Posted on 01/03/2007 6:19:54 PM PST by shrinkermd
In bestselling books, on websites, and with a national lobbying effort, atheists and other nontheists are challenging the growing religious influence in government and public life. Some are attacking the foundations of religion itself.
Two particularly provocative books, in fact, hit the top of Publishers Weekly's religion bestseller list in December. No. 1, "The God Delusion," by evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins, and No. 2, "Letter to a Christian Nation," by writer Sam Harris, are no-holds-barred, antireligion polemics that call for the eradication of all manifestations of faith.
"I am attacking God, all gods, anything and everything supernatural, wherever and whenever they have been or will be invented," declares Dr. Dawkins, the famed Oxford professor who wrote "The Selfish Gene."
These offerings are so intolerant of religion of any kind - liberal, moderate, or fundamentalist - that some scientists and secularists have critiqued their peers for oversimplification and for a secular fundamentalism.
"They undermine their own case by writing in a language that suffers from many things they say are true of believers - intolerance, disrespect, extremism," says Alan Wolfe, a professor of religion at Boston College, who is a secularist and author of several books on American religious perspectives.
Yet the authors are anything but modest about their efforts to supplant faith with pure scientific rationality. While critics point out that religion is a genuine reflection of people's experience and will always exist, Mr. Harris suggests it could be equated with slavery, which once was widely acceptable, but eventually was looked upon with horror. He sees it as responsible for many of life's tragedies.
Harris first hit the bestseller bull's-eye in 2004 with "The End of Faith," and he
(Excerpt) Read more at csmonitor.com ...
This article is typical of the writing style which is crystal clear prose with no affectations or egregious hostile shots at anyone.
Hello? It's not those quaint bible-wavers who are sawing off heads on YouTube or blowing up innocent people on Al Jazeera. It's not christians who hold a third of the world in poverty and oppression. It's not christians who enslave women and, who indeed, still practice slavery. It's not christians who...
Well, you get my drift. Do these brave, enlightened atheists have anything to say to people who still actually have a medieval mindset and who might actually hurt something besides their wittle feewings?
Huh?
Alan Wolfe, a professor of Black Studies, who is White
So?
How do you study and teach a subject that you believe has no basis?
Yes. Allah does not exist. Mohammed was not a prophet. There is no heaven or 72 virgins waiting for you.
In short, get over it. Islam is a lie.
You drink a lot.
Even more disturbing is people who fabricate quotes from nameless sources. Has anyone ever heard anyone say that, EVER?
Philosophers traditionally study many branches of philosophy which they feel are wrong or disagree with basic tenants of. Among other methods one might use to study religion as a secularist are: historical analysis, (ie: The Catholic Church had it's first scism in 459 A.D. over the issue of the Pope, comparative doctrine; (ie: Christian scientists believe Mary Eddy was the prophet while Seven Day Adventists believe Edith White was teh prophet), textual analysis (ie: the first copy of Jonah is found in the scrolls found in Al'Baka valley in 1933), etc.
Frankly, atheists writing about religion are tiresome. It's like a blind man writing about painting, or a deaf man writing about music. They haven't the foggiest notion what they're talking about. Who wants to read a long rant by people who don't know what they're talking about?
I'm no rocket scientist - but I've shot my share of bottle rockets....
Can someone cite an example of a nontheist who is NOT an atheist?
Great post, BTW.
Exactly - for example, the tone-deaf music instructor... oh well - never mind....
Goodbye Groucho, hello Karl.
Ping! (This should be good).
Was it last month or this that the lead article of WIRED magazine (computer/x gen culture) was extolling these fools. "For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities--his eternal power and divine nature--have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. For although they knew God they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles." Roman 1:20-23)
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