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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Very Compelling, despite inadequate book title,
This review is from: If There's a God, Why Are There Atheists? (Paperback)
R.C. Sproul has written a powerful book that presents a multifaceted case for why people reject God. This book initially came out in 1978, but in many ways, its analysis is still quite pertinent and compelling today. This is a book that has stood the test of time.Before commenting on the book's many positive qualities, I'd like to comment on why I noted a concern about the book title in my review title above. A reasonable person, I think, would look at the title of the book and possibly conclude that the contents would represent a sweeping commentary on the existence of atheists, why God allows it, why God doesn't supposedly make Himself crystal clear, etc. This book does not address these kind of issues. After reading this book, I found the book's subtitle to be much more in line with what the book addresses, "The Surprising Look at the Psychology of Atheism". Therefore, anyone wishing to read this book should understand that it's the subtitle, rather than the title, that really explains what the book will be addressing. Having said all that, once it's made clear that this book is an attempt to focus almost exclusively on the psychology of atheism, I felt that Sproul did an outstanding job of doing this. One of the main purposes of the book, first of all, is to refute the notion that Christians believe in a God of wishful thinking as a crutch-like mechanism, and then to show how atheism's rejection of the Christian God is based much more on wishful thinking and bias than the Christian's position. Within this context, I felt that Sproul's multifaceted examination of the "God question" was simply outstanding. Whether it's the equating of freedom with autonomy, to a fear of God's holiness, to an examination of the thoughts of prominent atheist psychologists and atheologians, Sproul mounts a formidable case against many of the fundamental benchmarks upon which atheism derives. Sproul likewise offers outstanding exegesis of relevant Biblical passages that speak to the very issues that atheists have long opined about. I found much of Sproul's analysis to be even handed and fresh, offering a very unique perspective on the ongoing debate over the existence of God and what motivates human beings either to accept or reject Christianity. In addition to my critique of the title of the book, the one other mini-concern I had about the book was that Sproul could have done a better job in his conclusion of summing up the major arguments he made throughout the book. This book had the potential to produce a very dramatic conclusion, but I found this to be lacking by what I thought was a conclusion that didn't do a good job of wrapping things up and tying the major tenets of the book together. As a result, the reader will have to work harder than they probably should have to in order to draw a comprehensive summary from this book. But in the end, I felt that the material and analysis was simply too good to demote the book below a 5 star rating. His analysis is excellent, and while readers who have little interest in the inner workings of psychology scholarship may find parts of the book a bit dry, it is nonetheless a powerful resource that effectively shows the psychological origins of disbelief. This is very helpful for the Christian. Understanding the origins of disbelief in terms of psychology can have a very positive impact on our ability to better talk to atheists on their terms about what their objections are. The disbelief of an atheist is not totally based on intellectual or philosophical objections, contrary to what many atheists assert. In many cases, their disbelief ultimately boils down to emotional objections to the holiness of God, their need for a Savior, and the existence of moral absolutes that atheism has no basis for adequately explaining. Knowing this up front will equip Christians to be more loving and understanding towards the atheist mindset, which should greatly help our ability to witness to them.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
IF THERE'S A GOD, WHY ARE THERE ATHEISTS? by R.C. Sproul,
By thepaxdomini "The Book Review" (Tulsa, OK) - See all my reviews
This review is from: If There's a God, Why Are There Atheists? (Paperback)
If There's a God, Why Are there Atheists? is theologian R.C. Sproul's revised version of his book The Psychology of Atheism. In it, Sproul explores the psychological motives for atheism, and deals with the arguments of Freud, Marx, Feuerbach and Nietzsche.This book is divided into two sections. In the first, "The Battlefield: Belief and Unbelief", Sproul introduces the debate over theism, the tension of disagreement, and the psychology of theism. Sproul is thoroughly fair and balanced here; one could hardly tell that he is a Christian. He discusses the arguments of Freud, Marx, Feuerbach and Nietzsche, and makes this interesting point: these men never argued against the existence of God. Rather, they presumed that God does not exist and built their arguments against religion on that assumption. In part two, "The Psychology of Unbelief", Sproul discusses the Judeo-Christian God. Such an omnipotent and holy God, he argues, is not one we would seek out to gratify our psychological needs. Sproul also delves into religion as man's flight from God rather than his quest for God, and how because of original sin, people are naturally God's enemies. If There's a God, Why Are there Atheists? is a rather short book (150 pages) and is a quick, mostly engaging read. Only in a few places does it drag. In it, Sproul makes some insightful, thought-provoking points. Recommended to believers interested in the subject or dealing with doubt, and to open-minded unbelievers. RECOMMENDED
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
IF THERE'S A GOD, WHY ARE THERE ATHEISTS? by R.C. Sproul,
By thepaxdomini "The Book Review" (Tulsa, OK) - See all my reviews
This review is from: IF THERE'S A GOD, WHY ARE THERE ATHEISTS? (Paperback)
If There's a God, Why Are there Atheists? is theologian R.C. Sproul's revised version of his book The Psychology of Atheism. In it, Sproul explores the psychological motives for atheism, and deals with the arguments of Freud, Marx, Feuerbach and Nietzsche.This book is divided into two sections. In the first, "The Battlefield: Belief and Unbelief", Sproul introduces the debate over theism, the tension of disagreement, and the psychology of theism. Sproul is thoroughly fair and balanced here; one could hardly tell that he is a Christian. He discusses the arguments of Freud, Marx, Feuerbach and Nietzsche, and makes this interesting point: these men never argued against the existence of God. Rather, they presumed that God does not exist and built their arguments against religion on that assumption. In part two, "The Psychology of Unbelief", Sproul discusses the Judeo-Christian God. Such an omnipotent and holy God, he argues, is not one we would seek out to gratify our psychological needs. Sproul also delves into religion as man's flight from God rather than his quest for God, and how because of original sin, people are naturally God's enemies. If There's a God, Why Are there Atheists? is a rather short book (150 pages) and is a quick, mostly engaging read. Only in a few places does it drag. In it, Sproul makes some insightful, thought-provoking points. Recommended to believers interested in the subject or dealing with doubt, and to open-minded unbelievers. RECOMMENDED
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