|
|
Religious Book Store > Religious books beginning with J
|
Jesus Among Other Gods: The Absolute Claims of the Christian Message |
Author: Ravi Zacharias
Published: 2002-02-08 |
List price: $14.99
Our price: $10.19
|
Usually ships in 24 hours
As of: November 22nd, 2008 01:05:58 AM
|
|
|
Customer comments on this selection.
 I recant
To those who have posted negative (one star only) reviews:
Having read your comments I don't get the sense from your posts that you understood what you have read. Please allow some time to pass, then go back and take another crack at it. There have been several times in my life that I have rejected someone's writing only to realize years later that I had mistakenly dismissed a gem because I wasn't prepared for it the first go-around. This book was one of those times. I initially posted a negative review that I have since deleted.
To the author:
I'd like to thank you for your work over the years, and particularly this book. It, and you, have been instrumental in bringing this former wannabe-philosopher and militant-atheist to Christ.
To all the believers that I've tongue lashed (or worse) over the years:
I'm sorry. I didn't know.
All the best,
MDA
Great Book
Ravi has carried the mantle of C.S. Lewis as the voice of christian apologetics in the 21st century. He draws from a wealth of resources not the least of which is his mind.
As his disclaimer advises in the forward, he did not wish to bash other faiths BUT I would have liked a more frequent and in depth comparison to other religions. He did a thorough job expressing the unique christian perspective.
I would read Ravi giving his opinion about the new iphone, high definition television, or restaurant review.
Jesus Among Other Gods
Book was just what I wanted. I had borrowed same book from friend and wanted my own copy to use in my Sunday School Class.
 Overall an interesting approach
"Jesus Among Other Gods" is a book that is bound to be controversial. I say this first in my review because while most people may understand their religious differences with Ravi, they may not be aware of epistemological differences. Ravi, assuming that absolute truth is within human grasp, directly undercuts that relativistic tendency of modern religious thought. So when you read this book, please take note of this important detail.
A good summary paragraph of this book is "The route I have followed is to present a clear difference between Jesus and any other claimant to divinity or prophetic status. I have taken six questions that Jesus answered in a way that none other would have answered." (ix of intro)
The six questions which Ravi sees through the eyes of Jesus are: 1) Addressing a heavenly home 2) The anatomy of faith and the quest for reason 3) A Taste for the Soul 4) Is God the source of my suffering?
5) When God was silent 6) Is there a gardener (resurrection and life issues) Through these issues he tries to establish that Christianity is a faith with unique answers. Page 7 is the definitve push toward this thesis and path the book takes.
And here I think any true student of religion will be hard pressed to deny that the major world faiths sustain some significantly different truth claims. Some examples in the book that illustrate this well are:
Kharma and reincarnation are indispensable beliefs to the people of the East, Hindus and Buddhists. Compare this to Muslims, Christians, Jews, and agnostics/atheists who overwhelmingly believe that we live once.
Even within the ranks of similar religions there are disagreements. Though both Muslims and Christians are monotheists,a Muslim's view of Allah and the trinitarian view of Christianity are very different.
I have to agree with the idea that the religions of the world have some fundamentally different philosophical assumptions and ultimate life goals for their respective adherents.
Meanwhile, this book is written less in a formulaic and logical hardliner format. It is a personal book. Ravi recounts experiences in his own life. It's less a philosophical treatise and more of an essay. At times I think Ravi could have kept his thoughts more tidily, but his personal style is very endearing.
Also, do not make the assumption that just because he believes Christianity is true that he does not respect other thought systems: "I have walked through temples, mosques, and other religious sites. I have spoken to students at universities in which the predominant religion is not Christian. In the course of this, I have met some very fine and gracious people." (ix, intro) I believe he is sincere when saying this.
I highly recommend this for the more casual philosopher and seeker. I also recommend it for the Christian reader.
Good, but title may mislead you
This is a good book, but unlike what the title suggests, it is not a comparison of Christianity with other religions. (For that, I recommend Stephen Neill's book, Christian Faith and Other Faiths, published in the 1950s.) This is more of a personal testimony of why Ravi Zacharias chose Christ rather than the alternatives. As in all of Zacharias' work, there is strong emphasis on the intellectual coherence of Christian faith and on the relation of belief to emotion -- what you believe determines how you are entitled to feel about things.
|
|
Our Religious book picks:
|
|
Search the Religious Products Store
LCS Amazon Store 2.5 © 2008
|
|
|