It is adult theology with all the attendant irony and uncertainty we have to acknowledge in our present state of self-awareness. This is not a book for one who thinks God is hearts and flowers. But it is for the one who can understand how a Jew, after the Holocaust, after dignity has been stolen, after losing everyone dear, can still believe in a God albeit a God that doesn't follow the rules He sets for others. There is confession and hope of redemption at the end of this book which made it all the more heart-wrenching--and there is a sequel. I will have to put some space between me and this book for a while before I start Children of God.This book tackles sociology, evolution, first contact between people of 'difference', intention, faith and family. But it ripped me apart--and I'm so glad I read it. I have a friend who is mad at God right now. Either that or he laughs at the farce of his life because he thought God would keep bad things from happening if he would just do 'thus and so,' this or that ritual--he and Emilio have some feelings in common.
I love what Russell (converted to Judaism from Catholicism)herself says: "The beauty of religion is the way in which it enriches your understanding of what your senses tell you. . .There's a certain serenity that comes from knowing that the ethics you draw on have been tested and re-tested by one thousand generations in every possible cultural and ethical climate, and that they have been found reliable and useful by so many people for so long. . .
The risks have to do with believing that God micromanages the world, and with seeing what may be simply coincidence as significant and indicative of divine providence. It's very easy then to go out on a limb spiritually, expect more from God than you have a right to and set yourself up for bitter disappointement in his silence and lack of action."
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