All in the Mind: Farewell to God

The notion explored in this often fascinating book by the famous broadcaster, Ludovic Kennedy, is that rather than the religious notion that man was created by god, rather it is god that was created by man. I must say - at the outset - that this is a view that I share and consequently I found much to agree with in Kennedy's - necessarily brief - romp through the history of human religious `thought' from early mythologies and through the history of the Christian religion in the west.

I suppose one of the few faults I find in the book is the concentration on the Christian religion at the expense of other religions, but then it is Christianity that has helped shaped western thought to a far, far, greater extent than any of the other current religions.

However, the period of the church's greatest influence was also a period of almost stagnation in the intellectual life of the west - a period which later became known as the Dark Ages. It was only when the church's power and influence was challenged, questioned and finally broken from the Reformation on through the Enlightenment and the rise of science, humanism and rationality that mankind was then able to take the great strides it has done over the following centuries.

Probably the best part of the book for me is the last third where Kennedy sketches the rise of atheism from Sozzini, d'Hobach, through Hume and Paine and on to Darwin and evolution. Then - post-Darwin - the rapid growth in atheism from that point on to the present day where religions - despite their increasingly frantic rearguard actions continue their inexorable decline into irrelevance as mankind leaves behind its superstitious childhood at last.

Kennedy concludes that he finds spirituality, the numinous and al those other consolations that religion is supposed to find in nature and in art. Here, in addition, I would come down on the side of Kennedy, but also adding Richard Dawkins contention that science does far more to aid our understanding of the universe and our appreciation of its beauty to a far greater extent than religion ever could. All in all, then, All In The Mind is an excellent book, one that I highly recommend.

Food for thought (0/1 people found this helpful)

I found this book very thought-provoking and helped me to crystalize my atheist beliefs.
The other reviewers of this book all have certain valid points but hopefully people will see this as a starting point of discussion rather than an immovable belief in something that any rational mind would want to question.

Very good and well argued (4/4 people found this helpful)

Although Ludovic Kennedy doesn't say anything new, this is still a very well written and interesting book. It is mainly composed of what others have to say about atheism and God but is still very well put together. The author does describe how he became more and more disenfranchised with the church and God and this was very interesting to read about. Being an atheist myself, there was some resonance there and it was intriguing to find my own thoughts written out on the page. The only reason I gave the book 4 rather than 5 stars is because I feel it could have been more in-depth and analytical. I would still recommend this very highly to those wishing to make a start on reading about atheism.

God bashing (9/17 people found this helpful)

Ludovic Kennedy writes a very personal account of his experiences with Christianity, charting it's birth, rise throughout history, and irrelevance towards modern society.

Although this is interesting to all of us who are sceptical when it comes to religion, Kennedy's account is a little too personal and we can feel that this book is an act of revenge for all of those boring church services he was forced to sit through as a spotty teenager.

Ultimately, Kennedy does not answer the weightier questions which we might have hoped that he would (ie, is there such thing as a God.) Instead he focuses on how historical tales have been twisted by the authors of the New Testament in order to convince millions into believing that Jesus Christ was a miracle wielding, all knowing, do gooder. Instead, we are told, Jesus was a normal every day human being. The only thing which has set him apart from the rest of us was his willingly to preach humility, recognition of sin, and good works to anyone who would listen. This, however, does not make him any different from St Francis, Cuthbert, or even Thomas Becket - all of who were also normal people who preached penitence and forgiving. I guess that Jesus is revered and given such princely status because he managed to get there first.

Unfortunately, then, "All in the Mind" eventually reverts to good old fashioned Christianity bashing, and slowly looses is credibility and argument along the way. It's not difficult to argue that Christianity has been largely responsible for war, slavery, genocide, and racism, and Kennedy does not say anything which has not been put to us before. What he does succeed in doing is putting all of this information into one easily accessible source.

Kennedy's main motivation for this book is to question the relevance of religion in today's society. He does not question the existence of God, preferring instead to leave this to the philosophers, but does ask how such a well informed and intelligent society can still believe in miracles, resurrections, and the afterlife. This book is a good read, and has given me some good ammunition to use when I am next stopped in the street by a group of well meaning church goers. Definitely worth keeping next to the door in case the Jehovah's Witnesses call.

This will shake the foundations of your belief (5/6 people found this helpful)

Ludovic investigates the birth, growth, adolesence, ageing and the slow death of christanity. Although Ludovic draws from his own personal experience, he does not present many of his own ideas. Mainly this is an orderded collaboration of ideas proposed by other people. But, Ludovic does well in pointing out how and why christianity is a human invention and is therefore void of merit.

All in the Mind: Farewell to God

Ludovic Kennedy

Reader Reviews:

God Was Created by Man (0/0 people found this helpful)

Food for thought (0/1 people found this helpful)

Very good and well argued (4/4 people found this helpful)

God bashing (9/17 people found this helpful)

This will shake the foundations of your belief (5/6 people found this helpful)

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