Review of The Biblical Clock
Posted: 29 Jun 2022, 08:19
[Following is a volunteer review of "The Biblical Clock" by Daniel Friedmann and Dania Sheldon.]
Science and monotheistic religion: Where do they intersect? Can one be used to answer another and are they two parts of the same whole? Most of the time, those questions get laid to rest, forever ignored without a definitive answer. Yet, one particular subject matter breathes life into them again: the creation of the universe. The Biblical Clock by Daniel Friedmann and Dania Sheldon explores this very topic in great detail. It is the culmination of graphs, a bit of math, information, history, and stories that have been collected over centuries to find a correlation between the scientific age of the universe and God’s first week of creation as described in the book of Genesis. Furthermore, The Biblical Clock explores our timeline and even theorizes humanity’s current place in it, as well as what the future may bring. It is informative, creative, and it inspires a myriad of questions.
A key positive aspect is how well-sourced the book is. The authors of The Biblical Clock leave no room for doubt that the data they collected into information is real and plausible. This can sometimes be more difficult to achieve with biblical or older sources, so the effort put into it is well received.
Furthermore, for a non-fiction book, the writing style is thoroughly enjoyable. At the beginning of many of the chapters, Friedmann introduces the applicable topic points with a recount of various historical happenings. The description and depth added to these recounts transform the words into very vivid retellings of historical events. So much so, as to where I felt like I was reading historical fiction rather than non-fiction.
The Biblical Clock also brings about the feeling of intellect throughout the experience. As Friedmann explains his journey and the questions he’s asked to come to his conclusion on a biblical timeline, I found myself asking similar questions. In fact, I found myself searching for answers and wanting to dive even deeper into the topics of creation, relativity, the Big Bang, and the biblical histories mentioned in the book. I thoroughly enjoyed how thought-provoking the book is, and I loved the feeling of bringing out my inner genius.
Though lovely on many fronts, The Biblical Clock does have a few areas that could use improvement. For one, doesn’t always make sense or give enough context. The book doesn’t go in chronological order of events and bounces between creation, the present, and the future. Though it works, for the most part, I think some areas could stand to be refined or include more context to connect the different topic points together and get the central idea across. Secondly, I think some of the more scientific topics could use a bit more description to help readers that may not already have knowledge of scientific theories and findings. Finally, this book is written from a primarily Jewish and partially Christian background. I would have liked to see a bit more Christian, as well as Islamic, backgrounds, and findings included.
I’d rate this book a 3 out of 4 stars. I feel like it accomplished its mission of informing me on a potential biblical timeline that aligns with scientific data. It also inspired my curiosity. The only thing that keeps this book from a 4-star rating is a lack of context.
I recommend The Biblical Clock to curious individuals looking for the intersection of science and religion. However, I’d suggest that those who read it already have prior knowledge of many biblical events and scientific findings. Prior knowledge played a large part in my understanding of the central idea and topics, so I would caution readers to choose this book after familiarizing themselves with the topic first.
******
The Biblical Clock
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on iTunes
Science and monotheistic religion: Where do they intersect? Can one be used to answer another and are they two parts of the same whole? Most of the time, those questions get laid to rest, forever ignored without a definitive answer. Yet, one particular subject matter breathes life into them again: the creation of the universe. The Biblical Clock by Daniel Friedmann and Dania Sheldon explores this very topic in great detail. It is the culmination of graphs, a bit of math, information, history, and stories that have been collected over centuries to find a correlation between the scientific age of the universe and God’s first week of creation as described in the book of Genesis. Furthermore, The Biblical Clock explores our timeline and even theorizes humanity’s current place in it, as well as what the future may bring. It is informative, creative, and it inspires a myriad of questions.
A key positive aspect is how well-sourced the book is. The authors of The Biblical Clock leave no room for doubt that the data they collected into information is real and plausible. This can sometimes be more difficult to achieve with biblical or older sources, so the effort put into it is well received.
Furthermore, for a non-fiction book, the writing style is thoroughly enjoyable. At the beginning of many of the chapters, Friedmann introduces the applicable topic points with a recount of various historical happenings. The description and depth added to these recounts transform the words into very vivid retellings of historical events. So much so, as to where I felt like I was reading historical fiction rather than non-fiction.
The Biblical Clock also brings about the feeling of intellect throughout the experience. As Friedmann explains his journey and the questions he’s asked to come to his conclusion on a biblical timeline, I found myself asking similar questions. In fact, I found myself searching for answers and wanting to dive even deeper into the topics of creation, relativity, the Big Bang, and the biblical histories mentioned in the book. I thoroughly enjoyed how thought-provoking the book is, and I loved the feeling of bringing out my inner genius.
Though lovely on many fronts, The Biblical Clock does have a few areas that could use improvement. For one, doesn’t always make sense or give enough context. The book doesn’t go in chronological order of events and bounces between creation, the present, and the future. Though it works, for the most part, I think some areas could stand to be refined or include more context to connect the different topic points together and get the central idea across. Secondly, I think some of the more scientific topics could use a bit more description to help readers that may not already have knowledge of scientific theories and findings. Finally, this book is written from a primarily Jewish and partially Christian background. I would have liked to see a bit more Christian, as well as Islamic, backgrounds, and findings included.
I’d rate this book a 3 out of 4 stars. I feel like it accomplished its mission of informing me on a potential biblical timeline that aligns with scientific data. It also inspired my curiosity. The only thing that keeps this book from a 4-star rating is a lack of context.
I recommend The Biblical Clock to curious individuals looking for the intersection of science and religion. However, I’d suggest that those who read it already have prior knowledge of many biblical events and scientific findings. Prior knowledge played a large part in my understanding of the central idea and topics, so I would caution readers to choose this book after familiarizing themselves with the topic first.
******
The Biblical Clock
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on iTunes