"World Religions in Seven Sentences" (Douglas Groothuis)

TITLE: World Religions in Seven Sentences
AUTHOR: Douglas Groothuis
PUBLISHER: Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2023, (150 pages).
 

One common accusation against Christians is their lack of understanding of other religions. They wonder how Christians can accept Jesus as the Way, the Truth, and the Life when they have not explored the other religious angles. Is it fair to accept one without first considering the others? Plus, how could Christians relate to a person of another faith? How do we understand another faith perspective without misrepresenting them? This book is a resource to help promote better understanding in an increasingly pluralistic society. In a society that guarantees freedom of religion, it is crucial to be respectful of other beliefs. What better way than to get some basic understanding of others to facilitate goodwill and neighbourliness. For author Douglas Groothuis, this book is an attempt to equip us with a basic knowledge of the positions of seven common beliefs in our society. If we are to practice loving our neighbours, it would mean learning to be respectful of their beliefs in our civil interactions with them. Hopefully, that would translate into behaviours that display class and tact, without compromising the Christian faith. This is increasingly important due to the multireligious environments created by immigration, global movements, and connections via the Internet. Groothuis does this by addressing the central doctrines of each position and their versions of truth. He then responds from a Christian perspective. These seven are Atheism, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Daoism, Islam, and Christianity. 

1. Atheism: "God is Dead."
2. Judaism: "I Am Who I Am."
3. Hinduism: "You are That."
4. Buddhism: "Life is Suffering."
5. Daoism: "The Dao that can be spoken is not the Eternal Dao."
6. Islam: "There is One God, and Muhammad is His Prophet."
7. Christianity: "Before Abraham Was, I Am."

He begins with Atheism which simply declares there is no God. Based on the philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche, Groothuis describes the background of the renowned German philosopher who is one of the fiercest critics of religions, aiming particularly at Christianity and Judaism. If Nietzsche is right, then it also means the rest of the religious world would be wrong. After presenting the core elements of Nietzsche's arguments, Groothuis then responds with counterarguments. On Judaism, the author focuses on the use of names. Names in Judaism are crucial for they encapsulate the identity and meaning of a person. Going back to respected Jewish figures such as Maimonides and Heschel, Groothuis brings out some of the most salient aspects of Jewish beliefs. In contrast to Atheism and other religions like Buddhism and Hinduism, God as the I Am is revealed as a Personal Being. There is a summary of the "thirteen principles of faith" which should provide a concise description of the faith. Hinduism is described as "a big tent with six pegs," meaning it has six tenets of faith. With the proliferation of many gods in the belief, even Jesus is proclaimed and accepted as a legitimate divinity. The statement "You are That" points to a humanistic appeal to make oneself into a god. The idea is that we can find our true divinity in the inner self. This contrasts sharply with Christianity that we are nothing without God. On Buddhism, we come to the key purpose of Buddhism, which is to escape from all suffering because all of life is suffering. Groothuis takes us through the four noble truths and the ten monastic precepts. He compares and contrasts Buddha with Jesus and points out the many differences and incompatibilities between the two faiths. For instance, where Buddhism declares that all of life is suffering and we ought to find ways to escape it, Christianity says that life's suffering is due to sin and Jesus is the way to salvation. On Daoism, Groothuis notes that it is not a "missionary religion" but a tradition. It is a way of capturing the meaning of "ultimate reality." It is an impersonal principle that is collected in a book of 81 sayings called "Daodejing." It appeals to nature and to those who want to contemplate life for life itself. In Islam, the focus is on the one God and the one prophet. Covering the six tenets and five pillars, he gives us a broad overview of the beliefs about Allah and the prophet Muhammad. The key point of contention is the view of Jesus from Islam versus Christianity. The chapter on Christianity is understandably relatively long as it covers in depth the Person of Jesus Christ.

My Thoughts

Is this a fair representation of the different faiths? For the length of the book, probably so. Each faith would require a serious volume (or volumes) to describe. Since this book is a condensed explanation of the faiths, there is a hard limit to what the author can include. Groothuis covers the basic tenets of each faith as concisely as possible. It cannot be as comprehensive as one might hope for. I would thus say that the coverage is respectable. Hopefully, it would provide a basic understanding of each faith in order to further the conversation. The purpose is not to become an expert on the topic but to be knowledgeable enough not to misrepresent the other side. Humility is important because many practitioners of the respective faiths are deeply committed to what they believe. Instead of trying to dumb down the others, perhaps try the "I don't necessarily agree but I understand where you are coming from." Groothuis's approach is to first present the basic doctrines of each religion before addressing them from the perspective of Christianity. He does not simply tell us but shows us how to engage with viewpoints different from ours. Is the reductionistic? Certainly. Any overviews or summaries will always be reductionistic. The difference lies in the degree. This book is aimed at Christians who want to be equipped with the basics of other faiths so that they can engage intelligently and respectfully with views different from theirs.  For those wanting a quick reference, the concluding chapter offers a brief summary of each position.

Interestingly, Groothuis includes Daoism in one of his world religions list in this book. He might have taken a leaf out of James Sire's first of seven worldview questions. Looking at the seven chapters, three of them are about monotheistic faith (Christianity, Islam, Judaism); one atheist; one polytheist (Hinduism); and two religious-philosophical beliefs (Buddhism, Daoism). Readers might wonder about the exclusion of other religions such as animism, folk, indigenous, new age, new thought, paganism, etc. Maybe these can be covered in future editions. 

As a brief introduction, this book should whet the appetite of those who just want a basic grasp of the seven basic beliefs. However, it should not be the only resource to be used. Plus, the one-sentence should be used mainly as a big idea picture for initial understanding.

Douglas Groothuis (PhD, University of Oregon) is professor of philosophy at Denver Seminary. He is the author of numerous books, including Christian Apologetics, Fire in the Streets, Philosophy in Seven Sentences, Unmasking the New Age, Truth Decay, On Pascal, On Jesus, and Walking Through Twilight. He has written for scholarly journals such as Religious Studies, Sophia, Research in Philosophy and Technology, Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society, and Philosophia Christi, as well as for numerous popular magazines.

Rating: 4 stars out of 5.

conrade

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This book has been provided courtesy of InterVarsity Press via NetGalley without requiring a positive review. All opinions offered above are mine unless otherwise stated or implied.