Download or read book Religion Is God S Way of Showing Us It S a Lot Earlier in Human Evolution Than We Thought written by Douglas Falknor and published by Abbott Press. This book was released on 2013-05-14 with total page 396 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Radical understanding of ourselves is now possible to our very coregreater insight into whom we really are, where we came from, what our evolution has been, what it has meant, and what it means now and for the future. That quest has been an intellectual one, but it also has been a spiritual oneand answers with spiritual meaning are now possible, even for the atheists, doubters, skeptics, humanists, and freethinkers. In this study, author Douglas Falknor explores the issue of how religion has evolved along with humanity. A nonbeliever, Falknor seeks to answer a host of age-old questions: Are we born addicted to religion? Why do we have religion? Is there a God? How has religion evolved and created the hardwired spirituality within us? Falknor goes beyond the God gene and surveys recent thought and reveals original interpretations of what it all means. He traces this spiritual quest for nonbelievers and calls this the Path of the Doubtful Sojourner. Through this discussion, Falknor seeks to pave the way toward greater spiritual and psychological fulfillment.
Download or read book The Language of God written by Francis Collins and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2008-09-04 with total page 227 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Dr Francis S. Collins, head of the Human Genome Project, is one of the world's leading scientists, working at the cutting edge of the study of DNA, the code of life. Yet he is also a man of unshakable faith in God. How does he reconcile the seemingly unreconcilable? In THE LANGUAGE OF GOD he explains his own journey from atheism to faith, and then takes the reader on a stunning tour of modern science to show that physics, chemistry and biology -- indeed, reason itself -- are not incompatible with belief. His book is essential reading for anyone who wonders about the deepest questions of all: why are we here? How did we get here? And what does life mean?
Download or read book Give Me an Answer written by Cliffe Knechtle and published by InterVarsity Press. This book was released on 1986-03-31 with total page 172 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Cliffe Knechtle offers clear, reasoned and compassionate responses to the tough questions skeptics ask.
Download or read book Evolving God written by Barbara J. King and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2017-04-21 with total page 300 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The author of How Animals Grieve “contends that religion . . . is a consequence of primate evolution” in this “brilliant book” (Booklist, starred review). Religion has been a central part of human experience since at least the dawn of recorded history. The gods change, as do the rituals, but the underlying desire remains—a desire to belong to something larger, greater, most lasting than our mortal, finite selves. But where did that desire come from? Can we explain its emergence through evolution? Yes, says biological anthropologist Barbara J. King—and doing so not only helps us to understand the religious imagination, but also reveals fascinating links to the lives and minds of our primate cousins. Evolving God draws on King’s own fieldwork among primates in Africa and paleoanthropology of our extinct ancestors to offer a new way of thinking about the origins of religion, one that situates it in a deep need for emotional connection with others, a need we share with apes and monkeys. Though her thesis is provocative, and she’s not above thoughtful speculation, King’s argument is strongly rooted in close observation and analysis. She traces an evolutionary path that connects us to other primates, who, like us, display empathy, make meanings through interaction, create social rules, and display imagination—the basic building blocks of the religious imagination. With fresh insights, she responds to recent suggestions that chimpanzees are spiritual—or even religious—beings, and that our ancient humanlike cousins carefully disposed of their dead well before the time of Neandertals. “Her interpretations result in a provocative hypothesis about the evolution of spirituality.” —The Dallas Morning News
Download or read book The Sacred Chain written by Jim Stump and published by HarperCollins. This book was released on 2024-04-02 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A thought-provoking and eye-opening work by Jim Stump, Vice President at BioLogos and host of the Language of God podcast, offering a compelling argument about how evolution does not have to be at odds with faith, but can actually enrich and deepen it. In this moving and deeply thoughtful book, Jim Stump takes readers with him on his journey to understanding evolution and reconciling it with his faith. The Sacred Chain draws on philosophy, theology, and the latest scientific research to tackle some of the biggest questions facing humanity and people of faith today, such as: How can we hold the Bible as a sacred text and yet reconcile modern science with it? By condensing noteworthy events in the history of our universe into one calendar week, what can we learn about God’s creative process and priorities, and where humans fit in? If humans are created in the image of God, what does evolution have to teach us about our species and our place in creation? What about the soul? How can we understand our transcendent qualities if the human body is the product of evolution? How does evolutionary science help us understand how God might use pain and suffering for important and good purposes? Does it have to be one or the other—science or religion—or is there a third way, one that not only preserves faith in the face of modern science, but leads to a stronger, more relevant, and more authentic faith? Deeply researched and a delight to read, The Sacred Chain provides clarity in our uncertain times, revealing a bigger picture of our world and our place within it. It is a panorama consistent with the scientific findings about who we are and where we come from that can actually bolster our faith as it engages our curiosity about ourselves, our universe, and the nature of existence itself.
Download or read book Religion in Human Evolution written by Robert N. Bellah and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 2017-05-08 with total page 777 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice An ABC Australia Best Book on Religion and Ethics of the Year Distinguished Book Award, Sociology of Religion Section of the American Sociological Association Religion in Human Evolution is a work of extraordinary ambition—a wide-ranging, nuanced probing of our biological past to discover the kinds of lives that human beings have most often imagined were worth living. It offers what is frequently seen as a forbidden theory of the origin of religion that goes deep into evolution, especially but not exclusively cultural evolution. “Of Bellah’s brilliance there can be no doubt. The sheer amount this man knows about religion is otherworldly...Bellah stands in the tradition of such stalwarts of the sociological imagination as Emile Durkheim and Max Weber. Only one word is appropriate to characterize this book’s subject as well as its substance, and that is ‘magisterial.’” —Alan Wolfe, New York Times Book Review “Religion in Human Evolution is a magnum opus founded on careful research and immersed in the ‘reflective judgment’ of one of our best thinkers and writers.” —Richard L. Wood, Commonweal
Download or read book Evolution of God written by Leonardo Wolfe and published by WestBow Press. This book was released on 2021-02-24 with total page 584 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This debut book boldly seeks to argue competitively in the same intellectual field as famous atheists such as RICHARD DAWKINS, CHRISTOPHER HITCHENS, and BERTRAND RUSSELL, and to do so in the spirit and style of such famous Christian apologists as C.S. Lewis and RAVI ZACHARIAS, drawing heavily on basic science, history, physics, psychology, paleontology, anthropology, archeology, neurology, child development and even science fiction. It describes the evolution of the human brain in ancient hominids allowing humans to eventually conceive a non-physical realm (the spirit world), and as the mind evolved intellectually from primitive animism to Christology, God revealed himself gradually as the developing hominid brain became able to comprehend new ideas. For Believers, the author presents a new, intellectually satisfying way to understand and defend the Bible. For both Skeptics and Believers, a worldview is offered that is spiritually meaningful and scientifically sound.
Download or read book Evolution With a Twist written by Ian T. Hill and published by iUniverse. This book was released on 2007-07 with total page 202 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the year 2028, university professor John Cupar and his small research team have created Brenda and Steve, two human looking robots capable of both emotion and reasoning. Brenda lives with the professor's family and Steve lives with the professor's chief assistant. When the Professor announces his creation at a technical conference, he is sharply criticized. Many wonder how the androids will fit into society. Will they have rights? And how can they be controlled considering that, theoretically, they will never die? Faced with this controversy over their existence, the androids flee from their families. But while Brenda eventually returns to be put to sleep to spare her family punishment, Steve finds a home where he passes himself off as a normal humanoid servant. As the months pass, Steve decides to survive on his own and starts creating conscious androids like himself. When Professor Cupar discovers Steve's activities, he knows that serious repercussions will result if anyone finds out that these humanoids have started to multiply on their own. Now he wants to find Steve and disable the other conscious humanoids before they integrate with society. But Steve has learned a thing or two while on his own, and he's not about to let a human rob him of his chance to control his own destiny.
Download or read book The Evolution Of The Idea Of God An Inquiry Into The Origins Of Religions written by Allen Grant and published by . This book was released on 2023-12 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The Evolution of the Idea of God" is a notion-provoking e book written by way of Grant Allen within the past due nineteenth century. This insightful work explores the historic development of the concept of God within human civilization. Allen delves into the evolution of religious idea, analyzing how early human societies conceived of deities and how those ideals transformed over the years. The e-book highlights the progression from primitive animistic and polytheistic ideals to the emergence of monotheism in diverse cultures. Allen additionally investigates the position of medical discoveries and cultural shifts in shaping humanity's perception of God. He shows that as societies developed, so too did their understanding of the divine, frequently reflecting adjustments in their social, political, and intellectual environments. Grant Allen's work is a pioneering exploration of the hyperlink among human evolution, cultural development, and religious ideals. It gives readers with a complete historical perspective at the concept of God, losing light on how specific societies have grappled with this profound concept at some stage in records. "The Evolution of the Idea of God" remains a precious aid for all and sundry interested in the intersection of faith, philosophy, and human history.
Download or read book The Evolution of the Idea of God written by Grant Allen and published by . This book was released on 1897 with total page 498 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Discovering God written by Rodney Stark and published by Harper Collins. This book was released on 2009-03-17 with total page 605 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Winner of the 2008 Christianity Today Award of Merit in Theology/Ethics The History of God In Discovering God, award-winning sociologist Rodney Stark presents a monumental history of the origins of the great religions from the Stone Age to the Modern Age and wrestles with the central questions of religion and belief.
Download or read book Only a Theory written by Kenneth Raymond Miller and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2008 with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Evaluates the debate between advocates for evolution and intelligent design which occured during the 2005 Dover evolution trial, dissecting the claims of the intelligent design movement and explaining why the conflict is compromising America's position a
Download or read book The Evolution of the Idea of God written by Grant Allen and published by Independently Published. This book was released on 2018-11-30 with total page 242 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Originally published in 1897, The Evolution of the Idea of God is a study of humans' belief in God from primitive tribal religions to what Allen considered the more advanced Christian view. The main question explored here is "How did we arrive at our knowledge of God?" Rather than trying to prove or disprove any claims about the divine, Allen's method simply traces the psychological processes that led humans to religious belief, and further, from a belief in polytheism to monotheism. Students of religion, mythology, and human psychology will find this an intriguing work. Canadian writer GRANT ALLEN (1848-1899) attended university in the United Kingdom and taught at Queen's College in Jamaica. His many published books include mainly scientific books and popular novels, and in 1895 he published one of the first Canadian science fiction books, The British Barbarians. ..Charles Grant Blairfindie Allen (February 24, 1848 - October 25, 1899) was a Canadian science writer and novelist, and a public promoter of Evolution in the second half of the 19th century.Early life and educationAllen was born near Kingston, Canada West (known as Ontario after Confederation), the second son of Catharine Ann Grant and the Rev. Joseph Antisell Allen, a Protestant minister from Dublin, Ireland.His mother was a daughter of the fifth Baron de Longueuil. Allen was educated at home until, at age 13, he and his parents moved to the United States, then to France, and finally to the United Kingdom. He was educated at King Edward's School in Birmingham and at Merton College in Oxford, both in the United Kingdom.After graduation, Allen studied in France, taught at Brighton College in 1870-71, and in his mid-twenties became a professor at Queen's College, a black college in Jamaica. Despite being the son of a minister, Allen became an agnostic and a socialist.
Download or read book Philosophical Thinking and the Religious Context written by Brendan Sweetman and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2013-10-24 with total page 192 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This new collection covers a wide range of cutting-edge and timely questions in contemporary philosophy of religion from a rich variety of backgrounds and perspectives. The essays in the volume deal with a range of fascinating topics in the philosophy of religion such as views of God's nature in process philosophy and theology, process views compared with traditional views (such as that found in St Thomas Aquinas), teleology and purpose in human life and in the universe, religion and evolution, the problem of evil both in human experience and in the natural world, and ethical questions concerning the human road to God, and the question of human rights in pluralist, democratic states. The essays in the first section, "Approaches to God," examine the rationality of the approach to the nature of God defended in process philosophy, particularly in the work of two pioneering thinkers, Charles Hartshorne and A.N. Whitehead. The second section of the book, "Science, Evolution and God," turns to the engagement of Christian views regarding the nature of God and creation with modern developments in science and philosophy. The last section, "Philosophy of Religion and Ethics," takes up broader, more foundational questions. Santiago Sia concludes the volume with a sustained reflection on the nature of philosophy, and philosophizing, a discussion to which he brings many insights and experiences from his own academic career.
Download or read book Is this the Best God Could Do written by Sarah Tirri and published by eBookIt.com. This book was released on 2011-03-03 with total page 274 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Is This the Best God Could Do? (nonfiction, approximately 115.000 words) was born of a crisis of faith of the most cruel kind, the loss of my mother who lingered on the brink death for five weeks, and that is where the book begins. I was living the American dream, a happy wife and mother, and by most measures, charmed, and then she died, suffering terribly in the process in spite of my ardent prayers. Like many in this position, I felt that God had let me down, but once my grief passed, I realized that the God of traditional Christianity keeps us in thrall by fear and guilt, by insisting we are small when we are really quite "big" beings. When the World Trade Center collapsed, I also realized that the end of the world might well be upon us because it is a self-fulfilling prophecy brought about by the zealot believers in the Abrahamic religions, fear carried to an illogical extreme. This epiphany made me angry. Is This the Best God Could Do? is also the result of that anger.However, although the topic is obviously deadly serious, I debunk the warped monotheism of the "Big Three" with humor and wit as well as reasonable, albeit edgy, argument. What follows the section in which I recount the loss of my mother (and the realization that the Abrahamic version of God has been messing with us for a couple thousand years) is part dialogue with that big guy (picture Groucho Marx as interlocutor: "Hi, God of Christianity, Sarah here. I can appreciate your dilemma, I really can. But the next time one of your angels gets out of hand, please try to take care of the problem instead of making it one of ours..."), part personal history, and part reasoned deconstruction.But the conclusion I reach about religion does not amount to an advocacy of atheism. Although the monotheistic God is discounted as a manmade thing, one used to control us, I also argue against the godless scientism of Richard Dawkins (The God Delusion), Sam Harris (Letter to a Christian Nation), and Christopher Hitchens (God is Not Great). In fact, I argue against this limited perception of human being as a random function of extraneous forces in favor of a more profound participation of humans in reality leading to a profound spiritual transformation on the part of individuals and eventually all of humanity.I also argue for a kind of pandemic version of the dramatic "wake up" effect (Eckart Tolle's concept from A New Earth) I experienced when my mother died. The human race, indeed the very planet, is going through extraordinary changes - all cause for great alarm among the monotheists as the beginning of the end. I insist in Is This the Best God Could Do? that, on the contrary, our situation is karmically inevitable and the dire straits in which we find ourselves an invitation to spiritual growth and thereby a renewal of civilization. I also call for those born to relative wealth, the American populace in general but also most of the Western world, to accept responsibility for charting the way forward because it is easier to evolve beyond the traditional notions of religion when one's belly is full and one is warm and dry.But Is This the Best God Could Do? is not just a polemic about the medieval grip of fundamentalism that holds humans back from the self awareness necessary to find a way forward through the difficulties of history to an enlightened way of life - the book also charts the path. I offer guidance to the reader for achieving the kind of awareness that allows them to hear "God's voice" and to participate in the world as an active agent instead of being just a passive believer, to understand the "magnitude of our spiritual reality." Although my book is utterly unique in its mixture of elements (the strident debunking of monotheism, the hopeful recognition of the "bigness" of humans as spiritual beings to stand in opposition to the "smallness" of fear and guilt, a hope-filled recipe for saving us from ourselves, and memoir...
Download or read book Bring God Back to America written by Charlie Madison and published by Page Publishing Inc. This book was released on 2020-05-15 with total page 286 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Book Delisted
Download or read book Darwin God and the Meaning of Life written by Steve Stewart-Williams and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2010-09-30 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: If you accept evolutionary theory, can you also believe in God? Are human beings superior to other animals, or is this just a human prejudice? Does Darwin have implications for heated issues like euthanasia and animal rights? Does evolution tell us the purpose of life, or does it imply that life has no ultimate purpose? Does evolution tell us what is morally right and wrong, or does it imply that ultimately 'nothing' is right or wrong? In this fascinating and intriguing book, Steve Stewart-Williams addresses these and other fundamental philosophical questions raised by evolutionary theory and the exciting new field of evolutionary psychology. Drawing on biology, psychology and philosophy, he argues that Darwinian science supports a view of a godless universe devoid of ultimate purpose or moral structure, but that we can still live a good life and a happy life within the confines of this view.
