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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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Rating:  54 reviews
Sales Rank: 115
Media: Hardcover
Pages: 320
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.1
Dimensions (in): 8.9 x 6.2 x 1.3
ISBN: 0525950494
Dewey Decimal Number: 239
EAN: 9780525950493
ASIN: 0525950494
Publication Date: February 14, 2008
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Product Description
The End of Faith. The God Delusion. God Is Not Great. Letter to a Christian Nation. Bestseller lists are filled with doubters. But what happens when you actually doubt your doubts?
Although a vocal minority continues to attack the Christian faith, for most Americans, faith is a large part of their lives: 86 percent of Americans refer to themselves as religious, and 75 percent of all Americans consider themselves Christians. So how should they respond to these passionate, learned, and persuasive books that promote science and secularism over religion and faith? For years, Tim Keller has compiled a list of the most frequently voiced doubts skeptics bring to his Manhattan church. And in The Reason for God, he single-handedly dismantles each of them. Written with atheists, agnostics, and skeptics in mind, Keller also provides an intelligent platform on which true believers can stand their ground when bombarded by the backlash. The Reason for God challenges such ideology at its core and points to the true path and purpose of Christianity.
Why is there suffering in the world? How could a loving God send people to Hell? Why isnt Christianity more inclusive? Shouldnt the Christian God be a god of love? How can one religion be right and the rest wrong? Why have so many wars been fought in the name of God? These are just a few of the questions even ardent believers wrestle with today. In this book, Tim Keller uses literature, philosophy, real-life conversations and reasoning, and even pop culture to explain how faith in a Christian God is a soundly rational belief, held by thoughtful people of intellectual integrity with a deep compassion for those who truly want to know the truth.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 49 more reviews...
 The Reason for God May 2, 2008
Glendon L. Cardwell (Jupiter, FL)
Excellent answers to the questions we prefer not to admit we have, or have had, over the years.
 shallow and unconvincing, but not quite terrible... May 1, 2008
Leon Story (North Reading, MA USA)
1 out of 6 found this review helpful
The arguments in this book are Aquinas twice-removed, filtered through C.S.Lewis and perhaps Delbanco (fine scholar of the Puritans), who are quoted significantly. Keller rather sloppily argues the regularity of natural 'law' as proof of the Christian God's existence, presumably by evidence of design. Perhaps he should read Dawkins on anthropic principles before claiming human-knowable universality for such law! Things are probably very different in a black hole. He appeals to his readership with such dubious ad hominems as "Everyone wants to think that they are in the mainstream." He emphasizes the numerical increase of Presbyterians in Ghana as evidence of Christianity's growth, without giving anything like equal emphasis to its decline in those wealthier (and thus more literate and philosophically sophisticated) societies where it was strongest a century or two ago. He tries to convince us that the rejection of religious doctrine implies a "specific view" of God, as specific as that of a Christian sect. Sorry, Tim Keller, but you're only rehashing the old hash, preaching to the choir. None the less, the chapter on sin makes such a good case for the opposition of pride versus hope, and in the course of that takes a devastating swipe at the silly pop-psych notion of 'self-respect', that think the book is worth a couple of stars.
 How does the author define his terms? April 29, 2008
Ohio Christian (Ohio)
2 out of 11 found this review helpful
I was very hopeful about this book but I gave up on it 2/3 of the way through. The author failed to define the "God" he sees the reason for. From his text, I have to assume he has a picture of a God who sits on a throne in the sky and bestows blessings on those who ask nicely. I find this to be a poor picture of the God who Jesus knew. However, the author does define a "Christian" - as one who subscribes to the early creeds of the church. This is too narrow and is also in error with and fails to reflect what Jesus taught. I was very disappointed.
great ! April 28, 2008
K. Ruhl (Simi Valley, CA)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
This book caused me to think a lot! And it provided some of the answers I had been looking for. I recommend it to someone who "needs to know" and can't always fall back on plain faith.
I liked it..but wish Keller would have swung harder April 23, 2008
Erik Raymond (Omaha, NE USA)
6 out of 7 found this review helpful
Tim Keller is a guy who I have been intrigued by and have enjoyed listening to. In particular I have been impressed with his ability to communicate the gospel clearly and creatively. So it is only natural that I found myself encouraged and eager in the days leading up to the publication of The Reason for God.
Keller aims to call both sides of the rival religious camps (believers and skeptics) to the table for intelligent and logical conversation. Keller believes that our current culture is in an interesting station; on the one hand we are increasingly secular and in some cases being labeled `post-Christian' on the other hand, as Keller notes, Christianity is experiencing a great resurgence. Amazingly, both sides, says Keller, "feel their existence is threatened because both secular skepticism and religious faith are on the rise in significant, powerful ways." (from the introduction)
In the first section of the book Keller puts on his pastoral hat and attempts to answer some of the most common `issues' folks have with biblical Christianity. The chapters are by no means exhaustive but they are helpful in stimulating further thought and reflection. I found that Keller did was fair in his interaction with the objections while also demonstrating the truth from the Scriptures. In many cases he showed the inconsistent thinking and logic that tends to pervade such discussions. I have included the chapter titles below for your reference:
There Can't be Just One True Religion
How Could a Good God Allow Suffering?
Christianity is a Straitjacket
The Church is Responsible for So Much Injustice
How Can a Loving God Send People to Hell?
Science Has Disproved Christianity
You Can't Take the Bible Literally
In the weeks since reading this book I have found myself revisiting these chapters and rereading things. I definitely have come to like the book more since. There are some prevailing issues that I still have some difficulty with. I realize that most of the reviews within the Reformed circles are very favorable, and I don't want to discount them, I agree with many of them. However, there are some things about the book that I continue to have issue with. At the risk of sounding negative I want to list them here:
First, the book's audience appears to be skeptics. As a result Keller writes clearly and (thankfully) labors to communicate truth. He does this in a variety of ways, including, movies, novels, poems, personal stories and Scripture. Given that the book is intended to be apologetic, I would have anticipated a bit more Scripture in the book. This brings me to a bit of a side issue. Many have labeled the book `presuppositional'. That is it is demonstrative of a presuppositional apologetic approach. Being painted with this stripe got me pretty eager to read it. This would make sense given Keller's history at Westminster. However, in reading the book it seemed much more "Schaefferian" (Francis Schaeffer) than "Van Tillian" (Cornelius Van Til). All of this to say, if you are a `hyper' presup guy this book will probably not be your apologetics fix.
Keller also does not rule out the possibility of theistic evolution. Keller says, "I think Genesis 1 has the earmarks of poetry and is therefore a `song' about the wonder and meaning of God's creation. Genesis 2 is an account of how it happened." (p.94) Further, Keller believes that this issue (evolution) is an "intramural debate".
Keller also comes across a bit more chummy with the Roman Catholic Church than I am comfortable with. I am unsure where Keller would come down on this when asked. I would assume that he would believe that any who do not hold that one is justified by grace alone, through faith alone in Christ alone is not a Christian. However, Keller lumps Roman Catholics in with Christians on a few occasions.
Finally, there just seemed to be a bit of a check swing on many major components of the gospel. This is not to say that Keller is not preaching the gospel, however, I am saying that in what appears to be an effort to be understood and relevant he compromises the clarity and punch that the Scripture gives. For example, Keller describes hell as, "If we were to lose his presence totally, that would be hell--the loss of our capability for giving or receiving love or joy." (p.76)
I just find this to be drastically understated. I was really looking for Keller to unpack rebellion, idolatry, worship and God's right to judge. I don't think Keller swung and missed, I just think it was a check swing.
In the second half of the book Keller unpacks the gospel. I found myself really enjoying this section (in spite of my concerns listed above). His chapters Religion and the Gospel and The Reality of the Resurrection were excellent and in my view worth the price of the book. Finally in The Dance of God we see a lot of the influence of Jonathan Edwards coming out in Keller. This chapter is also a gem.
Overall I like the book. I have personally sent a copy to an unbelieving friend with whom I have had the opportunity to talk at length with about the gospel. My hopes are that it will spark additional conversations and interaction around the gospel. Despite the few bones that I picked out, I have little doubt that if you are a believer you will find yourself encouraged and further equipped to communicate truth in reading The Reason for God.
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