A History of God: The 4000-Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam

Abraham, often referred to as the patriarch of the Abrahamic religions—Judaism, Christianity, and Islam—is a foundational figure in Karen Armstrong’s exploration of the concept of God. Armstrong discusses Abraham not just as a historical or biblical figure but as a symbol of monotheistic faith. Abraham’s story of being called by God to leave his homeland and his willingness to sacrifice his son Isaac (or Ishmael in Islamic tradition) exemplifies the human search for the divine and the trials and tribulations that come with such a journey. His covenant with God establishes the foundational relationship between God and humanity in these traditions. Armstrong uses Abraham to delve into how different religions view and interpret God and to highlight the shared roots of these three of the major world religions.

Moses, the lawgiver and liberator of the Hebrews from Egyptian slavery, plays an important role in Armstrong’s examination of the evolution of monotheism. His encounter with God in the form of the burning bush and the subsequent revelation of the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai mark critical junctures in the religious history of the Israelites. Armstrong delves into the significance of these events, emphasizing the transformation of the Israelites’ understanding of God from a tribal deity to a universal one. Moses’s struggles, both with Pharaoh and with his own people, underscore the challenges of defining and maintaining a relationship with the divine, especially in the face of societal pressures and political upheaval.

Jesus is the central figure in Christianity. He was a Jewish preacher in the early decades of the 1st century CE in Palestine. There were several accounts written of his ministry by his followers, but only four of the Gospels were later incorporated into standard versions of Biblical scripture: the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Jesus’s teachings emphasized the importance of compassion, poverty, and faith. His crucifixion at the hands of the Roman authorities was controversial: Many of his followers later claimed that he had risen from the dead and proclaimed him the Messiah sent to save humanity from its sins. This idea that Jesus was divine represented a break with traditional Jewish ideas of the Messiah, and led to the birth of Christianity as a separate religion instead of a Jewish sect.

In A History of God, Armstrong traces the many controversies surrounding the exact nature of Jesus in early Christianity and later monotheism, with some regarding him as a divinely inspired prophet, some viewing him as achieving divinity after death, and some arguing that he was God incarnate in earthly form. Eventually, Catholic theologians developed the concept of “the Trinity,” which presented God as one essence manifested in three forms: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Muhammad, the Prophet of Islam, holds an integral position in A History of God due to his pivotal role in the emergence and development of Islam, the last of the major Abrahamic religions. Born in Mecca, Muhammad received revelations from God through the Angel Gabriel, which later formed the Qur’an, Islam’s holy scripture.

Armstrong underscores the significance of these revelations in reshaping the monotheistic landscape, emphasizing a God that is both merciful and compassionate. Muhammad’s life, marked by both challenges and triumphs—from the opposition in Mecca to his eventual establishment of a Muslim community in Medina—reflects the complexities of divine-human interaction and the evolving understandings of God. His teachings not only redefined the concept of monotheism but also bridged the theological gaps among Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, emphasizing the shared lineage and core tenets of these traditions.