The Thoughtful Guide to God presents a rational approach to notions of God and soul for those who are disenchanted with organised religion. Reviving concepts of the divine that go back to the earliest human civilisations of both East and West, it shows how ideas have evolved from early scriptural revelations, through the rationalization of the Greek philosophers, to the developments of modern physics.

Few works bring together ideas from so many disciplines – from religion, philosophy, psychology and science, with all the supporting detail. Packed with references for further reading, it provides a bridge between science and religion, and between many of the different religions of the world.

All the terms and concepts are explained so that they are accessible to the general reader. The discoveries of Newton and Galileo, through to Einstein and contemporary scientists, and the ideas of God from a number of Jewish, Christian, Islamic and Hindu thinkers, are presented with brief biographical background to put these personalities in context. Their thoughts are fused with those of Greek and later philosophers that have shaped society in Western Europe to provide a unifying concept of the divine as Communal Soul – a one-world view which it is essential should convince more of the population in the materialist West if Earth and humankind are to survive into the 22nd century.

Published by O Books. ISBN 1905047703.
To buy a copy visit your local bookshop or www.o-books.net or www.amazon.co.uk

Reviews of The Thoughtful Guide to God

This book is subtitled, appropriately, Making Sense of the World’s Biggest Idea. Given that it is written by a mathematician and scientifically-trained teacher, it is a bold attempt to bridge the gaps between science, philosophy and religion and is the culmination of Jones’s many years of research (mostly into medicine but also into all three broad topics just mentioned). Jones has resolved what for many are divisions in thinking and understanding into a seamless unification of thought and experience which might be described as a one-world holistic spiritual approach to living. As thoughtful as the title claims, this one is thorough, with excellent background, history and depth, and is just right for the kind of person who sees, feels and perhaps has already begun to find the fusion of consciousness that shows the way out of the confusion of our times and towards a way of being that is positive, without being naïve, and profoundly informative, without being pedantic. If you have a brain, heart and soul, and the interest to see where they become one, this book is a must.

Chris Erasmus, Odyssey Magazine, South Africa


This thought provoking and engaging book delves into an enormous subject with a rational but holistic approach. Bringing together a cross-section of ideas from religion, science and philosophy, it is an in-depth study of the divine that will appeal to theologians and lay-readers alike. Howard Jones is a trained scientist who spent many years carrying out research in medicine. He communicates his spiritual values with academic aplomb and provides a much needed bridge between the often conflicting worlds of science and religion. The book considers the nature of God, looks at the ideas of ancient and medieval philosophers and offers a scientific exploration of mind and soul. Healers will be particularly interested in the chapters on the nature and manifestations of soul and the concept of universal spirit which include references to spiritual healing and other complementary therapies.

Helen Denton, National Federation of Spiritual Healers for Healing Today


[This is] an interesting book. It is written by a thinking, feeling man who has studied widely in many disciplines (medicine, nutrition, music, mathematics, philosophy, history, religion). He has thought deeply about the ideas he has encountered and their impact on his own life. . . Dr Jones synthesizes a lot of disparate information for us, from the properties of subatomic particles to the origins of the division of the Sunni and Shi’ite Moslems; from the rise of the three major religions to the value of eating local produce. He is a strong advocate for protecting and cherishing the planet, and a crusader for proper diet. The author . . . would have us recognise (with myriad examples) that all philosophy, religion and even empirical science, leads back to a holistic, basically benign, natural world of which humans are a part and that, as Dr. Jones puts it. ‘creative inspiration is an activity that derives from resonance with the universal spiritual field’.

Barbara Ardinger for PanGaia magazine,Nov 06 – Jan 07.

[The author] has amassed an impressively broad and extensive body of evidence from both science and religion to support his thesis that reason, science and religion are not mutually incompatible. In these respects it is a thorough academic survey.

From review by Dr Malcolm Hollick, author of The Science of Oneness (O Books, 2006) in the Scientific and Medical Network Review, No.93.

This book takes the reader on a roller-coaster ride through the history of ideas – almost all ideas. Howard Jones traces the thought underlying religion, spirituality, mysticism, philosophy and science in both West and East from the earliest times to the present day. His aim is to present the relationship between mind, body and soul from a scientist’s point of view. Scientific and spiritual views of the human experience are brought together, as Jones attempts to offer a life-enhancing view for people in the modern world, many of whom have rejected formal religion yet are seeking a rational, spiritual alternative.

From review by Marianne Rankin, Chair of the Alister Hardy Society, published in De Numine, No.42.

I just felt I had to drop you a line to say how very much I am enjoying ‘The Thoughtful Guide to God’. It is so readable, informative and thought provoking. Congratulations on an excellent book. I look forward to reading every page.

Personal communication: Chris Lawrence, GreenSpirit member


I think the book is extremely well written, is really informative historically, and is a source of a lot of good sense about current dilemmas and unknowns - especially the question of the prospects for a convergence between religion and science through research on psi and survival. I greatly admire the philosophy behind what you're doing. It's very important.

Personal communication: Professor Peter Wadhams, Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics, University of Cambridge.


This is indeed a thought provoking book! So thought provoking that it is difficult to respond to it without writing a whole book in reply! You write well and the subject matter flows along in an easy to assimilate style. I was extremely impressed with the sheer scope of the book. It covers such a vast historical canvass and takes in a huge range of subjects encompassing almost all fields of human and superhuman endeavour. I like books that are filled with facts and information and yours most certainly fulfilled that criterion.

I thought your chapter 6 on “manifestations of soul” was particularly interesting. You made out a very convincing case for the reality of the supernatural and for the importance of a big range of spiritual phenomena. I’ve often read dismissive statements about psychic phenomena saying they are all frauds or were long ago refuted. You provide good reasons for concluding that this is not so.

I liked your section on page 233 about the studies of the effect of prayer on hospital patients. You did a very good job of marshalling and organising a very large range of evidence. Probably the most important sections of the book were chapters 7 and 8 where you explain the concept of universal spirit, cosmic spiritual field, etc. and relate this to scientific discoveries, like the zero point field, and to spiritual phenomena. I found all this fascinating and applaud your effort to derive a sensible conclusion from the data in an inductive, scientific way.

Personal communication: Professor John Walton, Department of Chemistry, St Andrews University, Scotland.

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