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Christianity Today, April, 2010

My Top 5 Books on Doubt

Picks from John Ortberg, author of 'Faith and Doubt.'

John Ortberg | posted 4/29/2010 10:31AM

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Belief and Unbelief: A Philosophy of Self-Knowledge
Michael Novak (Transaction)

This brilliant book traces how the line between faith and doubt doesn't separate us into different camps; it runs through every human soul. Novak is relentlessly honest, deeply informed, sympathetic to all honest searching, and achingly personal.

* * *

A Place to Stand
Elton Trueblood (Harper & Row)

Trueblood points out what we so often miss: The modern deference given to doubt is neither necessary nor rational; we speak of "blind faith" and "honest doubt" when faith can also be honest and doubt can also be blind. He unpacks the core conviction of Christianity: that Christ was not wrong.

* * *

In Praise of Doubt: How to Have Convictions without Becoming a Fanatic
Peter Berger and Anton Zijderveld (HarperOne)

This book outlines how to hold convictions in a postmodern world with both civility and confidence. It also demonstrates how and why the "secularization thesis" (that religious belief would diminish after modernity) has proven resoundingly hollow.

* * *

Doubt: A History
Jennifer Michael Hecht (HarperOne)

Hecht's tour de force takes readers on a guided journey of doubt from the pre-Socratics to contemporary philosopher Daniel Dennett. While Hecht's own sympathies lie with the doubters, she writes with grace, flair, and engagement.

* * *

Knowing Christ Today: Why We Can Trust Spiritual Knowledge
Dallas Willard (HarperOne)

A decaf version of a technical work aimed at philosophers, this book covers topics like the nature (and necessity) of moral and spiritual knowledge, the fundamentals of worldview, the best reasons why belief in God can be confidently held, and the form of pluralism most needed today.

John Ortberg is pastor of Menlo Park Presbyterian Church and author of Faith and Doubt (Zondervan).

Related Elsewhere:

Belief and Unbelief, A Place to Stand, In Praise of Doubt, Doubt: A History, and Knowing Christ Today are available from ChristianBook.com and other book retailers.

Previous Top 5 lists have featured community, sports, parenting, Advent, life ethics, emerging movement, Islam, loss, Calvin, spiritual memoirs, neglected doctrines, spiritual memoirs, marriage, Lent, fiction books for the soul, managing your money, devotionals, how character shapes belief, food, atheism, China, presidents, world Christianity, ancient-future faith, the civil rights era, social justice, church history, popular culture, the Civil War, apologetics, atheism, and sex.

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April 2010, Vol. 54, No. 4

Comments (8)

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Displaying 1–5 of 8 comments

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ken weir

May 07, 2010 12:22pm

Very interesting selection of books on a veryvast subject. This is a subject which I believe God uses as a sifting & training tool for every person on plqanet earth. We can all be tested at times by 'doubt'. So I look forward to reading one or two of this selection of books. Thanks agin. Ken...

Carlos Pellot

May 06, 2010 10:18pm

Another big miss from this list is a little book also by Newbigin, Proper Confidence: Faith, Doubt, and Certainty in Christian Discipleship. It is a must read for those interested in the interaction/tension between faith and doubt.

Joseph Davis

April 30, 2010 3:44pm

The best book on doubt I read was The Other Side of 1984, by Leslie Newbigen. His experience as a missionary in India gives him great insight into the problems of Western thought and faith. Nothing intimidates him, and his writing is not stuffy and abstract.

Wyatt Johnson

April 30, 2010 10:32am

Personal doubt is an interesting topic. However, doubters tend to be people who are overly consumed by their own feelings and needs. God's plan of salvation incorporates the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit to transform us. To replace doubt with clear understanding and joy, and fear with unlimited strength and purpose.

John G.

April 29, 2010 7:24pm

Also missing is a book from some years back, THE WAY YOU BELIEVE (Thoughts on the Nature of Faith), by the late Dr. Lauren A. King (a former professor of Billy Graham's from Wheaton, by the way), from Barclay Press. Faith is compared to a scientific hypothesis.

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