Synopses & Reviews
In this groundbreaking exploration, a biblical scholar and M.I.T.-trained physicist combines decades of research to change the debate between religion and science, presenting a new paradigm of how to understand God.
Gerald Schroeder has spent his career revealing the hand of God in the intricate discoveries of physics. Now, for the first time, he turns his attention to this force, examining both the Bible and the physical world to discover the true nature of God—God according to God.
Schroeder argues that we have ignored those traits of God we find unappealing, replacing them with our personal desire for the all-knowing, all-loving, never-changing deity that so many worship today. This leads to the age-old problem: How can there be such a God when the world is filled with tragedy? Yet Schroeder reveals that this troubling juxtaposition is really smoke and mirrors. The God revealed in the Bible is 100 percent compatible with the world as we know it today. It is our misconception of God that causes the disparity. In fact, the concept of God that atheists rail against and that believers defend is inaccurate.
In God According to God, Schroeder presents a compelling case for the true God, a dynamic God who is still learning how to relate to creation. The key to God's action in the world, according to Schroeder, can be found in a well-known verse in Exodus that is typically translated "I am that which I am." Schroeder's correction that it should be translated "I will be that which I will be" reveals a God that changes to fit the ever-changing world.
This opens our eyes to other characteristics of God that we have long overlooked despite their being present in some of the most popular stories in the Bible—a God who regrets (the flood of Noah), a God who wants us to argue with Him (Jacob wrestling with God in the desert), and thus a God who changes His mind (Moses convinces God to spare the Israelite people), and a God who allowed nature, and the creation itself, from the very start, to rebel (Adam's and Eve's betrayal in Eden).
With riveting chapters on the origins of life, a scientist's view of creation, and the unique place of our planet in the galaxy, God According to God offers a radical paradigm shift that will forever change how we understand God.
Review
“Schroeders insights help explore mankinds relationship with God in an entirely new and thought-provoking manner.” Rabbi Heschel Weiner, director, Walder Science Laboratory and Learning Center
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“A brilliant mix of ancient exegesis and modern science that will convince some and infuriate others. Schroeders book demands the attention of anyone who wonders if God must be exiled from the modern, enlightened mind.” David J. Wolpe, author of Why Faith Matters
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“This is as important a book on this subject as I recall ever having read.” Huston Smith, author of The World's Religions
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“[Schroeder] has written an intriguing book that will stimulate thinking about the world, God, and Judaism.” Jewish Book World
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“A remarkable tour de force, combining science, theology and biblical exegesis in a most compelling and significant way, casting a new light on how we view God and our own place within the world.” Jerusalem Post
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“Full of paradox, existential tensions, and spiritual and intellectual epiphany, the book is another gift to humanity from a scientist who is also a great man, a deep thinker, a spiritual counselor and a wonderful teacher.” Rabbi David Lapin
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“A remarkable book. The science as well as the meaning of this universe and of life are discussed with insight, rigor, and depth along with a perceptive, challenging and scholarly view of the Old Testament. Great for a thoughtful reader!” Charles H. Townes, winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics, Professor Emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley
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“No one can read this book and ever think of God or how our world operates in the same way again. Schroeder has the rare ability to present complex matters, whether theological or scientific, in an engaging and understandable way. A must read.” Prof. James D. Tabor, Chair, Dept. of Religious Studies, UNC Charlotte, author of The Jesus Dynasty and Restoring Abrahamic Faith.
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“God According to God is crucially important reading …I found this book a ringing confirmation of my deepest feelings about the Living God of history.” Shlomo Riskin, Chief Rabbi of Efrat
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“Gerry Schroeder is one of a kind. Not only does he have a complete command of science but a complete command of the Biblical texts. As a result, he takes viewers on a fantastic journey that is both fun and extremely profound.” Simcha Jacobovici, bestselling author and award-winning filmmaker
Synopsis
“This is as important a book on this subject as I recall ever having read.”
— Huston Smith
“Brilliant.... Schroeders book demands the attention of anyone who wonders if God must be exiled from the modern, enlightened mind.”
— David J. Wolpe, author of Why Faith Matters
In his first book since 2002s acclaimed The Hidden Face of God, popular scientist Gerald Schroeder combines decades of scientific research and biblical study to present a groundbreaking new paradigm of how to understand God. Readers of Jack Miles God: A Biography, Francis Collinss The Language of God, and Richard Friedmans Who Wrote the Bible will find much to contemplate in God According to God.
About the Author
Gerald L. Schroeder is the author of The Science of God, The Hidden Face of God, and Genesis and the Big Bang. He earned his Ph.D. in physics and the earth sciences at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. An applied theologian, he currently teaches at the College of Jewish Studies in Jerusalem.