The Case for God: What Religion Really Means

Armstrong is the author of a serious religious, strong research tradition, so it deserves if more than 15 best-selling book ranks in the world. God is God in the study of the historical Armstrong, who lives in the middle and along its followers, the Lord who gave birth to the community of believers and the many traditions and religious institutions.

So, God as the Supreme Being and the Absolute is certainly not limited in time, did not know yesterday, present, and future. Even incomprehensible by the mind. We talk too much about God lately and what we say is often superficial, says Armstrong (p. 9).

In addition to presenting the dynamics of the traces of God and its influence in human history, this book does not directly address modern atheism, characterized by very rational and scientific (scientific atheism) who have led the modern society and young people in the West.

During the 16th century and the 17th, in Western civilization was born a new set of scientific rationality and the economy based on technology and investment. Since then measure of truth is scientific method. Logos beat myth. Whereas in the religious myth embodied truth and virtue that can not be reached by logos.

Rationality interpretation of religion gave rise to two new phenomena which are very typical: fundamentalism and atheism (p. 19). During these characters develop atheism often refer to the Feurbach, Karl Marx, Nietzsche, or Freud that appeared in the century now emerging 19.Tetapi new atheism that was driven primarily by Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens and Sam Harris.

In there they will find contemporary scientific arguments to attack religious people who still believe in God and his intervention in the intended attack the story. To, Armstrong's book is also standing as a defense against the existence of religions.

Logic and scientific approach, especially those relying on empiricism-positivism understood, will never be able to capture and analyze the mysteries of life, diversity and Godliness. Various works of Armstrong seriously successfully presents how religion and belief in God is always present on the stage of history and contributed to interpret human life.

Religion, belief and understanding of God, continues to interact with the historical development of a society with all its aspects. Therefore, he said, to understand the scriptures merely literary words would be misleading and has been reduced, not to the core message of religion.

On the other hand, the arrogance of the scientific understanding of religion has been pushed back a response to the emergence of religious fundamentalism. Change mind-set understanding of religion and life in Europe is strongly influenced by the expedition of Christopher Columbus in 1492 who succeeded in finding new continent of America, sponsored by the Catholic King Ferdinand and Isabella.

This success story spread like a new plague, that outside of Europe there was another very interesting world to explore. So, expedition, exploration, migration and dissemination of new cultural synthesis always gave birth to a new beginning with new problems and challenges.

Today, what happened to the 15th century in Europe has been uneven across the world via the internet networking and virtual worlds. Society are conditioned to boldly go beyond the known world boundaries. Encounter and the clash of different traditions and cultures and religions of this information has made the most religious people giddy and shocked (shocked).

That the claim of truth, divinity, and heaven was also owned by people of other religious groups. Meanwhile, there are also groups that are adamantly opposed to the existence of God and wanted to remove religion. Feeling uncomfortable and threatened in this religious roots of the emergence of fundamentalism.

Citing Armstrong, fundamentalism is a very reductive faith. In their anxiety and fear, fundamentalists often distort the tradition they are trying to defend, for example with a very selective reading scriptures to justify violence and hostility towards people of different beliefs (p. 470).

Fundamentalists believe that they fought in the name of God, but the actual religiosity of this type represents a setback from the Lord (p. 471). Thus, the world continues cycle. History rolling lunge record of human thought and behavior. Religion was often the target of criticism and scorn.

But in fact religion is alive and evolve. God always in the hearts of men. This confirms the view that "religion has a thousand lives". Even if the dead one, is still more to survive.

People may criticize the behavior of religious people and religious institutions are built, but awareness, needs and religious beliefs are still raging. With religion a person looking for meaning and purpose in life more essential and noble. 

Prof. Dr.Komaruddin Hidayat

Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University Rector

Posted in: Religion