Just finished the book. His last chapter on Christian ethics was too biased against Christianity, but the author did a good job showing that the moral teachings of Jesus in the Gospels weren't anything remarkably original and that they were never meant at all for today's generations but rather they were intended to prepare the generation of followers in his lifetime for the expected imminent coming of the kingdom of God (e.g., the "sell all you have and give to the poor, and you will amass treasure in heaven" teaching). Also made a great point about how Jesus (per the Gospels) really wasn't that great of a philosopher compared to the likes of Socrates.
His Epilogue (written around 40 years after the first publication of the book) was very illuminating, shedding some light on who the author is, how he was raised, what got him interested in the topic of religion and philosophy, and the stressful experience of writing his first book ever as someone who was still in his early twenties. There is a level of self-awareness involved in this Epilogue which I did not see much of throughout the book itself, and he explains how the way he wrote so passionately back in his twenties in this book no longer reflects his style of writing.
His Epilogue (written around 40 years after the first publication of the book) was very illuminating, shedding some light on who the author is, how he was raised, what got him interested in the topic of religion and philosophy, and the stressful experience of writing his first book ever as someone who was still in his early twenties. There is a level of self-awareness involved in this Epilogue which I did not see much of throughout the book itself, and he explains how the way he wrote so passionately back in his twenties in this book no longer reflects his style of writing.
