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bpag314's review
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
I felt like this book didn't do a great job of what it promised on the tin. However despite that it was so good that I'm going to give it a 5/5 review anyways.
While I thought the argument for a partnership between religion and faith was only made on a very superficial level, this is one of the best defences of faith I have ever read. Jonathan Sacks has a narrative style and way of explaining things to do with faith in such an inspiring and thoughtful way that keeps you very engaged while you read.
Did I agree with everything he said? Absolutely not. I thought at times his characterisations of atheism were very uncharitable and there are clearly some moral issues we disagree on.
However despite this, I really loved this book and feel like I am a better person for having read it.
While I thought the argument for a partnership between religion and faith was only made on a very superficial level, this is one of the best defences of faith I have ever read. Jonathan Sacks has a narrative style and way of explaining things to do with faith in such an inspiring and thoughtful way that keeps you very engaged while you read.
Did I agree with everything he said? Absolutely not. I thought at times his characterisations of atheism were very uncharitable and there are clearly some moral issues we disagree on.
However despite this, I really loved this book and feel like I am a better person for having read it.
csd17's review
5.0
"Dawkins... thinks of faith as a refusal to ask questions. But faith as Planck, Einstein, and Nietzsche understood it is the opposite: it is the courage and principled determination to go on asking questions despite the fact that there is no easy or immediate answer...
It is that courage to begin a journey not knowing where it will lead but confident that it will lead somewhere, that there really is a destination, an order, a faint but genuine melody, that is the faith not only of the scientist but of Abraham himself who heard a voice telling him to leave his land... and did so, confident that the voice was not an illusion and the destination not a no-man's land." -- Rabbi Jonathan Sacks
--end of genius quote, beginning of personal musing--
Honest questions take courage. Honest questions are powerful and break barriers. Honest questions lead to study, research, experiments, quiet introspection, and a desire to move forward. Answers to honest questions lead to quiet confidence.
It is that courage to begin a journey not knowing where it will lead but confident that it will lead somewhere, that there really is a destination, an order, a faint but genuine melody, that is the faith not only of the scientist but of Abraham himself who heard a voice telling him to leave his land... and did so, confident that the voice was not an illusion and the destination not a no-man's land." -- Rabbi Jonathan Sacks
--end of genius quote, beginning of personal musing--
Honest questions take courage. Honest questions are powerful and break barriers. Honest questions lead to study, research, experiments, quiet introspection, and a desire to move forward. Answers to honest questions lead to quiet confidence.
beccak's review
5.0
You know those books that resonate with you so much you have to explain them to as many people as possible in order to get people to read them?
This book is one of those for me.
I'd been wanting to read The Great Partnership for a long time, as several people had recommended it to me, and I'm already a fan of Rabbi Lord Sacks. While I don't always agree with him (for example, I feel that he overlooks the overwhelming evidence from the Gemara and Rishonim against his premise that Judaism must be a religion of protest and not of theodicy), he brings much-needed wisdom and moderation to interpret our modern world. Sometimes, I felt my instincts and personal beliefs validated; at other times, I felt myself exposed to new and vibrant insights.
He admits his lack of objectivity: in the supposed clash between religion and science, he comes from the perspective of a believer. But he nonetheless addresses this problem (and describes how there is ultimately no problem at all, in a way that reminded me of Jim Gates, the amazing physicist who also believes in G-d) from both angles, evaluating history and evidence with an even hand. He addresses particular critiques lobbed by philosophers, scientists, and other public figures against religion and the belief in G-d with honesty and detail.
The writing is lucid, although I felt a little overwhelmed near the beginning of the book, where Rabbi Sacks explains philosophy and philosophers I have only a passing acquaintance with (and that from decades ago, when I was in grad school). I got the impression that Rabbi Sacks is smarter and better-educated than me and the book was a bit imposing. I'm glad I stuck it out -- the book gets better and easier to understand as it goes along, and is particularly beautifully written in the second half. I also love the polite style of discourse adopted by Rabbi Sacks. For example, when he discusses the theories, statements, or actions of those he disagrees with, he firmly objects to those theories, statements, and actions, not to the people themselves. He admits when something is well-argued, well-articulated, or includes a worthy insight even if he ultimately disagrees with it.
One quibble: I feel like the second-to-last chapter, "Why G-d?", doesn't belong in the place it is in. By locating near the end, it sounds like this is what Rabbi Sacks has been leading up to (even though he says at some point in the chapter, that it he doesn't believe you can necessarily argue a person into believing in G-d). I think it would have made sense to instead insert the chapter into an earlier place, presenting how thinking believers end up in the believing camp, roughly parallel to the arguments against belief which he presents earlier. Also: I'm not sure that the chapter is necessary at all. Since he effectively says that religious belief is a separate issue from scientific endeavor, I feel like he largely renders those arguments unnecessary.
I highly recommend this book, for believers and non-believers alike. If you are a believer, it helps you understand the "other side" of the argument and to learn to get along with those who disagree with your belief. If you are a non-believer, and on the fence about picking up The Great Partnership (because it's by a believer--not just any believer, but a rabbi!), consider this, from the moving epilogue that closes the book:
"My aim in writing this book has not been to convince you...I have tried simply to show you that religious faith is not absurd, that it does not involve suspension of our critical faculties, that it does not and should not seek to inhibit the free pursuit of science, that it does not rest on contradiction and paradox, that it does not force us to accept suffering as G-d's will for the world, and that it does not ask us to believe six impossible things before breakfast...Yet I am troubled with the rancor that has entered the debate in recent years." (p.294)
The thing that Rabbi Sacks wants most is cooperation, peace, and harmony for the mutual benefit of all people. This humane book tries to move us a little closer to that goal.
This book is one of those for me.
I'd been wanting to read The Great Partnership for a long time, as several people had recommended it to me, and I'm already a fan of Rabbi Lord Sacks. While I don't always agree with him (for example, I feel that he overlooks the overwhelming evidence from the Gemara and Rishonim against his premise that Judaism must be a religion of protest and not of theodicy), he brings much-needed wisdom and moderation to interpret our modern world. Sometimes, I felt my instincts and personal beliefs validated; at other times, I felt myself exposed to new and vibrant insights.
He admits his lack of objectivity: in the supposed clash between religion and science, he comes from the perspective of a believer. But he nonetheless addresses this problem (and describes how there is ultimately no problem at all, in a way that reminded me of Jim Gates, the amazing physicist who also believes in G-d) from both angles, evaluating history and evidence with an even hand. He addresses particular critiques lobbed by philosophers, scientists, and other public figures against religion and the belief in G-d with honesty and detail.
The writing is lucid, although I felt a little overwhelmed near the beginning of the book, where Rabbi Sacks explains philosophy and philosophers I have only a passing acquaintance with (and that from decades ago, when I was in grad school). I got the impression that Rabbi Sacks is smarter and better-educated than me and the book was a bit imposing. I'm glad I stuck it out -- the book gets better and easier to understand as it goes along, and is particularly beautifully written in the second half. I also love the polite style of discourse adopted by Rabbi Sacks. For example, when he discusses the theories, statements, or actions of those he disagrees with, he firmly objects to those theories, statements, and actions, not to the people themselves. He admits when something is well-argued, well-articulated, or includes a worthy insight even if he ultimately disagrees with it.
One quibble: I feel like the second-to-last chapter, "Why G-d?", doesn't belong in the place it is in. By locating near the end, it sounds like this is what Rabbi Sacks has been leading up to (even though he says at some point in the chapter, that it he doesn't believe you can necessarily argue a person into believing in G-d). I think it would have made sense to instead insert the chapter into an earlier place, presenting how thinking believers end up in the believing camp, roughly parallel to the arguments against belief which he presents earlier. Also: I'm not sure that the chapter is necessary at all. Since he effectively says that religious belief is a separate issue from scientific endeavor, I feel like he largely renders those arguments unnecessary.
I highly recommend this book, for believers and non-believers alike. If you are a believer, it helps you understand the "other side" of the argument and to learn to get along with those who disagree with your belief. If you are a non-believer, and on the fence about picking up The Great Partnership (because it's by a believer--not just any believer, but a rabbi!), consider this, from the moving epilogue that closes the book:
"My aim in writing this book has not been to convince you...I have tried simply to show you that religious faith is not absurd, that it does not involve suspension of our critical faculties, that it does not and should not seek to inhibit the free pursuit of science, that it does not rest on contradiction and paradox, that it does not force us to accept suffering as G-d's will for the world, and that it does not ask us to believe six impossible things before breakfast...Yet I am troubled with the rancor that has entered the debate in recent years." (p.294)
The thing that Rabbi Sacks wants most is cooperation, peace, and harmony for the mutual benefit of all people. This humane book tries to move us a little closer to that goal.
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