Review of Wilderness Cry

[Ochieng Omuodo]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Wilderness Cry" by Hilary L Hunt M.D..]

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3 out of 4 stars

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In his book, Wilderness Cry, Hilary Hunt describes his attempt to discover how God really works as ‘a journey of understanding’. The journey, a fifty-year endeavour, involved studying the Bible and scientific research. He describes his coerced childhood acceptance of Catholic Church doctrines and how he began questioning them in adulthood. He argues that the Catholic Church should provide knowledge and understanding of God instead of making them mystical. This book is a presentation of Hunt’s cry for truth away from what he unflinchingly terms a ‘wilderness of mythology, superstition, confusion, misconception, deceit, ignorance, and intolerance’ in the quest for money, power and control. Humankind’s inability to understand God is the consequence of the belief that we are special in His eyes above other creations in the universe. We believe that we can change His will by incessant praying. Hunt says this misplaced belief is peddled by religion. He lays bare the contrivances of early Jewish leaders and the Catholic Church to exercise control over people’s everyday lives. He concludes that the only guidelines that suffice are given by Jesus; love God and love your neighbour as you do yourself. Christianity is doomed to extinction if it does not accept this message.

This book makes you see the Bible in a new light because it is presented as a collection of flawed human constructs dealing with historical events and issues. Hunt takes issue with the perversion of faith by the injection of religion into spirituality. The way this perspective is presented is what I liked most about the book. It is impressive because Hunt used research to make his assertions. I also liked the humour that pervades the book. It caught me by surprise because I anticipated solemnity. For example, he describes his experience of becoming a father multiple times by saying that the children kept coming out of nowhere, as if he just did not know what was happening to him. This is a clever play on the consequences of anti-birth control messaging of the Catholic Church.

Aside from the humour, Hunt poignantly captures some major historical ills of the Catholic Church such as the Inquisition that resulted in the burning of innocent people accused of witchcraft, the persecution of Galileo for his science, and the senseless deaths of Muslims caused by the Crusades. These made me understand why he dedicated this book to those who have suffered because of religion. I could go on and on about more aspects that impressed me if I am left to run wild. Indeed, I had to read this book twice just to get my head around it.

Yet, I feel I must highlight one particularly off-putting aspect of the book. Even though Hunt provides a disclaimer to having any expert knowledge, his treatment of isms – as applied to forms of government – is inadequate. The bunching together of democracy and capitalism, and then communism with fascism are erroneous. Further, there is a sweeping statement that the U.S. system of governance is ‘the most dynamic and successful the world has ever known’. This is inconsistent with the rest of the book where arguments are generally supported with facts or references for evidence. A lesser problem has to do with editing. The page numbers in the ‘Contents’ section are incorrect. Nevertheless, the grammar is excellent and I only found one error.

Even though there are contentions I do not agree with, such as inanimate objects being evil and there being no such thing as free will, my reactions to such were probably emotional or reflexive and, therefore, subjective. I was tempted to give a perfect rating, but I decided on three out of four stars. The inadequately discussed forms of government and the editing mishap that I mentioned above were the limiting factors.

I recommend the book to anyone seeking a foundation for a deeper understanding of God. You do not have to be Catholic to follow the flow. Make no mistake, this book is short – one might even describe it as fat-free – and does not detail Hunt’s arguments. There is just enough evidence to ensure that the reader understands the issues. However, there is so much to learn with regard to the historical facts and context of the authorship of biblical scriptures. If you are afflicted by incurable curiosity like me, then you will be intrigued enough to hunt down, pun intended, the material in the bibliography. Also, science-oriented readers might want to test Hunt’s decent attempt to demonstrate the interaction of God’s creations and science. Hunt says his writing may be construed as heretical. So, if you find deviations from conventional church doctrine unacceptable, then this book may be difficult to take in.

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Wilderness Cry
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[Neshboy Aburi]

A true understanding of God and his Spiritual ways demands that we look beyond the constraints of mainstream church doctrines. I love the way you have summarized this book. Thanks.

[Ochieng Omuodo]

Thanks Clifford.

[Bigwig1973]

I have read this and must say that you wrote a really nice review on this book. The summary is very good and you mention several important points in the book, as well as reminding readers that they might find this a bit upsetting. I was a bit disappointed at how the author seemed to concentrate more on defending and criticizing religion, than he was on developing his own theories. Guess he just needed to vent!

[Ochieng Omuodo]

I have read this and must say that you wrote a really nice review on this book. The summary is very good and you mention several important points in the book, as well as reminding readers that they might find this a bit upsetting. I was a bit disappointed at how the author seemed to concentrate more on defending and criticizing religion, than he was on developing his own theories. Guess he just needed to vent!

Thank you

[Hyacinth Bella]

Combining Science and Religion is hard because they are contradicting in many ways. I'm intrigued by how this book is written. Thank you for the review!

[Ochieng Omuodo]

Thank you. It's a similarity-contradiction debate that fascinates me.

[Ochieng Omuodo]

Combining Science and Religion is hard because they are contradicting in many ways. I'm intrigued by how this book is written. Thank you for the review!

Thank you. It's a similarity-contradiction debate that fascinates me.