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| The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism | 
 enlarge | Author: Timothy Keller
Publisher: Dutton Adult
Category: Book
List Price: $24.95
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Avg. Customer Rating:  129 reviews
Sales Rank: 203
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 293
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.1
Dimensions (in): 9.1 x 6.2 x 1
ISBN: 0525950494
Dewey Decimal Number: 239
EAN: 9780525950493
ASIN: 0525950494
Publication Date: February 14, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: good shape, bce
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| Customer Reviews:
 Rationality, as well as beauty and respect February 27, 2008
46 out of 54 found this review helpful
I'm a certified member of the Tim Keller fan club. I listen to his sermons. I read everything he writes. I even belong to the Facebook fan club. Few thinkers or practitioners have influenced me more than he has. I am not the biggest fan out there, but I'm certainly a member of the club. This is dangerous, because nobody can live up to all that.
But Keller isn't the first to face the challenges of a growing profile and unrealistic expectations, and thankfully, he continues to use his influence wisely. The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism, now on the New York Times bestseller list, is likely to multiply his influence even more, not only within the church but also within a culture with serious doubts about Christianity.
In a sense, there's nothing new in this book. It's all out there in other places, just like all the ingredients of a meal prepared by a chef are there in the grocery store. In The Reason for God, you have presuppositional apologetics in the tradition of Van Til, as well as generous doses of C.S. Lewis, the subtle but strong influence of Jonathan Edwards, as well as engagement with contemporary thinkers and writers.
What is unique is how Keller brings all together; in other words, the way these ingredients are mixed. Keller aptly deals with common doubts and objections to Christianity, such as "There can't be just one true religion" and "How can a loving God send people to hell?" Behind every doubt is an alternate set of beliefs. "The only way to doubt Christianity rightly and fairly," Keller writes, "is to discern the alternate belief under each of your doubts and then to ask yourself what reasons you have for believing it." Keller does this with each of the objections to Christianity, showing that none of the objections make Christianity impossible or even implausible.
Doubting our doubts about Christianity is only part of the journey. In the second half of the book, Keller offers reasons for faith, demonstrating that the Christian faith makes the most sense of the world. "I ask you to put on Christianity like a pair of spectacles and look at the world with it. See what power it has to explain what we know and see."
What really stands out about this book, besides its content, is the way that Keller engages with these issues. He is civil, respectful, winsome, and ironic, but never hostile. He does not belittle those with alternate beliefs, even as he directly examines and challenges those beliefs. Keller models a way of relating to those who disagree, and provides a model for all of us. He shows how one can possess an robust and orthodox Christian faith, and yet winsomely engage with those with completely different and hostile beliefs.
Keller's wife, Kathy, has said that the mark of a good sermon is that people stop taking notes part way through. It starts rationally, like a lesson, but ends with an encounter with Jesus. The Reason for God is full of rational arguments, but it doesn't end there. By the end of the book we encounter beauty, and some of the most profound expressions of the Christian faith I've read.
Last Sunday, somebody thanked me for making this book available to them. They've been looking for a book like this for some time, and they're loving it. I don't think he will be the last one. The Reason for God is a book that deserves to be read not only by Christians, but by those who have doubts - even by those who are hostile. It covers important issues, and shows not only the rationality but the beauty of the Christian faith. Just as importantly, it does so in a way that is genuinely respectful to the reader no matter what their beliefs. I hope it will be read widely.
Spectacular and long overdue February 15, 2008
35 out of 58 found this review helpful
Those who have had the privilege of listening to Keller's sermons over the years will not be at all surprised that this book is brilliant, charming, entertaining, profound, edifying, humble, generous, cheerful, and powerfully compelling. But those unfamiliar with Keller might be shocked. Note to Mssrs. Hitchens, Dawkins, and Harris: Be afraid. Be very very afraid.
 Imaginary Friends Are For Kids March 17, 2008
33 out of 251 found this review helpful
I'm really disappointed in this author. For someone who talks so much about his own "intellectual gifts," he's not very bright.
Let me explain this in simple terms.
The Jewish religion had a LOT of competition. About 100 BC, there was a movement inside Judaism to add some supernatural elements. Specifically, there were
(a) a general resurrection of all the dead at a Day of Judgment,
(b) demonic spirits which could be cast out through exorcism, and
(c) dreams were actually messages from God, and
(d) angels that appeared in dreams to deliver these messages were real.
Until 70 AD, the leaders of Judaism fought against these ideas. Then Titus destroyed the Temple of Jerusalem, and the Resurrection Cults were given new attention. The Gospel of Mark was rewritten to make Jesus APPEAR to agree with the Pharisees on major points, such as the End of the World taking place "while some of those standing here are still alive." Which placed the Christian deadline for the End of the World in 120 AD or earlier.
Nothing in Christianity is credible in any sense. There was no General Resurrection of the dead. Jesus did not restore the political independence of Israel, or rule Israel from the throne of King David.
A book that pretends to defend Christianity against critics... must address the issues. Otherwise, the author is dishonest.
 No Real Reason but Eloquent March 14, 2008
29 out of 64 found this review helpful
This book seems to be one of those books for Christians who wants to strengthen their faith, but not for non-believers who have spent considerable time thinking through the subject with an out-of-the-box perspective. I will be honest; I pecked through certain chapters to see if it was worth reading, since I find the subject of why people believe certain beliefs fascinating. I probably read only a quarter of the book one afternoon in the bookstore. I was looking for just one or two "WOW, here is a reason for God". I am not searching for absolute proof in God, but just enough circumstantial evidence to make it a somewhat probably and viable life choice again.
I am actually a very "happy and free to believe what I think makes sense" ex-evangelical, whose mother wanted me to read a "Case for Christ" because she thought it made a strong case for Christianity. The author Mr. Strobel was an atheist who supposedly made an honest investigation and the evidence added up to conversion and a strong "Case for Christ". I read the book from cover to cover and I found that he and his theological experts really only answered simple softball questions that he could find positive answers for. This book was basically doing the same thing as far as I can tell and didn't have the time to drag my self through this book shaking my head.
This book is well written and very detailed from what I read. The quotes from the literary giants are educational and a nice touch. My problem as a skeptic is that Mr. Keller spends a lot of words debunking popular, but irrelevant arguments from non-believers and believers alike. Whether or not God allows suffering; has nothing to do with his existence. The Church being responsible for so much injustice; has nothing to do with God's existence. A loving God would never send anybody to hell has nothing to do with the actual existence of God. I didn't read anything that I disagreed with as far as his arguments, only that he thought that debunking these arguments were in someway a reason for God. The argument he makes about people only wanting to believe in a God that has a structure of justice and behaviors, and somehow their subconscious belief in some unseen structure is some sort of proof of God existence, is again irrelevant to reality. Reality/Truth is what many people are looking for; and pretty, even eloquent words that do not really attach themselves to the real world are at their heart empty as far as genuine belief goes.
I realize I could of missed the explanation, and if I did hopefully someone will fill me in a subsequent entry, but I wanted Mr. Keller to give a strong and enlightening answer to questions like: Where do ALL of the pre-Spanish Incas, Ancient Chinese or the 100s of millions of people knew nothing of a very localized God, end up in eternity? They never heard of Christ their whole life. How do they get to a Christian heaven based on scripture? I have asked the question a number of times to people who read the Bible regularly and I get anything from a "We don't know" to the typical modern re-engineering of the salvation process. I don't think you could classify all of those ancient people as evil or bad. I realize a strong answer to this question does not in itself prove God either, but at least in my opinion it is a tough one to answer for many Christians who believe in a somewhat loving God and a really strict path to heaven. This is just one of many, many, many questions I have that are never answered in any book on this subject.
I am no expert on everything in the Bible as you can tell; just a guy actually enjoying the life long search for truth.
Everyone has faith in something. March 2, 2008
28 out of 32 found this review helpful
The Reason For God by Timothy Keller is a superb book. It presents powerful arguments for the Christian faith, but without the complexity and underlying judgmentalism that has characterized many books on the subject. It makes an obvious but powerful point, that even the loudest critics of faith are themselves "people of faith." Not to believe in a creator, for example, requires a leap of faith. On close examination, each of us inevitably believes in something, even if that something is the belief that there is nothing worth believing in.
What do you believe about your life, why you are here, where you are going? Is life just a mindless fumbling through a maze or does it have purpose and meaning? What does the future hold, a depressing existence and then annihilation or the promise of hope and a future? These questions and many more are answered in plain language with intelligence and respect. It is a powerful book.
Keller is the founder and senior pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in Manhattan. Redeemer is amazing, attended by more than 5000 each week, mostly in their 20s and 30s. Many are highly successful people with advanced degrees and lots of questions. The church does not rely on music or drama to bring people in, rather Keller has found a way to speak into the interests and concerns of so many people by addressing their serious questions directly: "There can't be just one true religion." "How could a good God allow suffering?" "Science has disproved Christianity." "You can't take the Bible literally." And many others.
You will find them all here and will not be disappointed.
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