Why We Believe

'A salutary corrective to those who might imagine they have emancipated themselves from belief, and a reassurance to those who have not that to believe is the very essence of being human. A timely, often bracing and always highly stimulating book.' —Tom Holland, author of Dominion 'Why We Believe is a timely and important book. It asks and answers exactly the sort of questions about belief and the very nature of who we are that are most needed at this stage of history. Scholarly, compulsively readable and with gems of information on every page, it is a must read for anyone who has ever wondered why and how humans come to believe.' — Revd Fergus Butler-Gallie, author of A Field Guide to the English Clergy 'Taking on the ""great over-simplifiers"", McGrath shows that belief is not some weird fault in human nature, but a vital part of it, a tool for navigating an uncertain word in our endless search for meaning, goodness and significance. A thoughtful, penetrating and engaging read.' —Nick Spencer, author of Magisteria ‘Alister McGrath shows us in this book with (paradoxically) great lucidity, just why we can only ever be ""darkly wise"", as Alexander Pope put it, about our ordinary assumptions, about scientific conclusions and about ultimate realities – supremely the question of God. Belief is all pervasive, while conversely religious faith may not be a desertion of reason but its intensification and the necessary guarantee of its link to reality. McGrath’s cogent conclusions will surely be of immense help to many perplexed people in our perplexed times.’ —Professor John Milbank