There Is a God

by Antony Flew, Harper Collins Publishers, © 2007,
222 pages, $19.00 (hardcover), ISBN-13: 978-0-06-133529-7

Most scholars would suggest that Antony Flew was the leading atheist of the twentieth century. Flew published over 30 books with many of them such as God and Philosophy and The Presumption of Atheism were hailed as the main support for atheistic thinking. Educated at Oxford, Flew held positions of professor of philosophy at several universities in England. In 2004 Flew broke with atheism and announced that he accepted the existence of God. The most meaningful quote that he has given us is “you have to go where the evidence leads you.” This book presents the philosophical arguments and scientific discoveries that turned him from a staunch atheist into a believer.

This book is divided into five sections. The first is an introduction including a preface that discusses Flew's role in atheism and gives some history. Appendix A is a critical review of modern day atheists, including Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennett, Lewis Wolpert, Sam Harris, and Victor Stenger. It does a good job of explaining these modern atheist's positions and weaknesses. Appendix B is a discussion of Jesus Christ with N.T. Wright who is an Oxford New Testament scholar. Flew never embraced Christianity, but this discussion is very positive.

The remainder of the book is the real body of Flew's faith. The first part is an explanation of how he became an atheist. The second part is subtitled “My Discovery of the Divine” and traces his journey to becoming a believer. The book does not primarily deal with any new evidence, but rather with how the evidence we have is incorporated into faith. It will be useful to those working through philosophy, especially college students who are influenced by atheistic philosophy professors.