The God Argument

The God Argument
Author: A. C. Grayling
Publisher: A&C Black
Total Pages: 289
Release: 2013-03-14
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1408837420

There has been a bad-tempered quarrel between defenders and critics of religion in recent years. Both sides have expressed themselves acerbically because there is a very great deal at stake in the debate. This book thoroughly and calmly examines all the arguments and associated considerations offered in support of religious belief, and does so in full consciousness of the reasons people have for subscribing to religion, and the needs they seek to satisfy by doing so. And because it takes account of all the issues, its solutions carry great weight. The God Argument is the definitive examination of the issue, and a statement of the humanist outlook that recommends itself as the ethics of the genuinely reflective person.

God Is Not Great

God Is Not Great
Author: Christopher Hitchens
Publisher: McClelland & Stewart
Total Pages: 322
Release: 2008-11-19
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 1551991764

Christopher Hitchens, described in the London Observer as “one of the most prolific, as well as brilliant, journalists of our time” takes on his biggest subject yet–the increasingly dangerous role of religion in the world. In the tradition of Bertrand Russell’s Why I Am Not a Christian and Sam Harris’s recent bestseller, The End Of Faith, Christopher Hitchens makes the ultimate case against religion. With a close and erudite reading of the major religious texts, he documents the ways in which religion is a man-made wish, a cause of dangerous sexual repression, and a distortion of our origins in the cosmos. With eloquent clarity, Hitchens frames the argument for a more secular life based on science and reason, in which hell is replaced by the Hubble Telescope’s awesome view of the universe, and Moses and the burning bush give way to the beauty and symmetry of the double helix.

The Case for God

The Case for God
Author: Karen Armstrong
Publisher: Knopf Canada
Total Pages: 432
Release: 2009-09-22
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0307372952

From the bestselling author of A History of God and The Great Transformation comes a balanced, nuanced understanding of the role religion plays in human life and the trajectory of faith in modern times. Why has God become incredible? Why is it that atheists and theists alike now think and speak about God in a way that veers so profoundly from the thinking of our ancestors? Moving from the Paleolithic Age to the present, Karen Armstrong details the lengths to which humankind has gone to experience a sacred reality that it called God, Brahman, Nirvana, Allah, or Dao. She examines the diminished impulse toward religion in our own time when a significant number of people either want nothing to do with God or question the efficacy of faith. With her trademark depth of knowledge and profound insight, Armstrong elucidates how the changing world has necessarily altered the importance of religion at both societal and individual levels. And she makes a powerful, convincing argument for structuring a faith that speaks to the needs of our dangerously polarized age.

Women v. Religion

Women v. Religion
Author: Karen L. Garst
Publisher: Pitchstone Publishing (US&CA)
Total Pages: 367
Release: 2018-06-01
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 163431171X

Throughout history, religion has been used as a tool of female subjugation. Women have been deemed less worthy than men, have been prevented from owning property, and worse—all in the name of a higher power. In recent decades, women have made progress in terms of equal rights with men, at least in Western democracies, but still, why has the United States never had a female president? Why aren't more women heads of Fortune 500 companies? Why do politicians in the West continue to attack women's reproductive rights? As this volume explores, it would be hard to find a bigger culprit than religion when identifying the last cultural barriers to full gender equality. With topics ranging from the subjugation of women in the Bible to the shame and guilt felt by women due to religious teaching, this volume makes clear that only by rejecting the very system that limits their autonomy will women be fully liberated from its malignant influences, not just in codified law but also in cultural practice.

Life After Faith

Life After Faith
Author: Philip Kitcher
Publisher: Yale University Press
Total Pages: 194
Release: 2014-10-28
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 0300210345

Although there is no shortage of recent books arguing against religion, few offer a positive alternative—how anyone might live a fulfilling life without the support of religious beliefs. This enlightening book fills the gap. Philip Kitcher constructs an original and persuasive secular perspective, one that answers human needs, recognizes the objectivity of values, and provides for the universal desire for meaningfulness. Kitcher thoughtfully and sensitively considers how secularism can respond to the worries and challenges that all people confront, including the issue of mortality. He investigates how secular lives compare with those of people who adopt religious doctrines as literal truth, as well as those who embrace less literalistic versions of religion. Whereas religious belief has been important in past times, Kitcher concludes that evolution away from religion is now essential. He envisions the successors to religious life, when the senses of identity and community traditionally fostered by religion will instead draw on a broader range of cultural items—those provided by poets, filmmakers, musicians, artists, scientists, and others. With clarity and deep insight, Kitcher reveals the power of secular humanism to encourage fulfilling human lives built on ethical truth.

Why Tolerate Religion?

Why Tolerate Religion?
Author: Brian Leiter
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Total Pages: 215
Release: 2014-08-24
Genre: Law
ISBN: 140085234X

Why it's wrong to single out religious liberty for special legal protections This provocative book addresses one of the most enduring puzzles in political philosophy and constitutional theory—why is religion singled out for preferential treatment in both law and public discourse? Why are religious obligations that conflict with the law accorded special toleration while other obligations of conscience are not? In Why Tolerate Religion?, Brian Leiter shows why our reasons for tolerating religion are not specific to religion but apply to all claims of conscience, and why a government committed to liberty of conscience is not required by the principle of toleration to grant exemptions to laws that promote the general welfare.

The Religious Case Against Belief

The Religious Case Against Belief
Author: James P. Carse
Publisher: Penguin
Total Pages: 244
Release: 2008
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9781594201691

Argues that inappropriate beliefs, rather than organized religion, are responsible for conflicts in today's world, explaining that belief systems that perpetuate discrimination and thought restriction are not supported by core religions.

Against Religion, Wars, and States

Against Religion, Wars, and States
Author: Andrew Fiala
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Total Pages: 303
Release: 2013-08-15
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 1442223073

In Against Religion, Wars, and States: The Case for Enlightenment Atheism, Just War Pacifism, and Liberal-Democratic Anarchism, Andrew Fiala argues that, societally, we must radically redefine our goals. A renewed focus on global justice, a heightened criticism of religion and a fuller embrace of enlightened humanism and the sciences are just some of the ways in which we can begin to address some of the problems endemic to our society, and ultimately bring about more lasting peace. Fiala argues both theoretically and empirically, moving from analyses of theology, ethics and political philosophy to case studies and data mined from these respective disciplines, and from the fallout of recent world events involving all three. Fiala attempts to wean us off of our deferral to the oppressive forces that spark movements like Occupy, and the Arab Spring, forces that manifest themselves in the brutal drug wars along our borders, and in the currently fractious and bigoted rhetoric of some of our most powerful political and religious leaders. Against Religion, Wars, and States provides a provocative, unified, and revolutionary critical theory for all who are skeptical of the religious, political, and military powers that be, and points the way towards a more peaceful, just and reasoned future.

Against All Gods

Against All Gods
Author: A C Grayling
Publisher: Oberon Books
Total Pages: 64
Release: 2008-04-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9781840027280

Do religions have an inherent right to be respected? Is atheism itself a form of religion, and can there be such a thing as a 'fundamentalist atheist'? Are we witnessing a global revival in religious zeal, or do the signs point instead to religion's ultimate decline? In a series of bold, unsparing polemics, A.C. Grayling tackles these questions head on, exposing the dangerous unreason he sees at the heart of religious faith and highlighting the urgent need we have to reject it in all its forms, without compromise. In its place he argues for a set of values based on reason, reflection and sympathy, taking his cue from the great ethical tradition of western philosophy.