Review of
The
Book That Made Your World: How the Bible Created the Soul of Western
Civilization
By Vishal
Mangalwadi
Thomas
Nelson, 2011 (464 pp, $22.99, hardcover)
Rating:
3.5/5
In
his book, The Book That Made Your World, author Vishal Mangalwadi surveys the Bible’s influence on the
development of Western Civilization and his native India. Mangalwadi outlines
the Bible’s impact on several features of civilization that are (or began as) Western
ideas such as technology, heroism, science, and family and explains how modern
man has begun (or has succeeded) to remove these ideas from their Biblical
foundation. As such, he argues, the West has lost its soul and must return to
the truth of God’s Word in order to avoid the consequences that have resulted
from rejecting the Bible’s authority.
Mangalwadi expertly draws upon many resources to
deliver an excellent history of the Bible’s influence on each facet of Western
Civilization. It was very interesting to read the story of how early Bible
translators such as William Tyndale, Martin Luther, and John Wycliffe all
risked their lives in order to bring the truth of the Bible into the hands of
laypeople so that they could judge their own lives and the actions of authority
figures according to the Holy Word of God.
While I appreciated Mangalwadi’s survey of the
Bible’s influence on Western Civilization, I was oftentimes distracted and disinterested
in his descriptions of how the Bible westernized his native India. I
acknowledge Mangalwadi has served faithfully in India for many years and has
learned much about India’s history; yet he loses the focus of his book when he delineates
the Bible’s impact on India as opposed to concerning himself purely with how
the Bible created Western Civilization (especially as it evidenced itself in
Europe and the United States). It was during these sections that I found myself
losing interest and desiring to skip ahead to return to the primary focus of
the book.
Overall, Mangalwadi presents a broad survey of how
the Bible shaped Western Civilization in a complete work that will likely cause
readers to seek out additional titles related to the various facets of the West
explored in this book. While this is certainly not a quick or easy read, it is
a valuable examination of the tremendous influence of the Bible on Western
Civilization.
Review
by Tyler Constable
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher
through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com>
book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review.
The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance
with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html>
: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
