it bears a fearless scrutiny. While no doubt painful for some (Christian) readers, it's illuminating and honest. The author is obviously learned in Muslim history, yet she may have covered it in more depth than many Western readers might want. Also as one reviewer noted, "by failing to extend to Islam the razor of her sarcasm, she invites distrust". True, yet again there is so little positive perception of Islam in the West, that this appears intentional. This is the most notable flaw in the book, but not a fatal one.

What she did explain *very* well:

1. How pagan idol worship evolved into Jewish monotheism.

2. How the Trinity concept came about and grew.

3. The intellectual rift between and differences in Western and Eastern Orthodox Christianity.

4. Mysticism and it's ramifications. One reviewer called this a modern "dead end". I couldn't disagree more.

Overall, quite excellent and probably the best starting point for someone who wants to explore this fascinating topic. She has struck the best balance I've seen so far between depth, complexity and readability. Highly recommended.

A History of God was one of the most important books I've read. Karen Armstrong fearlessly, yet respectfully, traces the history of monotheistic thought from its earliest conception to the present day, all in a readable, lay-language book. It doesn't get much better, in my opinion.

However, be cautioned. If you are inclined to cling to old dogma, or frightened by the possibility that God might not be exactly what you were taught in Sunday School, then don't bother picking up this book. It will haunt you. On the other hand, if you are seeking a more clear picture of who God might really be, if you are open to the possibility that our concept of Him has evolved enormously since the days of Abraham, then this might be an excellent read for you.

Besides a good history lesson, it is insightful for the Western reader to gain an understanding of the "non-Christian" monotheistic traditions, i.e. Judaism and Islam. Armstrong does a wonderful (and contrary to some critics, I believe a FAIR) job of explaining how both Christianity and later Islam branched off of the Judaic traditions. Above all, it places the evolution of the God-concept into its cultural context, without which, our current God-concept is little more than a wholesale belief in so much mythology.

Be prepared to think, to change your mind, and to emerge from the end of this book a changed person.

Karen Armstrong teaches the development of monotheistic faith in a way I wish my seminary professors would have done.

This book is extremely well documented. Every assertion is backed by historical documents or historical evidence. The glossary alone opens up a world of terms and concepts that leaves me in a meditative awe. The Suggestions for Further Reading is definitely my shopping list for future study. In constrast, my seminary education was long on political correctness and short on factual evidence.

Armstrong deals with feminist issues honestly and with sensitivity. Impressively, she does not relinquish factual evidence for political correctness, which almost all liberal education does today. She gives us an accurate history, and at the same time, frequently reminds us these are only feeble human ideas, and not the "Ineffable God."

Also, she tells the story of modern atheism in a way that makes me nod my head in agreement without giving up my own perception of God. Wow!

Armstong does seem to fudge on the person of Mohammed. She tells how he organized men for war and brutally defeated his enemies, then almost as a direct contradiction of the evidence, she proclaims him a man of peace. Putting that aside, I've been very enlightened by her account of the Islamic faith. So many things I hadn't known!

You can't miss the point of the book. God is "ineffable," beyond all human catagories, concepts, experiences, and even beyond existence itself. That blows my mind. She makes her point beautifully without leaving me feeling too threatened. Again, seminary professors should take a lesson.

I've told all my friends about the book, and I'm sure by now they're all sick of me and Karen Armstrong. Sorry. The book is simply excellent.

Karen Armstrong gives the readers a comprehensive view of the evolution of the three monotheistic faiths. In many respects, this is an eye-opening history, and will probably make many fundamentalists of all three faiths weep and gnash their teeth, and with good reason. We need to see that God is as much an evolving idea as He is a Being (or, perhaps, "Non-being") that creates and sustains us. Armstrong deftly shows us how the early Hebrews developed their concept of Yahweh from the early pagan war and fertility cults, how the concept of Jesus as savior and sacrifice for our sins developed, how the issue of the Trinity was addressed, and how Islam came to be.

What was distressing, though, is that while Armstrong correctly, in my opinion, points out the dangers of a literal God, goes too far in condemning an anthropomorphic God. I found myself depressed by the end of the book, questioning the conclusion, it seemed, that God did not exist, or if he did, he wasn't there as a Being. Reading this book certainly shook my faith, and I recommend reading this book with care, especially as one gets into the later chapters that focus on the development of atheism. Readers who are in a state of spiritual upheaval could find this book extremely challenging, though I believe that faith grows from our doubts.

This book is a "must read" for anyone who seeks to learn about the similarities and differences of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The first few chapters introduce the perception or concept of G-d as it developed in man's evolution. The core beliefs and practices of ancient religions are reviewed along with how monotheism arose. Few scholars can treat this controversial thesis without falling prey to including/expanding their own belief systems ... Ms Armstrong manages to remain cool and dispassionate. She does a thorough and detailed analysis of the philosophical and core belief systems of the three major religions of the world. She creates an impressive document detailing significant dates, events and people who had a major impact on the respective religion. She uses the correct ancient Hebrew, Greek or Islamic terms and provides translations as close to the original meaning as possible. Her words are like the lense of a telescope or microscope -- they are adjusted to convey clarity and precision. The author has no hidden agendas ... she provides only the facts.

Being of Christian background, I was most impressed with her discourse on the Trinity. Who but a religious scholar would have known that in the 300's A.D. the hottest religious debate raging was the controversy whether Jesus Christ was divine (G-d) and what was His relation to G-d the Father? A serious dichotomy of views arose between Athansius and Arius which caused a crisis of faith in the newly emerging Christian religion. Had it not been squelched, who knows how Christianity would be expressed today? The Emperor Constantince convened a conference of Bishops in Nicae, Turkey to settle the matter. Essentially, a committee made a religous decree but unfortuantely, it still left many questions unanswered ... questions which plague thinking Christian believers even in modern times. Ms Armstrong clarifies the matter as follows, while G-d has a single essence (ousia) which is incomprehensible to mankind, He has three expressions of Himself, hypostases, by which He is known. This is but one example of the many complex controversies tackled in this book. Both sides of many religious debates are presented and the reader realizes what a huge topic Ms Armstrong manages to present in a very engaging style. It is easy to see why religion has such a strong hold on the emotions and heart of mankind ... The most impressive chapters for this reader pertain to the internal differences of each religion. Ms Armstrong gives a full discourse on the differences *between* each religion ... as well the the differences of core beliefs *within* each religion, be it, Christianity, Catholicism, Orthodoxy, the Protestant movement, Judaism or Islam. This reader admires how she covered the differences within Islam. Her descriptions of the split between Shiites and Sunnis, Sufi mysticism and essential leaders in each movement are most impressive. I enjoyed her discourse on Judaism and the enlightening texts of prominent Rabbis. The reader needs to keep in mind, this book is for serious readers only. Anyone who dislikes detailed analyses will not enjoy this book, as it is a challenge for even those who *do* enjoy detailed analyses. Simpler books exist for readers looking for the basic tenets describing Christianity, Judaism, or Islam. This book provides a comparative and detailed analysis of G-d as expressed in the belief systems of three major religions in the world. This is the best book I have yet discovered on this difficult, deep, and sensitive subject. My highest recommendations. Erika Borsos (erikab93)

Humans have been recording their thoughts about God since the invention of writing. They have struggled to understand their place in the universe and, in doing so, develop ideas regarding their creator and purpose. Yet, ideas about the divine are much older than that, and only through writing are these thoughts relayed. In the West there are three major traditions of "people of the book", which are traditions that possess what are believed to be divinely inspired works and have committed their thoughts regarding the divine to extensive compartmentalized writings. Karen Armstrong looks at 4,000 years of religious thought in her "A History of God", a much maligned but Herculean effort designed to not only bring general understanding of historical trends and ideas in religion, but to put to paper her own ideas regarding the divine.

Armstrong seeks to document the historical events and major thinkers in the three main Western religious traditions, Judaism, Christianity and Islam. She is not looking to wrangle with theology as much as examine how ideas of God have been transformed in a historical perspective. The idea of God means different things to different people at different times and is dependent upon historical instance, place and condition. Armstrong organizes her book by first looking at the pagan foundations of these traditions, and then linearly each in turn. She subsequently moves on to the philosophy that arose and the mysticism that organically evolved. Lastly, she addresses the God as conceived in Post-Enlightenment thought and whether, put into historical perspective, God has a place in the modern world.

The major themes in the book stress the ineffability of God, God as Nothing, and most importantly, the subjective experience of God. Perhaps the greatest criticism levied against the book - and often its greatest praise - is her unrelenting attack on Christianity. Her dry evaluation seeks to put Christianity in its proper historical context, while also giving sympathetic space to one of the lesser-understood traditions in the West, Islam. Perhaps this is in reaction to Christianity being so dominant and influential, or it could be due to her seven years as a Christian nun where she left her order dissatisfied. Regardless, what one takes away is that she is not altogether fair in her evaluation of personages and thought in Christianity.

She takes the reader on a dizzying journey with an immense scope. Armstrong attempts to condense 4,000 years of religious thought into a mere 400-page book. She makes a remarkable effort at touching on the major influences, outlining the thought of the key thinkers and theological underpinnings with relative succinctness. Ultimately, for the interested reader, what mar her text are blatant errors and omissions. Armstrong has done her homework, but the inaccuracies lead one to question the overall scholarship of the book - and most insidiously - her intentions. One could chalk it up to sloppy research, but she gets so much right that when she does commit an error, coupled with her marginalization of some religious thought at the expense of others, it raises flags.

Overall, A History of God is exactly what its title leads you to expect. It is not "the" history of God; there is no definite article. It is Karen Armstrong's history of God. And if we should believe and perpetrate the subjectivity that she is a proponent of, then ultimately we learn more about her then we do in her 4,000-year relay race of religious thought.

Everybody and their brother has reviewed this book, so I'll be brief: buy it for the first 3 chapters.

I'm serious. This is a good book, but unless you know tons about the history of religious philosophy/theology, those last 300 pages are going to be tough.

If, on the other hand, you are really well-versed in all aspects of mono-theistic religious thinking (from 4th C. Eastern orthodox mysticism to 8th C. Sufism to 14th C. Islamic rationalism and the Kabbalah), then this book will be a refreshing overview -- sort of a whirl-wind tour of Man's Search for Meaning Since the Dawn of Time.

In other words, it's a tough read. That is actually to the author's credit -- it implies she didn't over-simplify and she tried to include all major thinkers in all major mono-theistic religions. But that's a tall order.

Another criticism that I have of this book is sort of a personal beef with the author. Not that I don't like Karen Armstrong, she's a fine writer, but as is evident from some of her other writings, Ms. Armstrong is on a quest for God. One she can call her own. And as her biography (Through the Narrow Gate) makes clear, she felt like she passed up a truly profound religious experience while she was a nun. So, she's continued to look for it. This search has led her to read far and wide: Jewish Kabbalah, Augustine, Aquinus, Sufi mysticism, you name it. (Which is probably how she learned all the great stuff she put in this book.) But ultimately, since she is looking for her own God, she has a bad habit of being very reductionist with everybody else's God. The conclusion you will hear over and over again, from the pre-face to the conclusion, is that God is not "out there" -- but He is the invention of each individual. In other words, he's in your head. Those exact words: "God is not 'out there'" must show up 50 times in the text. I hate to say this, but it makes me think that she is reflecting what she wants to hear from the great religious thinkers of history. It feels like she was putting her words into other people's mouths. And in doing this, she may not be being entirely faithful to what *they* said or meant.

It's obvious that, to some extent, she is trying for a peace-and-love message that says "At the base all religions are the same" and that's kind of a heart-warming message. But if the basic tenent which all religions share is the notion that God is "not out there", but is actually in your head, then I think Ms. Armstrong will not have difficulty getting someone to declare a fatwa on her.

(I'm exaggerating slightly, but the whole God is "out there" theme does come up a lot.)

Okay, so, basically, this is a good (albeit uneven) book. Buy it for the first 3 chapters, skim the rest and realize that the autor is not without a distinct point of view.

Armstrong's "History of God", much like Jaspers' "Great Philosophers", is a truly first rate introduction to the field of religious history for three primary reasons. Firstly, as somebody relatively unfamiliar with the major monotheistic traditions, I found the breadth and scope of the work to be simply amazing. The variety of periods which Armstrong covers and the extent to which she covers them makes even a new comer to the field such as myself leave the work with a significantly deeper understanding of the disciplines of western theology and religious philosophy and the course they have taken. Secondly, this work is a serious commentary on the Western European/North American mind. As somebody frequently troubled by the western (but particularly American) emphasis on the literal character of the Bible and their respective canons, Armstrong's book sheds light on the nature and history of this peculiar tradition of western European thought. Finally, the extent and rigor which Armstrong applies to her research is indicative of the high academic quality of this work. Thus while the book is of immense value to the uninitiated, even to the very scholarly it retains a high level of value. While a more thorough discussion of the modern developments in Eastern Christian thought would have been appreciated (if for nothing else but for the sake of balance), Armstrong's book is a work of amazing scholarly achievement that is at once both a fabulous introduction to understanding serious thought about the divine in Islam, Christianity, and Judaism and an amazing commentary on the world view of AMericans and Western Europeans. I recommend it very highly.

"Human beings cannot endure emptiness and desolation; they will fill the vacuum by creating a new focus of meaning. . . .we should, perhaps, ponder the history of God for some lessons and warnings." --- last paragraph of Armstrong's book.

The jacket points out that Armstrong teaches at the Leo Baeck College for the Study of Judaism and the Training of Rabbis and Teachers (as well as having spent seven years as a nun). Her academic knowledge more than shows--which is why I don't understand the reviews that claimed she was terribly biased. The book seemed to take a step back and objectively review the HISTORY of God, rather than pass judgement on one religion or another.

Armstrong demonstrates that through time, humanity has always sought to fill the void of unknowing by seeking a higher power. Thus, God will always exist, even in our increasingly godless society. She follows Man's God through history--from the dawn of time until now, and examines the reasons for the different concepts of God between the Monotheists (and even modern atheists and skeptics).

The book is complete. It's a tough read though--with a scholarly tone and complex sentence structures. It's not a beach book or even an airplane read. But it's worth your time and money if you're interested in the histories of both our most enduring concept/being (God) and of the interplay between religion and man.

This is a wonderful book especially for people disatisfied with conventional modern thinking about God as either the Big Stern Daddy in the White Robe or An Obsolete Escapist Fairy Tale. The hardcover edition I originally purchased showed favorable reviews from relatively iconoclastic authors like A.N. Wilson (Armstrong, btw, never, so far as I know, refers to the quest for God as a "Wild Goose Chase" as Wilson did) and from more traditional figures like Sister Wendy Beckett (the smiling English nun who always appears in full habit and writes about Art History).

The book takes a historical approach to the development of God concepts in Judaism, Christianity and Islam and is especially good at explaining Islam, exploring mysticism and less personal concepts of God cross-culturally, reviewing how different things have been considered "traditional" at different times, and examining how and why God-concepts change according to a cultures needs and experiences. It also reviews the different Hebraic concepts of God in the Jewish scriptures in fascinating and provocative detail. Needless to say, the Bible offers several different ways of looking at God. (Armstrong offers very little, however, that I recall on different ways of looking at Christ- for that go to Yaroslav Pelikan's JESUS THROUGH THE CENTURIES or for more radical contemporay views New Testament commentators like John Dominic Crosson, Robert Funk or Marcus Borg. For a better and kinder treatment of the Deuteronomistic writings try Anthony R. Ceresko's INTRODUCTION TO THE OLD TESTAMENT: A LIBERATION PERSPECTIVE). Armstrong has also edited an anthology of Medieval English mystical writers called VISIONS OF GOD.

I found that there was so much to take in when reading A HISTORY OF GOD that I could only read the book about 5 pages at a time. The reason I am only awarding 4 stars is because, like many books of this ambitious scope, it can fall down occasionally on the details. However, it remains a good starting point for your own reseach and for identifying your own interests. This book can changes lives both by vastly expanding knowledge of the issues involved in this field and by offering alternatives to what we have come to think of as "traditional".