Where do our beliefs come from? During prayer or meditation are we communicating with God? Or does the concept of God originate in our own minds?

In this wide-ranging book, Dr. Robert Buckman takes us on a journey through the history of human belief, combining philosophy, theology, and new scientific research to discover the origins of religious faith and explore the dilemmas and contradictions of religion in the modern world.

Buckman also examines the relationship between beliefs and ethics. Many of us use rules set by our religion to guide our behavior, yet now, more than ever, religious doctrine can seem out of alignment with our sense of ethical conduct. If you don't believe in God, can you still behave decently and ethically?

This revised and updated edition helps us understand not just why we believe, but how our beliefs affect our actions and how a code of ethics can exist without a deity at its center.

Robert Buckman, M.D., Ph.D. (1948–2011), was an oncologist and professor at the University of Toronto's Princess Margaret Hospital. He was the author of numerous journal articles and book chapters as well as of books, including How to Break Bad News, What You Really Need to Know about Cancer, and Human Wildlife, all three published by Johns Hopkins.

Robert Buckman's profile page