Books for Prep | |
 - Good, but title may mislead youThis 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. Rating:  - The title of this book initially threw me off but as I began to readThe title of this book initially threw me off but as I began to read, I could see that it is vintage Ravi Z. He offers apologetics through a multi cultural perspective but the goal is always the same-to proclaim the historical truth of Christianity. He doesn't ask the reader to believe based on faith alone but through facts about the authenticity of the Bible and the life of Jesus Christ. His personal anecdotes about his relationship with his father and the personal "almost" tragedy that led to his salvation serve to illustrate the state of man's pitiful existence without a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.This is an excellent book for Christians in any stage of maturity and a great book for those who may not be Christians and have questions about Jesus Christ. Rating: - The basics of ChristianityThis book is written in a very matter-of-fact style, it's not one of Zacharias' intellectual masterpieces like The Real Face of Atheism or Deliver Us From Evil, his classic on postmodernism. In the first chapter Meeting My Master he recounts how he came to the knowledge of Christ as a youngster in India. Here he also discusses the various major faiths like Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam, arguing that religions are not all the same. Where Do You Live?, the second chapter, deals with the ministry of Christ, the first disciples, the God of the Bible and prophecies fulfilled by Jesus. It includes a section on the three aforementioned religions, their history and their core teachings on ideas like salvation and the soul. Chapter 3: How Do We Know The Claims Of Jesus Are True?, investigates the matter of faith, distinguishing between blind faith and thinking faith. The author discusses the thoughts of Bertrand Russell, Thomas Nagel, Matthew Parris and David Hume. Here he also addresses the hypocrites in church, the limitations of science and the proof of the resurrection. Zacharias praises intellectual investigation and urges all Christians to think about their faith in the light of reason. The following chapter: Won't Jesus Make Life Wonderful?, explores the motives and expectations of individuals. He refers to those in Christ's day who wanted something from him when they saw the miracles but didn't really want Him. On the subjects of miracles, mention is made of the miracles all around us that we never notice. He explains what we can expect from the Judeo-Christian God, comparing that with Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam. There is a section on some reasons why Eastern religions are so attractive to young people in the West, and a realistic view of how we can absolutely rely on God for all the important things. Norman Geisler, Jon Krakauer and Deepak Chopra are some of the people quoted in this chapter. Chapter 5 deals with pain and how to find answers to it. He quotes the words of Christ on this subject. There are intellectual struggles and there are emotional wounds; very different things. A special section offers advice on how to help friends who are suffering. Next, the author considers the arguments of atheists like Richard Dawkins, and Hindu and Buddhist views of evil and suffering. The chapter recounts an experience of Eli Wiesel in Auschwitz and concludes with the Christian view of suffering, how the faith provides meaning and purpose, and a reminder that God will ultimately put a complete end to evil. In this regard, I also recommend The Problem of Pain by CS Lewis. Won't Jesus Answer Every Question? begins by looking at some of the questions always used by challengers of Christianity, for ex. those accusing the religion of atrocities, those asserting that faith makes people puppets and those who resent religion "being shoved down their throats." There is a passage dealing with the inquisition, Galileo, the Salem Witch Trials, and the accusation of "colonial imperialism." Zacharias then refers to Christ before Pilate, when He was silent. Jesus was silent when the accusations against him were ridiculous and wrongful, when minds were already made up, when people wanted a show, and when his job was done. Under the heading Faith By The Sword, he compares faith in Christianity, Islam and Hinduism, and how one can best share what one believes. The book concludes with Chapter 7: What Are You Looking For? There is a supermarket of religions out there. The author looks at scoffers who, amongst other absurdities, cite the straw man argument of a literal 6-day creation in Genesis. See also A Matter of Days by the scientist Hugh Ross on this subject. Ravi likens God to a gardener and takes the reader through the garden of creation, the garden of temptation, the garden of pain and the garden of resurrection. He provides 3 reasons to believe: that the claims of Christ are uniquely credible, defensible and consistent. The book concludes with bibliographic notes arranged by chapter. Finding Jesus Among Other Gods is nothing like the CS Lewis masterpiece Mere Christianity, but the book is valuable for its practical advice in dealing with the current hostility towards Christianity and Judaism and for reminding Christians what the faith really is about. Understanding the Difficult Words of Jesus: New Insights From a Hebrew Perspective by David Bivin New Light on the Difficult Words of Jesus: Insights from His Jewish Context by David Bivin Yeshua: A Guide to the Real Jesus and the Original Church by Ron Moseley Yeshua: The Name of Jesus Revealed in the Old Testament by Yacov Rambsel Kabbalah of Yeshua by Zusha Kalet Rating:  - A decent primer in comparative theology, but not apologetics. Good, but could have been better.Ravi Zacharias is, in my humble opinion, one of the most brilliant philosopher-theologians of our day, a modern C.S. Lewis, if I may be so bold. He thinks on a far deeper level than most of his critics are willing to do, and is able to dismantle their fallacious arguments with an incisive precision that leaves them looking the fool when all the dust settles and their stubbornly unreasoning banter fades away. This volume offers just a taste of that, as Zacharias unflinchingly exposes the fundamental flaws in the thinking of atheists and ecumenicalists alike. This is probably the only book in my life which I finished, and then immediately began to reread. There are two reasons for that. First, it was that engaging. I absolutely loved how he shredded the atheistic argument that the existence of evil disproves the existence of God. I kind of felt sorry for the atheists. I also enjoyed the statement that those who claim all religions to be equal only display their ignorance of all religions. The second reason for my reread was that not all of the arguments were as clear in their purpose as the ones I just mentioned. The first major segment, for example, while offering an insightful exegesis of a passage that normally receives only limited attention, left me asking what exactly was the point the author was making. That brings me to the point of my title for this review. Zacharias does a fine job of helping his readers understand and appreciate key differences between Christianity and other major world religions, such as Islam, Buddhism and Hinduism, not to mention atheism (which is, in fact, a religion in which man strives to be his own god). The author, however, presupposes the reliability of the Bible as his main source text, without offering any apologetic basis for that presupposition. While I am among those who agree with him on this, it is a hurdle his critics will not allow themselves to get past. In other words, it is inevitable that his naysayers will want to challenge him on this point, and thus leaves a gap that should have been plugged up front. This unmade argument, plus the lack of clear direction in others, left me wanting more from what could and should have been an otherwise excellent book. Rating: - Fine BookOnce I finished reading Mr. Zacharias' book I was further affirmed in my belief in the uniqueness of Christ. Having grown up in church all the time, sometimes church people get so caught up in the rigamorale of church routines and things of that nature that we lose sight of who Christ was and what we are serving. We concentrate more on the task of going to church, to do church things that we forget that we go to church to worship Christ who has given us freedom. To the unbeliever, the book really contrast various beliefs with the uniqueness of Christ. It outlines what made Jesus who he is so different from all of the other people that make the claim of being God in flesh. And Mr. Zacharias doesn't attack any other religion at all but rather uses examples from their own holy books in contrast. You cannot get the idea that he is attacking and beating down another faith at all. His voice is intelligent and gentle. As a Christian, we can all take a lesson from him. We can discuss the issue of faith without anger but in a platform of listening. In association with Amazon.com | |