Growing up as a Christian meant that I always viewed God as a living creature. He was part myth, part friend, but definitely real. Jack Miles' take on God is a little different in God: A Biography. He chooses to look at God as a literary character rather than as a divine being which allows the reader to see God from a very different point of view.
After a rather lengthy introduction, the author goes step by step through the old testament focusing on how God the literary character is revealed and shaped. God starts out as a very active participant and slowly seems to become the object of discussion rather than an active participant. The author spends some time musing on why that is and what it means.
In this book, God is viewed and interpreted by how he interacts with the other characters around him. He appears to think, feel and act with the same constraints that we would put on mortals. When God does something inexplicable, the author doesn't dismiss the action by saying, "that's just what God does", he questions what the action says about God the literary character. This perspective makes God look...more human.
Though this book wasn't the easiest one to read this year (it was actually the last book I finished for 2014), it provided a unique way to look at God. I'm not sure exactly how it has changed my own personal way of viewing God but it is refreshing to try to see God in a new way.
WILLIAMS SCALE RATING: Baked Tofu {Normal food cooked in a new way}
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