Christianity without God: Moving beyond the Dogmas and Retrieving the Epic Moral Narrative Paperback – October 1, 2014

I wish more traditional Christians could get over their victimization and defensiveness and take a look at Daniel C. Maguire's important book. His scholarship is wide-ranging and impeccable. He is obviously in the company of many other scholars today and in the past: those researchers who are unafraid to follow the truth wherever it leads and submit their conjectures out in the open for peer and public review.The epic story he tells has always been available to all. The texts of the Bible have always been profoundly dislocating for the new American Empire's comforting shibboleths most traditional Christians wrap themselves up in.The author points out the clear traditions in the Bible that point to a complete restructuring of the world. The ancient Jews knew how to do it.Beset by violence and rule by other people and kingdoms, the religious/political/social matrix of these people demanded a moral response to their environment which always boiled down to a "boot on the neck" from the powers and principalities of the world they lived in.Readers will get a lesson in reality. The Jews not only suffered and cried out to their God, they also did something about it. They constructed societies that had built-in safeguards to ensure sharing and caretaking for the members of their tribe who were the most destitute and weakened by their conquering overlords. They instituted specific programs that would ensure the development of a truly just society. They proved in reality the truth that poverty, misery, violence and depersonalization are ultimately dangerous to everyone.Maguire deftly and elegantly shows that Christianity soon became a movement and a religion Jesus and the great Hebrew prophets would reject outright. He does not shy away from confronting a conception of God that is related to trust instead of some sort or divine vending machine.Christianity has taken the iconoclastic Jesus who eschewed public prayer and never claimed to be divine as an icon of the Gentiles and worshiped as a man/god. Never mind that the actual historical figure did not believe in blood sacrifice and referred to Gentiles as "dogs," asserting that his mission was only to the House of Israel. And now we live in a global culture where those tired theological phrases from the ancient world are neither compelling or persuadable. What to do?The author makes a moving and well-thought out case for reconnecting with the mythic journey of Exile through the Wilderness and making it to the Promised Land. We are clearly in the wilderness, looking for those who can give us the necessary clues for escaping the desert with our human morality intact. We are clearly on the verge of a different sort of reality. It is comparable to the DNA-provoked decision to climb down out of the trees and begin walking upright on the African savanna. We are all--like it or not--living together in the same metaphorical room. We either have to change or die. This choice has always been lurking about in human consciousness, but this is the first time humanity at large is being confronted by this truth.The idea of God has not yet been described and, more alarmingly, it is a concept that no longer works and it stands in the way of human rights and dignity and liberty and justice for all. But a focused reading of this book and an honest study of the Bible itself gives us a small spark of hope.The world has been changed before and it can be changed once again. Perhaps we can use the metaphor of a load of snow falling to the forest floor. It only takes the weight of a single, tiny snowflake to send the clump of snow to the ground.This book is one of those "necessary reads." But like I already said, most traditional Christians are still not able to stop taking their heritage of mythic truth and symbolic language any way but literally. And in today's interconnected global world that is a truly horrific state of affairs.

Dear Dan,Your wonderful book, which I acquired via Kindle, has offered not only Christians but all of us the chance to embrace a more humanistic morality which will hopefully in the nick of time keep the burgeoning 7 plus billion of us humans from being annihilated either with war, famine or pestilence.While I am not optimistic about our avoiding such future prospects, it did occur to me that should, magically and at the same time—namely now, the multiple Christian sects which abound around us could come to embrace your point of view and act upon it, how efficient it would be for them.They could all just simply convert their handsome or modest facilities of present worship into clubhouses which could worship your philosophy.The advantages are enormous! Just as the followers of Martin Luther at the time of the Reformation cut the gargoyles off the Catholic Churches in Geneva which I saw on a visit there, John. Calvin and his pals elsewhere, Knox and others, went on using them for their priesthood of all believers philosophy.And your Maguire Christians could happily follow your program and not lose their present tax deductions at least in the US. They would not have to give up their hymnals and they could sing Amazing Grace using the humanistic lyrics that Richard Dawkins, the Darwinian scholar and atheist, mentioned to me when we had lunch earlier this year. And drink wine or grape juice same as before.Just think, the Catholics could keep all their lovely treasures, but simply vacate some of their more odious positions such as Papal infallibility, Russian roulette birth control, back alley abortions, and no assisted end of life options.It might be especially hard going for the 6 of 9 Catholics who serve as Justices on our US Supreme Court to swallow such heresies, but then they would just somehow have to make do. After all, they have lifetime appointments and they get dandy pensions when they retire, if any of them ever do.Of course the non Christians aren’t covered by your manifesto, but what about not embracing your changes for the Islamists if we want to save human life on Planet Earth? Allah’s followers make up a pretty fair number of people. They might have an even tougher transition than Christians. However, since your nirvana is likely not to occur immediately, this coward will avoid making any further comments for fear of being Salman Rushdieized or far worse.So, let’s not be greedy or overly hopeful. I love your thinking and have high hopes for its widespread adoption by Christians of all persuasions. In fact, what you suggest is what us humanists already embrace, so for me the conversion has already taken place. Bravo on joining my sect!!

Dan Maguire challenges all the doctrines upon which the Church has "rested its case" concerning the Divinity of Jesus and in faqct the very basis of "a God" or of "divine presence" somehow functioning in our world and so in the many religious communities which claim "they speak for God".We are truly ignorant of the development of the "Hebrew and Christian Scriptures". We have allowed institutions to give the basis of what is found in these writings. Modern scholarship has put into question most of the presmises upon which these institutions have been founded.Did Jesus ever set out to "found a Church"??? Did he really "ordain priests" at the last supper? Did he really appoint Peter as "head of the Church"??? And did he simply ignore the role of women in his early community and did they just "serve and wait on the table" for the "boys"??Dan gives us a lot to think about and added to the pursuit of real scholarship we have a lot of questions to challenge the basic belief system of most of the religious communities of our day.

When someone writes about bad-god with laugh out loud humour, I'm just delighted. After a conservative Church of England upbringing (what is man? and the rest), finally something that makes sense. And is happily not just about the men.

This is a great book. Engaging, well argued, helpful, thoughtful and thought provoking. Over many years I've gone from a complete unbeliever to a believer to now a liberal, qualified believer. But looking for a non-literal believing position. I don't want to abandon Christianity entirely. I like its morality and appreciate its high-mindedness. Maguire's book is appealing because of its thoughtful liberalism with repect to its biblical interpretation.Maguire is a left of centre person, politically speaking. At first I was uncomfortable with that. By the end of the book I was less so. But I'll have to give it more thought. Overall though I appreciated the challenges to my settled convictions. That's good. I liked being forced to look square-on my cherished assumptions. This is a worthwhile book to read, especially if you appreciate your assumptions and convictions being challenged.

What a marvellous and substantial book! Think Christopher HITCHENS and Richard DAWKINS with equal erudition-plus - plus an intelligent pinch of humour as leavening. An ethical world does NOT require religious affiliation or belief! This is a brilliant book written by one of the foremost religious thinkers of our times!

excellent

Interesting, schoking, inspiring, dynamic and so well written as always...