Beyond Belief by David C Monkcom

'To read this book and take in what it says might actually turn out to be, for some, a faith-building rather than a faith-undermining exercise'

Beyond Belief - a former fundamentalist examines the case for God
By David C Monkcom
The Invisible Imprint
ISBN:  978-1-83919-537-2
Reviewed by Philip Clements-Jewery 

 
How does one present a review, in a publication read by believers in God, of a book that argues for atheism?

Certainly, I would not recommend this book to those who are young in their faith, but what about mature believers who are reasonably secure in theirs? I say ‘reasonably’ because, as it has been suggested, no-one can be wholly secure in their faith until and unless they have fully faced up to the arguments that are contrary to it and see where those arguments fall short. So to read this book and take in what it says might actually turn out to be, for some, a faith-building rather than a faith-undermining exercise.

But secondly this book is worth reading, at least its first part, because of the warning it offers about the dangers of rigid and puritanical fundamentalist beliefs and their potentially negative impact upon people (particularly the young) struggling with issues of personal identity. David Monkcom charts the story of his life as he was being brought up within a strict and narrow-minded Plymouth Brethren environment and how he eventually broke free of that.

What is so sad is that he felt he had to disown the Christian faith altogether. Probably he is far from alone in that. The appeal to lay dogmatism aside and not to indoctrinate young people is one, perhaps, that some Christians constantly need to hear. But, as I myself can testify, it is possible to grow from fundamentalist origins into a faith that is broader and more open.

The second, longer, half of the book presents the standard arguments against faith. In an easily readable way the author deals with questions of knowledge; what it means to believe; the origins of religious belief; the classic philosophical arguments for the existence of God; the problem of evil; claims about revealed knowledge, the possibility of miracles; and testimony to personal experience. However, in places Monkcom has a tendency to resort to knocking down Aunt Sallys without addressing the more nuanced beliefs that some Christians hold. 

That is not my main reservation about the arguments put forward in this book. On both sides the discussion belongs to an era that is now past. The world-view of the author and of those with whom he thinks to engage is that of the rationalistic Enlightenment. But what is counted as true and factual is under question in our contemporary postmodern culture. It is hard these days to argue anyone into faith (or, for that matter, unbelief) when personal opinion and feeling carries more weight than intellectual propositions.

Even so, we must not be afraid of, or seek to avoid, challenges to our faith, even if we find them disturbing. It is possible that facing up to them will result in a faith that is stronger and more secure. It is also worth taking something Joseph Ratzinger suggested before he became Pope Benedict XVI: ‘Just as the believer knows himself (sic) to be constantly threatened by unbelief which he (sic) must experience as a continual temptation, so for the unbeliever faith remains a temptation, and so a threat to his (sic) apparently permanently closed world.’ 

Philip Clements-Jewery is retired Baptist minister living in Huddersfield