Summary
Title: GOD.com: A Deity for the New Millennium
Author: John A. Henderson
Publisher: Parkway
ISBN: 188790591x
Pro:
• Written in a conversational, personal style
Con:
• Not an academic work, if that's what you're looking for
Description:
• Distillation of one man's lifetime of thinking about religion, theism, and belief
Book Review
First, of course, we would need to establish that there is a problem with ancient religions and that isn’t easy to do. Adherents of those religions have massive emotional, social, and psychological commitments to their religions, commitments which won’t be lightly given up. If people don’t even acknowledge that there is a problem with religions today, they certainly won’t entertain thoughts about working on new ones.
To this end, John A. Henderson’s God.com: A Deity for the New Millennium is designed to lay out a case against the value of ancient religions in the modern world and, hopefully, a reason to think hard about creating something new. A semi-retired physician and retired Air Force colonel, Henderson has been thinking about the nature of religion for decades and this book collects many of this thoughts, criticisms, and suggestions.
This is not an academic or scholarly work; instead, it’s a series of personal essays meditating on the nature of religion, why people believe in gods, the social uses of religion, the relationship between religion and power, and much, much more. Henderson generally adopts a tongue-and-cheek style which is far more engaging and approachable than the academic, philosophical tone that tends to characterize critiques of religion.
If there is an overarching theme to Henderson’s critiques, it may be that religion is fundamentally about power — social, personal, or political — and therefore religions invariably have social and political agendas underlying their theological claims. Understanding the power relationships behind religion is critical to understanding religion itself and constructing a substantive critique. Unfortunately, religions rarely acknowledge the existence of their power claims, sometimes even going so far as trying to conceal them.
God.Com: A Deity for the New Millennium, by John A. Henderson
And what about finding a “deity for the new millennium”? Henderson argues for a separation of religion and morality, releasing moral thinking and behavior from the bonds in which religion has kept them constrained for millennia. By focusing on morality, Henderson believes we can also release ourselves from those bonds and create a “religion” suitable for modern life. Not much time is spent on his idea of a modern “deity,” though — he seems to envisage a female deity which may just be a restatement of mother nature.
I must confess to being a bit confused on this point. Nonbelievers will probably just want to ignore that, and it is only a very short section at the end. Believers, though, may find this comforting. Given how important religion can be for people, it’s understandable if not everyone can give it up entirely and instead need to be weaned off slowly. Henderson’s book, providing explanations and critiques geared for the average person, may go a long way in helping people do that.
