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Summary: Superb comparison of the prevailing worldviews of our age!
Review: A comprehensive, yet easy to understand survey of the prevailing worldviews of our day. This is the definitive reference to understanding the ideas and forces shaping our times. David Noebel rather objectively compares and contrasts the Christian, Marxist/Leninist, Secular Humanist and New Age worldviews. By comparing and contrasting the prevailing worldviews of our time, it helps you to clarify your own worldview. It also gives the reader clearer insight into the world view bias that are shaping a New World Order. Recommended to Christians and anyone desiring to better understand their worldview. This book isn't one you just read and 'shelf away', its valuable as an excellent reference title which I regularly consult. Good reference for philosophy students as well.Also recommended: The Universe Next Door: A Basic Worldview Catalog by James Sire and Finding God in Physics by Roy Masters
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Summary: Whacky Rightwing bible-thumper & racist
Review: Author of the famed & hilarious THE MARXIST MINSTRELS (1974)...Expose of all those commie & negroid pulsating evils destroying our youth & gene pool. Some of this stuff has to be read out loud. You can regal your friends & have them rolling on the floor with a good thumping fundamentalist delivery. Hey, this guy was serious! Usual extreme right racist garbage in the Jack Van Imp mode. This guy is bout as close to God as a pig in lipstick.
Rating:
Summary: Whacky Rightwing bible-thumper & racist
Review: Author of the famed & hilarious THE MARXIST MINSTRELS (1974)...Expose of all those commie & negroid pulsating evils destroying our youth & gene pool. Some of this stuff has to be read out loud. You can regal your friends & have them rolling on the floor with a good thumping fundamentalist delivery. Hey, this guy was serious! Usual extreme right racist garbage in the Jack Van Imp mode. This guy is bout as close to God as a pig in lipstick.
Rating: 
Summary: Failed attack on atheism and biological evolution
Review: David Noebel is the President of Summit Ministries, an organization which offers courses in comparative worldviews for young Christians. UNDERSTANDING THE TIMES represents Noebel's assessment of a comparison of three worldviews: secular humanism, marxism/leninism, and biblical Christianity. (A fourth worldview, the so-called "new age movement," is briefly discussed in an appendix.) Immediately, one wonders why Noebel chose these worldviews, but not others. After all, there is an Islamic worldview, a Hindu worldview, a Mormon worldview, etc. And why relegate the New Age movement to an appendix? It seems to me that the New Age movement is far more influential in North America than Marxism/Leninism. According to Noebel, a worldview contains a particular perspective in each of the following ten areas: theology, philosophy, ethics, biology, psychology, sociology, law, politics, economics, and history. Again, just as Noebel's choice of worldviews seems arbitrary, so does his definition of what constitutes a worldview. For example, why *must* a worldview contain a particular perspective regarding, say, sociology? Granted, different approaches to sociology may have metaphysical presuppositions, implications, or both. But it seems far from obvious that a complete worldview *must* include a specific view of, say, sociology. Moreover, even if the Christian worldview implies a certain perspective on sociology, it is far from obvious that other worldviews must also imply their own perspective on sociology. As an atheist (but not a secular humanist), I was especially interested in what Noebel had to say concerning the secular humanist worldview, specifically secular humanism's "theology" (atheism) and "biology" (evolution). Unfortunately, Noebel's discussion of both matters is substantially weakened by two flaws. First, he makes things easy for himself by refusing to actually interact with any of the evidence and arguments advanced by atheists and evolutionists in favor of their views. Second, Noebel simply repeats many of the same old objections to atheism and biological evolution that have answered repeatedly by atheists and evolutionists, without giving any indication of their answers. Incredibly, in his discussion of atheism, Noebel only spends a single paragraph on the problem of evil and even then he only considers the weakest version of the problem, the so-called "logical" argument from evil. Furthermore, Noebel's discussion of atheism is now outdated because it neglects a major new argument for atheism: the argument from divine hiddenness. (See my webpage for more information about this argument.) Noebel also repeats the familiar argument that life is meaningless without God, but he misses the obvious atheistic rejoinder that individuals can still have *personal* (or non-ultimate) meaning without God, even if there is no *cosmic* (or ultimate) meaning without God. Turning to Noebel's attacks on biological evolution, not only are his objections fallacious, but several of his objections are based upon serious misunderstandings of modern science. For example, he confuses modern theories of abiogenesis (how life *gradually* evolved from non-life) with the 19th-century theory of spontaneous generation (the belief that life *instantly* and *spontaneously* arises from non-life)! By treating these two views as equivalent, Noebel attacks a straw man. Other errors present in his attack on evolution include the bogus claim that natural selection is a tautology (even Phillip Johnson rejects this objection), the idea that mutations cannot provide the new genetic material for natural selection (Noebel completely ignores the scientific literature on this point), and the idea that punctuated equilibrium (a theory about *how* evolution occurs, not *whether* it occurs) somehow discredits evolution. What disturbs me is that the scientific community has repeatedly answered all of these objections (see my web page for details); yet Noebel does not even indicate that to his readers. For this very reason, it seems to me that Noebel has done his readers a disservice: they will be ill-equipped to answer the detailed replies that evolutionists have to these and other objections. In short, I think Noebel's objections to atheism and biological evolution are mistaken on virtually every point. Nevertheless, I truly enjoyed his very interesting book. I think the chief accomplishment of UNDERSTANDING THE TIMES is Noebel's systematic, comprehensive comparison of competing worldviews. For that reason, I gave his book two stars instead of only one. Perhaps some day a nontheist will write a similar analysis of worldviews from a naturalistic perspective. (For a detailed review of Noebel's book, visit infidels.org.)
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Summary: An amazing study
Review: Doc. Noebel did a vast amount of research to put together this book. Everything he says about each worldview he backs up with quotes right from the people who are significant in that worldview. Much of what he says about, say, secular humanism comes right out of the humanist manifestos 1 and 2. This book is an awesome resource for anyone who wants to understand worldviews, and the conflict between them that is going on in this country right now.
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Summary: A Guide to What's Going On
Review: Ever wonder what's going on in the world? This book gives an in-depth perspective on the major thought processes that most people in the Western world base their decisions on. Ideas have consequences. This book will help you to identify your own and other's beliefs as well as the logical consequences of those beliefs. For anyone searching for truth, this book will be greatly appreciated.
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Summary: Dr. Noebel: A True Hero of our Times
Review: I had the privilage of attending SUMMIT MINISTRIES this summer, whose president is Dr. Noebel. After taking the leadership seminar and reading "Understanding the Times", I feel that it was by far the most informative book I've ever read besides the bible. I now feel that I have a detailed understanding of what is currently happening in our world. This book has awesome footnotes from a variety of books and other publications. I feel that the rather large commentary written by Mr. jlowder@infidels.org is both unfair and confusing. First of all, I was not surprised to see that he was an athiest after reading his review. Most athiest and evolutoin believers often make it their life goal to discredit every aspect of christianity that they can. I also feel that his comments about the "New Age Movement" in the apendix were unecessary. This book was first published in 1991 at a time when the New Age Movement was not as big as Secular Humanism. Also, many of his so called 'proofs' from evolution probably weren't 'proven' by the time this book was published. Dr. Noebel is truely one of the best christian writters and thinkers of our times. I strongly suggest this book specificly to christian students who are entering college, although everyone will benifit from this book.
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Summary: its good..
Review: i had to read this just look at all these reviews. i only read two chapters. its a long book, can b overwhelming.
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Summary: How sweet it is!
Review: I highly recommend this book as an EXCELLENT tool and resource for use in the equipping of the Christian in the defense of his or her faith-- the Biblical Christian Worldview. I agree with D. James Kennedy, who states that the mastery of this book would be more helpful than a college education!
Rating:
Summary: Excellent comparative study book
Review: This book is a well written, comprehensive look at three worldviews. After reading it, you'll be well grounded to defend your faith against atheism & humanism.
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