Book Review-"Is God a Moral Monster?-Making Sense Of The Old Testament God"

Paul Copan would have to be described as a Christian apologist,and in fact,as a full reading of his book"Is God A Moral Monster?"reveals,he is quite accomplished at his work.In this book,Copan takes on the issues raised by what he calls the "New Atheists"when they present their objections to belief in God,especially the God revealed in the Old Testament.If we are to believe people like Christopher Hitchens,Daniel Dennett or Richard Dawkins,the Old Testament God is a brutal,misogynistic,racist war monger.In short,He is not a God worthy of worship,but instead a monster who delights in human suffering.

As Copan makes clear,the observations of the New Atheists are really based on misunderstandings of the Old Testament and the culture of the ancient Middle East and our insistence in judging God by our contemporary western moral standards.One by one,Copan takes on objections to issues like slavery,as portrayed in Old Testament times,misogyny,as it is alleged to be supported under Mosaic Law,and God's insistence on ethnic cleansing of the Canaanites.As is made clear by the end of the book,the actual facts are a far cry from those suppositions put forward by the new Atheists.Copan notes that Mosaic Law was not perfect,but instead was intended to take people from the cultural conditions of their time and allow for the continued development of a moral society.In so doing,despite the outward appearance of inflexible brutality,God's law was a vast improvement over legal traditions elsewhere in the ancient world.

Copan's book is eye opening and drives home the point that the problem with religious fundamentalism of all kinds is that it most often resists fundamental interpretations-hence the need for authors adept at the art of apologetics.And Copan certainly is that.His assertions,while they may seem novel to some are supported by scriptural reference at every turn.Thus he makes a very strong case against some of the assertions put forth by the likes of Dawkins and Hitchens,when they attempt to hold God to account for alleged crimes against humanity.Likewise,Copan clearly demonstrates the need to read and understand scripture at a deep level,which is,after all,the whole point of Apologetics.The book concludes with a chapter entitled "Discussion/Study questions,that serves as a great stimulus for further discussion,and perhaps even the basis for a self contained Bible study.

Highly recommended.