Rating: 
Summary: Gospel Wins Despite Flawed Theology !
Review: One can't help but celebrate the reaching of a skeptical dad by a bold, thoughtful son; that's what is so arresting about this book. But it also seems to be a platform to espouse a clearly deficient, quasi-biblical view called 'free-will' or 'open' theism.Just one illustration will show how free 'free-will' is and how open or ajar the future is. If God cannot know future free decisions as definite in advance without impinging on genuine 'free exercise clause' of human destinies, how can God know even Present free decisions as definite as they are breaking, transpiring without the same potential infringement? Even Present free destinies passing, happening, occurring, opting, deciding cannot be definitely known until they are already passed, happened, occurred, opted, decided, finalized, over, done, in the record books, etched in the fixed Past where even God's knowledge cannot affect them, since only at THAT time (done, past tense, chosen, fully decided) will free agency not be negated. Since what God definitely knows about any future destiny fixes that destiny, so too with any present destiny until it is freely fixed by the decider as Past. Thus, God cannot even know a yet-to-be-Past, i.e. Present, for all the Present is is a membrane converting Future to Past. If genuine freedom of action is the issue, then God's omniscience not only must exclude definite, exhaustive individual FUTURE decisions, but PRESENT (not-yet-Past) as well. Example: God cannot definitely know that Free Freda will drink from a blue, 8 oz. glass of ice water with 3 ice cubes at 9:07am PST next Wednesday. For Him to do so means Freda is not truly free to do otherwise. Thus all He 'forecasts' is she may or may not possibly do so.By the same token, God cannot definitely know that Freda will drink the same glass of icewater in the next 60 seconds. He can see her thoughts and thirst and her going to the kitchen, opening cupboard, pulling out the blue glass, opening freezer for the ice cube tray. But since even Free Freda doesn't at this precise moment know how many (or just which) ice cubes she will select; or maybe will drop one; or maybe ice cube tray is empty; or how full she will fill the glass; or how many times she will refill - even God cannot know (except see inside the freezer the half-empty tray Freda can't see until she opens the door) these breaking events until they are fully, finally completed. Freda, to be fully free, must will, decide, choose, act completely (she must be DONE) in her sequence, at her discretion, leisure, timing, duration, pace BEFORE God can definitely know each/any step and the entire sequence to preserve Freda's genuine self-determination, latitude of destiny. As long as Freda IS DRINKING, God cannot know how things will turn out until she is DONE DRINKING,past tense. Everything is still open possibility, probabilities, part settled/part unsettled until Free Freda eliminates all Open Future from her Open Present by creating a non-open, settled Past. Then, and only then, can God know it as definite and leave her open to create her own destiny freely. Until free-will theism can resolve this internal incoherency (among multiple others too numerous to mention here), it's best to look to Norman Geisler's Creating God in Man's Image; Millard Erickson's God the Father Almighty; Paul Helm's Eternal God; and excellent essays on BGC's 'Foreknowledge' website for more Biblically plausible description of Omnitheism: God is All the Bible says He is; no less; no reductionism; no quasi-omniscience, etc.
Rating: 
Summary: Fantastic
Review: I can't say I totally agree with all of Dr. Boyd's theology, but I really liked reading this book, as it simply explained most apologetic issues, and gives some nice one-liner answers. :) Boyd is a proficient scholar, and I also greatly enjoyed his contributions to Lee Strobel's THE CASE FOR CHRIST. This was one of the first apologetics books I read, and interesting because there was sort of a story behind it, if you know what I mean.Essentially, while this does not have all the answers, it will certainly clear up some issues for both the skeptic and the believer. This section is not the review. Ignore it. As for the reader below, I have to say that his comments are either blatantly false, slander, or just unfactual. First, he fails to give the elderly any credit whatsoever. I would like to observe that I have not known ANY Christian to ever try to bully someone into faith with intense psychological pressure. The conversion would not be genuine in all likelihood, and I personally must express extreme doubt that Edward Boyd, who sounds like an intelligent skeptic (and certainly open-minded enough to realize when there are no more objections to be made), converted because he was afraid his son wouldn't like him otherwise. Anyone who has read LETTERS FROM A SKEPTIC realizes what balderdash that allegation is. I'm just peeved that so little worth is given to the elderly. Newsflash: they are not doddering old fools, and are often the most reluctant to change their ways. Additionally, Boyd specified that some Christians believed nonbelieving souls would be simply eliminated. This should have removed this alleged psychological pressure. Finally, it is also inaccurate to say they had no relationship. It's obvious that they do. It's also obvious that the son is willing to communicate about other things, but he knows that evangelism is a top priority. I would find it greatly intriguing to learn where exactly the son refuses to communicate with his father unless they talk about Jesus. OK, that's about it. God bless, Christinaphylus
Rating:
Summary: How do you reach a fanatical son?
Review: I found this book to be extremely emotional because I felt so sorry for the elder Boyd. He was 70 years old at the time he entered into these letters, and his son - a professor of theology - will only write to him if they can talk about Christianity. At the end, the father admits he doesn't believe in Christianity, but he is willing to abandon his own beliefs in order to reach out and establish a relationship with his son before he dies. This is a marvelous account of the intense psychological pressure - I'd call it brainwashing, but it's far worse - that christian evangelists inflict on their families, particularly underage children and elderly parents. When you're 70 and someone promises you another life beyond this one in return for your soul, for saying you believe, why not? The arguments about non-Christians spending an eternity in hell, subject to some kind of unpleasant torture if not burning fire, which is what the text says - wow, how is any 70 year-old supposed to stand up to that?
Rating:
Summary: Excellent. Many hard questions finally explained.
Review: I loved this book and read the 190 pages in few days. I am struggling with my own doubts about religion. My belief in God is strong, but any details are blurry (that includes the choice of religion). Edward Boyd asked several questions which have been leaving me confused about Christianity, I found myself suprised many times at how he was just asking what I often wondered about. Several times I was thinking "ok, that explains it, but what about XYZ, I want you see explain that one, ah!" and later Edward did ask something like it and his father managed to come up with a pretty solid answer. The topics include: Why has Christianity done so much harm? Why is the world full of suffering? Why does God create famine,earthquakes? Couldn't it all be by chance? Why does an all-powerful God need prayers? Why trust the Gospel as true? What about the contradictions? How could a man rise from the dead? Why are there so many different interpretations of the Bible? What about other holy books of other religions? Do all non-Christians go to hell? Why would God torture people in an eternal hell? Plus many other. Sometimes you'll get answers that are based on faith, sometimes you get clear facts, but I have to admit I have never read any explanations that left me thinking it was making sense. If you already believe, this book might help you to see things a bit more clearly. If you are a skeptic (like me), it will leave you less confused. Ultimately, I do not believe I will find any final answer from books. It will have to be a deep personal experience, but I am gathering as much info as I can. I dare quoting the Bible: "Test everything, hold on to the good" (1 Thess 5:21). This book was great clearing up a few problematic issues like the concept of Hell. Of course I still don't understand many things, and still have a lot to learn, but if you are a skeptic, buy it now. A previous reviewer wrote that Boyd claims to know the truth, but resorts to compromise when his beliefs are on the line. Maybe he does sometimes, but even Boyd himself near the end admits that you cannot be 100% of anything. He admits things might be different, but gives you enough facts to make you start looking at other options as if they are as hard to believe in as the whole "christian stuff". I also recommend another book which also clears out many issues and some good arguments from atheists: "The Case for Christ" by Lee Strobel. "The Journey" Bible is also easy to read and addequate for people who don't believe yet. I've been trying to explore it, it's a lot easier than most Bibles. The book ends a bit quickly, the last 2 months were not written, it abruptly ends with Gregory's father saying he is ready to believe. I am curious about how he feels now, and it would be interesting to read more correspondence between the two. In general, a great book, with many strong arguments. Doubts will always be present, but this was one of the most interesting books about Christianity I have read so far. No matter what you believe in (or don't believe in), buy it. I am sure you will find some good thoughts in it, even if you don't end up converted or fully convinced.
Rating:
Summary: Disappointed
Review: After skimming the questions in the table of contents and reading Boyd's qualifications for attempting to answer these questions, I was prepared for some good arguments for the Christian worldview. However, after reading the book, I'm disappointed that the answers weren't better (Boyd never claims to know all the answers, I know). Boyd's father's prime skepticism is based on the all important question: How could a loving God send his creations to eternal torture in hell?. Boyd convinces his father that God MAY just, in effect, 'uncreate' non-believers as if they never existed, which is not Scriptural. After this, Boyd's father's skepticism begins to lighten, which eventually leads to his conversion. I'm sure Boyd is a wonderful person and a great Christian, but I question his technique of telling 'half-truths' to gain a convert. Boyd says over and over again (I paraphrase) 'Whatever Jesus believed is good enough for me', and Jesus surely believed in eternal torture for unbelievers, so either Jesus was mistaken or Boyd is. I'm just disappointed that Boyd claims to know the TRUTH, but resorts to compromise when his beliefs are on the line.
Rating: 
Summary: Well Meaning, but Seriously Flawed.
Review: I do not doubt Dr. Boyd's sincerity, and I rejoice in the conversion of his father, but his book is critically flawed. On page 30 he makes the remarkable statement: "But to assume He [God] knows ahead of time how every person is going to freely act assumes that each person's free activity is already there to know - even before he freely does it! But it's not. If we have been given freedom, we create the reality of our decisions by making them. And until we make them, they don't exist. Thus, in my view at least, there simply isn't anything to know until we make it there to know. So God can't foreknow the good or bad decisions of the people He creates until He creates these people and they, in turn, create their decisions." This is specious and unBiblical at best. It shows such a flawed and unScriptural view of God as to take ones breath away. You end up with a being of great power, but something far less than God. A creature that, like you and me, is surprised at what each new day will bring. Dr. Boyd elevates freedom to such inviolate primacy that it is the operative principle of the created order. This may help Dr. Boyd to score philosophical points, but it is most emphatically not the God of the Bible. A vast list of Scripture can be cited to refute this notion, but, for sake of brevity, I will cite only 2: Psalm 139, and Jeremiah 1:4,5. Many other verses could be cited. If you want a superb defense of the Faith for a doubting friend I would recommend C.S. Lewis' "Mere Christianity" rather than Dr. Boyd's book. If you are interested in apologetics yourself I recommend J.P. Moreland's excellent (and encyclopedic) "Scaling the Secular City". If you are interested in a concise discussion of God's knowledge then I refer you to volume one of Francis Turretin's "Institutes of Elenctic Theology"; third topic (The One & Triune God),12th question (The Knowledge of God).
Rating:
Summary: Intelligent Answers for Intelligent Questions
Review: This is an excellent book on Christian apologetics for the lay person. "Apologetics" being the way of explaining one's faith to someone who doesn't share it. The book documents the correspondence between son (professor of theology and a Christian) and father (sceptic and non-Christian). Dad manages to raise almost every objection about the Christian faith that has ever been raised whilst son answers these questions with good theology and mature faith. If you are a thinking person and have questions about the Christian faith, this is the book for you. Whilst remaining accessible and easy-to-read, the quality of theology is high along with the quality of inspiration. Much better than most of the unsatisfying pap that gets published as tracts to help people "get saved." This book answers genuine questions that rightly concern people thinking about the Christian faith. One comment on the theology itself. Boyd is not a fundamentalist, but he is an evangelical. I personally disagree with his presentation of substitutionary atonement (Why did Jesus die?) and his views on hell. However, as Boyd himself points out to his father, these are but details in the scheme of salvation.
Rating:
Summary: Refreshingly Honest
Review: This book was refreshingly open and honest. so many people try to put God in a box with their beliefs and interpretations of what the Bible says. God is an infinate being that no one can totally explain or understand. As Gregory has implied in his book, We must have faith and act on what we know and not on what we do not know. We know that the love of God canot be fully understood by men but we can fully rest in the truth of His love proved by allowing His Son to die for us in order for us to have fellowship with Him. Amazing Love and Amazing Grace. Thank you sincerely Gregory and Ed - Great book! May God continue to be glorified through this book.
Rating:
Summary: An interesting book for believers and 'not-yet' believers
Review: If you are alredy a believer, this outstanding book will be very refreshing and nutritious to your faith; and if you are still a 'not yet' believer, this interesting book will help you to think through all those tough mental blocks again, and very possibly, during the reading and thinking procedure, you will get a brekthrough and make the most mysterous decision to become a true believer! -----this wonderful book has a lot of bleesings and prayers behind it, it's such a good deal to read something so interesting and challenging and also enjoy the benefit to rise above all our traditional religious background and share the insightful discussions between the father and son---and only if we are humble and open enough, it may lead us to make the final decision to know our CREATOR,and enjoy the 'direct TV' from the heaven from now on.
Rating:
Summary: Best Book Ever!
Review: Having an athiest father and a skeptic world, I read this book and had some of my own questions answered and showed me a way that I might be able to talk to my dad about how cool God is. Everyone should read it, if they are a Christian or not, all of your questions will be addresed and answered.
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