Book Review: God Talk by Ruth A. Tucker

April 2, 2006 Posted by Roger Overton

We’ve all heard it said, and have probably said it
ourselves- “God told me to go into this ministry…” Sometimes it’s a calling, a
leading, a tug, a voice, or a whisper, but it’s pretty much the same. One of
the most treasured spiritual practices in evangelicalism today is receiving
communication from God, and not just from the Bible.

In God Talk, Ruth Tucker takes the practice of
hearing God’s voice to task. She notes, “our reported words from God often
sound eerily like our own.” (8) Most of the book is comprised of analysis of
stories and points made by those who teach on how to discern God’s voice- such
as Dallas Willard, Jack Deere, and Henry Blackaby.

Ultimately, Ruth Tucker contends that God is a God of silence,
and this if not a bad thing. “The talkative God of today is a second-rate
version of the Trinitarian God, who as Father spoke in times past, who as Son
incarnate lived among us, and who as Spirit inspired and illumines the
Scriptures, the silent Word of God.” (14) She insists that we must recognize,
“God is God, and with that recognition we must accept the silence of God.”
(173)

While there is much in the book I agree with, there were a
number of problematic points. For
instance, in chapter three she charges Christian apologists with claiming to
speak for God (incidentally, something Paul told us we do in 2 Cor 5:20) and
not doing it well. In the course of her rant, she mischaracterizes Reformed
Epistemology, indicates that Reformed theology teaches “only a small percentage
of people” will be saved (which is false), and repeats the popular fiction that
after C.S. Lewis was “deeply disturbed” by a debate in 1948 with Elizabeth
Anscombe he “wrote primarily children’s fantasy tales.” (57)

After being down on those who claim to hear from God, Ruth
Tucker claims she’s heard the voice of God in waterfalls. “I’m convinced we can
hear the silent voice of God in nature.” (164) Though she explains that this is
rooted in her belief that nature is a second volume of God’s revelation, she
doesn’t clearly explain what she means by the “silent voice of God in nature”
or how it qualitatively differs from those who claim to hear God in their
prayers.

God Talk
attempts to be the much-needed corrective against a Christianity that loves to
put words in God’s mouth. In her analysis of contemporary literature and
narratives, Ruth Tucker mostly succeeds, but periodically stumbles along the
way.