Man and His Gods

by Homer W. Smith, Albert Einstein (Foreword)

An interpretation of religious philosophies and their influences with foreword by Albert Einstein.

Genres: Philosophy, Religion, Anthropology, Nonfiction, History

501 pages, Book

First published January 1, 1952

About the author

Dr Homer William Smith was an American physiologist and an advocate for science, who spent most of his career at New York University School of Medicine. His research work focused on the kidney and he discovered inulin at the same time as A.N. Richards. Dr. Smith authored several books including From Fish to Philosopher, Man and His Gods,and The Kidney: Structure and function in health and disease.
Homer Smith's elegant experiments on the kidney in the 1930s proved beyond any doubt that it operated according to physical principles, both as a filter and a secretory organ, eliminating the last vestige of Vitalism in physiology.
He also served on the board of trustees of Science Service, now known as Society for Science & the Public, from 1952-1955.
In 1932, he published 'Kamongo', a fictional account of his search for the lungfish, in which he questioned man 's place in nature by recounting, in a masterly fashion, an imaginary debate between a young scientist and an Anglican missionary as their ship moved
through the Red Sea.
A quarter of a century later, he re-examined the same subject on new
grounds: Man and His Gods considered man's ideas about the supernatural in the perspective of the evolution of Western theology and philosophy from the ancient Egyptians to the nineteenth century.
Dr. Smith is survived by his son, Homer Wilson Smith.

Reviews

[Richard · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best book I have read on the history of modern religions. It predates the excellent work of Joseph Campbell on comparative religion and mythology. While apparently no longer available in print (a true shame), it is available in pdf format on the website http://positiveatheism.org/index.shtml.

I would recommend this book to anyone interested in understanding the history of modern religions in a critical perspective. It is a nice primer for the more recent critiques of religious belief by Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens, etc... and is a particularly interesting perspective in a time when politicians are falling over themselves in an effort to appear "religious" to their constituents.

[Glenn Kleier · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book that's as relevant now as when it was first written years ago, with a forward by Albert Einstein (which resolves once and for all the debate over Einstein's perspective on religion and God). Man and His Gods is history of Christianity's origins, and can be a bit of a thick read in places. It is nevertheless fascinating and illuminating, using archeological discoveries to document the evolution of modern Christian beliefs. Highly recommended, if you can find a copy.

[Scott Alexander · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this book on my father's bookshelf. I read it and while I learned a lot about other religions, it did not really help me understand my own a lot. Plus, the author was just plain WRONG about a lot of things. For example, he says that Paul does not cite the Gospels. Also he makes a lot of unsubstantiated leaps like saying that Macron himself wrote the Gospels. He conveniently leaves out a lot of the evidence for Jesus' existence or maybe just did not bother to research it. The author tries to compare the history of Jesus and Christians to the myths of Egypt and Sumeria and Greece and in the light of history, the comparison breaks down.

[John E · Rating 4 out of 5]

A dense great book introducing the interplay of man and his gods. Although this is as old as I am, it is a profound book. It's only drawback is that it is a difficult read, but worth struggling through. The gods are hard to kill because it requires thinking a little bit and learning a little of the scientific method, so we still have them directing the madness of mankind.