Reviewed by J. Vincent
WOW!!!
Before the World Began: The Point of the Encounter of Love and Science, is penned by an author that is solid in faith.
Odete Martins Bigote has allowed us to travel with her in order to understand that all things are connected, and gives us the tools to lift the veil.
In my adventure reading Before the World Began, I have seen myself transported to enlightenment and inspired to deepen my exploration of science as life.
My faith is suported by science; this is refreshing, to see the Love and Passion that one is blessed with.
I loved the interjection of the family stories, and the ability to check the facts and to even write my own thoughts.
I highly recommend Before the World Began:it is a feel good book with love, passion and science. You will be surprised how inspired and blessed you will be from reading it – I was.
Reviewed by Steven Corsano
Before the World Began is a succinct and heartfelt book written by a woman
who has lived it’s message.
BlueInk Review
If the Big Bang created the universe, then what exactly existed before that moment in time? This question is at the heart of Odete Martins Bigote’s ambitious Before the World Began, a book that mixes an unusual amalgam of self-help, philosophy, and personal memoir in a quest to find some common ground where science and religion can agree on the matter.
So what did exist before the beginning? According to Bigote, God. For scientists,especially those rooted in a materialist worldview, some energy existed, but it wasn’t God. What’s the difference? For Bigote there isn’t any. Faith and reason are essentially talking about the same thing.
Bigote is not a scientist but a feisty, spiritual seeker who takes to task none other than Stephen Hawking and Leonard Mlodinow, the authors of the bestselling The Grand Design, which posited that God was not necessary to create the universe. Bigote sees holes in many of their arguments. For example, Bigote highlights their statement that philosophy is dead because it “has not kept up with the modern developments of science, particularly physics.” Yet, Bigote rightfully points out that some of the writings of science’s heaviest hitters, like Sir James Jeans and David Bohm, were more metaphysics than physics.
Point for Bigote.
Bigote is an enthusiastic writer with a probing, poetic mind and her voice inspires trust. Bigote is a robust thinker and her tenacity and spirit of inquiry should be praised. There are interesting observations in this book that will stay with this reviewer for some time.
Reviewed by Alice D. for Readers Favorite
Odete Martins Bigote is very learned and knows what she is writing about when she quotes from Stephen Hawking, William Shakespeare, and most especially, the Holy Bible. In “Before the World Began: The Point of the Encounter of Love and Science”, she states that we, as mankind, are here to correct thoughts about ourselves, that indeed we have freedom of choice in this existence. We must try to learn that God is the eye behind all events. This world that we live in is made out of necessity for us to wake up from illusions and to choose the path of light where we can turn our lives around and for the good. On page 138, Bigote states that “miracles are nothing but our return to our original condition…” In the dance of life, the forces of darkness, of confusion, and of negativity, dance around the forces of light.
On page 279 of this well-written, well-formatted and powerful book, Odete Bigote writes: “There is always a limit as to how much we can do for others: there is a higher self in charge of helping everyone follow their own path.” She offers well-written advice that the serious reader will ponder on such as this on page 186, “Some events we can change, some we cannot.” There are areas for the reader to respond to questions, so this is not a book to be widely shared. The table of contents and bibliography are first-rate and the author’s words of wisdom will stay with the reader forever. “If all of us were equal, this world would not exist. It was designed to represent differences.” “Before the World Began” is not an easy read, but it certainly is a vital one for the thinking reader of religious bent as it moves step by step to its conclusion.
Reviewed by Stephanie D. for Readers Favorite
Before The World Began: The Point of the Encounter of Love and Science, by Odete Martins Bigote is an inspiring, life-affirming book. This makes for very welcome reading since, as the author says, ‘fear is everywhere these days’. There are plenty of negative, fear-inducing books out there. But we need to lose that fear and instead be willing to love and to appreciate being loved. There are more than forty discussions in this book, which make heavy use of quotations from many different texts, predominately the Bible but also including scientific texts and other literature, ancient and modern. The author uses these to explain her optimistic and faith-based interpretation of the modern world that we live in. She challenges us with questions to make us think for ourselves about issues such as predestination, preconceived ideas, creation and destruction, philosophy, healing and sickness for ourselves and not just trot out what we’ve learnt from scientists or the media.
Life is a dance which we must appreciate and enjoy. Odete Bigote succeeds in bringing out the sheer joy and love in our existence with her reasoned and well supported arguments. At times she is perhaps a little too hard on the scientists in my opinion, but by no means simply dismissive of them. This is an academic and thoughtful work and reflects a brave, unique point of view. We too have to think hard as we read this book and challenge our own preconceptions, and the sun is definitely shining a little brighter when we reach the end. The positive attitude is infectious and invigorating.
Reviewed by Bernadette A. for Readers Favorite
“Before The World Began: The Point of the Encounter of Love and Science” by Odete Martins Bigote is a look at the beginning of life as we know it. Bigote has spent much time researching this topic. Her conclusion goes somewhat like this. We existed in a different form, such as that of a spiritual being before God created the heavens and the earth. Bigote discusses the conflict many see between science and religion. After much contemplation she comes to the conclusion that there is in fact no conflict: science and religion fit together. While some may consider the idea of parallel universes outlandish, I see things a bit different. If we deny the impossibility, are we not denying the greatness of God? Should our limited imagination or ability to dream be attempting to bring God to our tiny level? One of the statements that surprised me was the comparison between gold fish in a curved bowl and humans. “The goldfish was saved by a visible hand; while we know that there is an invisible hand ready to rescue us, but we refuse to move.” Her description of why we fear God is very interesting. We have a memory of the great energy it took to turn chaos into an ordered world. She also reminds us that the very energy we fear is embedded deep within us.
Bigote has included quotes from various sources as well as the scripture. She has included a space for thoughts, comments and questions. This book is well-organized. I am not sure if I have ever read a book on this topic handled in quite this manner. I think I would enjoy listening to Ms Bigote explaining her theory in person. I hope one who reads this book will take time to ponder the lessons in this book. I found them fascinating and well-worth reading.
Reviewed by Anne B. for Readers Favorite
Many of us have an odd view of God, we see him as a punisher rather than our creator that loves us very much. There is a loving being just waiting for us to reach out to Him and yet we don’t. In times of trouble we remember Him and reach out to Him in our anguish but when things are going well we dismiss, ignore and refuse to accept Him. Odete Martins Bigote successfully combines science and Christianity, as they were created to work together. They are not in competition or conflict. It is the closed and corrupt minds of man that produce the conflict.
Before the World Begins by Odete Martins Bigote has several important points:
1. “There was already some form of existence, in the form of energy before the world began and before we were created.” I have always believed that God was not alone, the Son and Spirit existed along with Him, in the Trinity. Through scriptures we also know that angels existed otherwise the rebelling ones could not have fallen from heaven.
2. “We are not supposed to know the details of how the event (meaning the rebellion) started.” There are some things we need to take on faith. While scientists can come up with theories they can only hypothesize.
3. “We were programmed a priori and were given the freedom to choose.” Repeatedly the author discusses our free will, our ability to choose. This is a very important part of this book.
4. “In Him also we obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will.” Ephesians 1:11.
On page 55, the author writes, “However, we have free will to choose which path to follow among the paths that we have already chosen.” It is clear from reading Ms. Bigote’s book that God has a plan for our lives but some of us are too stubborn and independent to listen to Him.
There are many more important points in this book but if I gave them all to you there would be no need to read the book. In critical places Bigote has placed questions to ponder and a few lines to record your answers. The reader will need to take time pondering the text. While it is written in layman terms the text is profound and something you need to think about. This book is intended to explain the ties that bind physics, science and religion. Ms. Bigote is a talented author and lays out her case in a well-organized manner. Well done Ms. Bigote.
