In this book a widely recognized authority on religion and psychoanalysis takes a fascinating journey into Freud’s past to examine the roots of his atheism. Dr. Ana-María Rizzuto reviews and reorganizes data about Freud’s development and life circumstances to provide a psychodynamic interpretation of his rejection of God. She argues that Freud’s early life and family relationships made it psychically impossible for him to believe in a provident and caring divine being.

The book traces significant aspects of Freud’s relationship with his father and mother, his childhood nanny, and other relatives and outlines his religious evolution from somewhat conventional beliefs as a young boy to adult unbelief. Dr. Rizzuto presents significant new details about the Philippson Bible—a copy of which Freud’s father presented to Sigmund on his thirty-fifth birthday—and shows how the illustrations in that edition related to Freud’s passion for collecting antiquities. The book brings to light critical aspects of Freud’s early and late object relations and their lasting impact on his rejection of God.