This really was a scary book.
Harris takes the case against religion to frightening levels. Where Dawkins and Hitchens may argue that being religious is foolish and imprudent, Harris argues that religion is downright dangerous. He makes a pretty compelling case. After all, religion tends to be our favorite reason to kill each other.
Harris chronicles the crimes of Christianity, and even points out that the Jewish faith isn't all that tolerant, but he perceives the main threat as coming from Islam, and that's a bit of a controversial idea for some liberal minded folks who think that Islam really is a religion of peace that's been hijacked by a few weirdos. He spends several pages just listing passages from the Koran that dictate either violence against, hatred, or at least dismissal of non-muslims. While it's true enough that the Bible is full of these passages as well, Harris draws a line here by saying Christianity has for the most part moved on from even paying attention to those passages, while a sizable proportion of the Muslim world fully believes in that theology. The real bad news is that these medieval minded folk are acquiring weapons that medieval Christians and the folks from the Inquisition couldn't have even dreamed of.
I marked this one down a star because of the last couple of chapters though. Harris begins to talk about Eastern Mysticism and meditation as perhaps a legitimate path to higher experiences, and he asserts that they can be viewed more empirically than organized religion. I might give him that, but the book itself seemed to just kind of diverge on a tangent. Perhaps I just needed to read it closer.
All in all, a very thought provoking read.
Showing posts with label Atheism. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Atheism. Show all posts
Monday, March 28, 2011
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Book Thoughts: "Letter to a Christian Nation" by Sam Harris
Dawkins is Scientific, Hitchens is journalistic. Sam Harris writes his arguments against God in a simple, well thought out letter format. Whether you're religious or not, you should read this book. It will make you think. I doubt it's really going to change anyone's mind, but it at least ought to get you thinking about the belief system so many of us cling to.
One area Harris spends a lot of time on is the "moral authority" of the Bible. He in fact points out more than one scripture in both the old and new testaments that explicitly promotes the practice of slavery, something any civilized person in this day and age would say is both horrible and wrong.
Harris begs to confront you with the question: Either the Bible is the perfect word of a divine being or it isn't. There's no in between. Maybe you don't think it's that black and white, but if more people would actually think about that question, our world might be a totally different place today, considering how much of a prescription for our society we find in the "good book."
One area Harris spends a lot of time on is the "moral authority" of the Bible. He in fact points out more than one scripture in both the old and new testaments that explicitly promotes the practice of slavery, something any civilized person in this day and age would say is both horrible and wrong.
Harris begs to confront you with the question: Either the Bible is the perfect word of a divine being or it isn't. There's no in between. Maybe you don't think it's that black and white, but if more people would actually think about that question, our world might be a totally different place today, considering how much of a prescription for our society we find in the "good book."
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
The way we think: religion and atheism.
This week, ads that say "1 Million New Yorkers Are Good Without God" are going up throughout the New York City metro system.
The ads just went up Monday, and religious folks are already having a fit.
A couple of quotes from the article linked above:
"I teach my children to believe in God and lead a life faithful to Him," said Aime Roberts, 37, of the Bronx, when told of the campaign. "If my children see these ads that say there is no God, they’ll think their mother is lying."
"These aren’t good, you need to believe in God," said Rafael Rodriguez, 20, of the Bronx.
Charlene McNair-Lawery, 19, of Brooklyn, said she was dismayed by a trend toward taking religion out of the public sphere, mentioning efforts to remove the word God from the Pledge of Allegiance. "The MTA can just do whatever it wants and get away with it," she said.
I'll deal with these three quotes then move on to the real problem here.
First off, to the lady worried about her kids thinking she's lying to them, do you have a guilty conscience? What is wrong with children questioning the beliefs of their parents? Supposedly, we would think it was bad for parents to tell their children that it's a legitimate belief that people of other races are inferior to them. However, if you convince your kids that they're consuming the body and blood of a 2000 year old deity, or if you convince them that a man convicted of fraud "found" a new holy book and was a modern day "prophet," that's ok. Children shouldn't be allowed to question those things, right?
If my wife and I ever have kids, I intend to foster a spirit of reason and inquiry in them. My wife feels the same way. If my kids learn to question things at an early age, it will help their critical thinking skills later in life and hopefully they won't end up as one of Barnum's famous "suckers." Reason and inquiry are beautiful things. I would marvel at the mind of a child trying to wrap itself around why the sky is blue or what makes flowers bloom in pretty colors. I would equally marvel at them trying to comprehend the mysteries of the universe, with our without the aid of a creator or god. Ultimately, Children grow up to have their own lives and make their own choices, I intend to give them the skills to do so.
Onto the guy who says I have to believe in god. No sir, I don't. That attitude is exactly what is wrong with religion in a nutshell. I don't have to believe in your deity, and you don't need to believe in anyone else's deity. Anyone who thinks that you must have religion as a prerequisite to being a fine, moral person is extremely shallow and needs a history lesson. There have been some very benevolent atheists and many religious people are responsible for some of the worst wars the planet has seen. No sir, I don't have to believe in your god, in fact many people don't. Less and less believe every day.
To the woman concerned about removing god from the public sphere: these ads don't seek to remove god from anything. It's just other people claiming their beliefs. Second of all, the designers of USA never wanted god to be in the public sphere in the first place. The Constitution doesn't mention god ONCE. NOT ONCE. We derive our law from that document and the enlightenment. Not the ten commandments, not the Bible, The Koran, The Book Of Mormon, or any other "holy" fiction work. Thankfully, I wouldn't have wanted to be stoned when I back talked my parents as a child!
So why are religious people so up in arms about this? Well I honestly think a lot of it is that they just can't fathom anyone disagreeing with them and their god. We seem to have that disease particularly in America, which sad because our country was founded to include all ideas.
Isn't this kind of weird? No matter what religion you are: Protestant, Catholic, Muslim, Mormon, or anything else, you're supposed to be able to firmly hold the belief that your god and your religion is right and everybody else is wrong. If I challenge you on that belief, and tell you that have absolutely zero evidence to prove your point of view, you get angry with me because I offend your religion.
An atheist merely points out that they, and many others don't believe in God at all, and you freak out. They're not going as far as you. They're not saying you can't believe in God, they're just saying that they don't. From the collective scream arising from religion, you'd think all civilization is coming to an end. Just today, "No God" was the number one trending topic on twitter, and Christians came out of the woodwork to scream about it and tell others that they're wrong. Yet you politely try to point out that they might be wrong, and it's a major federal offense.
I run into it in Utah almost every day. First comes the absolute shock that I'm not a Mormon, then If I dare go further and say I question the existence of God at all, the people are ready to call for the doctors and straight jackets. They've been taught to think that way, and never bothered to question it.
I submit to you today that if we all sat around and questioned a bit more, and took more on reason than revelation, that the world would be a better place indeed. Just think...no more suicide bombings, no more planes flying into buildings, no more Christian pastors pouring acid down a child's throat for an exorcism. No more Catholic priests molesting children, no more of religious people hating gays and preaching intolerance from the pulpit. No more "latter day prophets" putting printing presses to the flame, no more men out west marrying 14 year old girls, no more Mormons seminary teachers having affairs with their students, and hey kids could actually stay in school the whole day instead of getting a period off to go outside and study mythology!
A nice world indeed.
What purpose does religion serve again?
Question EVERYTHING.
The ads just went up Monday, and religious folks are already having a fit.
A couple of quotes from the article linked above:
"I teach my children to believe in God and lead a life faithful to Him," said Aime Roberts, 37, of the Bronx, when told of the campaign. "If my children see these ads that say there is no God, they’ll think their mother is lying."
"These aren’t good, you need to believe in God," said Rafael Rodriguez, 20, of the Bronx.
Charlene McNair-Lawery, 19, of Brooklyn, said she was dismayed by a trend toward taking religion out of the public sphere, mentioning efforts to remove the word God from the Pledge of Allegiance. "The MTA can just do whatever it wants and get away with it," she said.
I'll deal with these three quotes then move on to the real problem here.
First off, to the lady worried about her kids thinking she's lying to them, do you have a guilty conscience? What is wrong with children questioning the beliefs of their parents? Supposedly, we would think it was bad for parents to tell their children that it's a legitimate belief that people of other races are inferior to them. However, if you convince your kids that they're consuming the body and blood of a 2000 year old deity, or if you convince them that a man convicted of fraud "found" a new holy book and was a modern day "prophet," that's ok. Children shouldn't be allowed to question those things, right?
If my wife and I ever have kids, I intend to foster a spirit of reason and inquiry in them. My wife feels the same way. If my kids learn to question things at an early age, it will help their critical thinking skills later in life and hopefully they won't end up as one of Barnum's famous "suckers." Reason and inquiry are beautiful things. I would marvel at the mind of a child trying to wrap itself around why the sky is blue or what makes flowers bloom in pretty colors. I would equally marvel at them trying to comprehend the mysteries of the universe, with our without the aid of a creator or god. Ultimately, Children grow up to have their own lives and make their own choices, I intend to give them the skills to do so.
Onto the guy who says I have to believe in god. No sir, I don't. That attitude is exactly what is wrong with religion in a nutshell. I don't have to believe in your deity, and you don't need to believe in anyone else's deity. Anyone who thinks that you must have religion as a prerequisite to being a fine, moral person is extremely shallow and needs a history lesson. There have been some very benevolent atheists and many religious people are responsible for some of the worst wars the planet has seen. No sir, I don't have to believe in your god, in fact many people don't. Less and less believe every day.
To the woman concerned about removing god from the public sphere: these ads don't seek to remove god from anything. It's just other people claiming their beliefs. Second of all, the designers of USA never wanted god to be in the public sphere in the first place. The Constitution doesn't mention god ONCE. NOT ONCE. We derive our law from that document and the enlightenment. Not the ten commandments, not the Bible, The Koran, The Book Of Mormon, or any other "holy" fiction work. Thankfully, I wouldn't have wanted to be stoned when I back talked my parents as a child!
So why are religious people so up in arms about this? Well I honestly think a lot of it is that they just can't fathom anyone disagreeing with them and their god. We seem to have that disease particularly in America, which sad because our country was founded to include all ideas.
Isn't this kind of weird? No matter what religion you are: Protestant, Catholic, Muslim, Mormon, or anything else, you're supposed to be able to firmly hold the belief that your god and your religion is right and everybody else is wrong. If I challenge you on that belief, and tell you that have absolutely zero evidence to prove your point of view, you get angry with me because I offend your religion.
An atheist merely points out that they, and many others don't believe in God at all, and you freak out. They're not going as far as you. They're not saying you can't believe in God, they're just saying that they don't. From the collective scream arising from religion, you'd think all civilization is coming to an end. Just today, "No God" was the number one trending topic on twitter, and Christians came out of the woodwork to scream about it and tell others that they're wrong. Yet you politely try to point out that they might be wrong, and it's a major federal offense.
I run into it in Utah almost every day. First comes the absolute shock that I'm not a Mormon, then If I dare go further and say I question the existence of God at all, the people are ready to call for the doctors and straight jackets. They've been taught to think that way, and never bothered to question it.
I submit to you today that if we all sat around and questioned a bit more, and took more on reason than revelation, that the world would be a better place indeed. Just think...no more suicide bombings, no more planes flying into buildings, no more Christian pastors pouring acid down a child's throat for an exorcism. No more Catholic priests molesting children, no more of religious people hating gays and preaching intolerance from the pulpit. No more "latter day prophets" putting printing presses to the flame, no more men out west marrying 14 year old girls, no more Mormons seminary teachers having affairs with their students, and hey kids could actually stay in school the whole day instead of getting a period off to go outside and study mythology!
A nice world indeed.
What purpose does religion serve again?
Question EVERYTHING.
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