Book Review: The Young Atheist's Handbook: Lessons for Living a Good Life Without God.

I really enjoyed this autobiographical apologetic for atheism. There is a gentleness and sensitivity in the author's approach that permits a relaxed engagement with the ideas that contrasts with the more strident writings of some other atheists. It's a very personal narrative that wraps within it some of the traditional arguments against theism which provides the book with a seductive pull that enables one to listen to the author rather than react adversarially - at least, that's how I experienced it. A narrow-minded fundamentalist of any persuasion will probably not even read the book given its title. That would be a shame. Even committed theists would do well to start listening to the journeys of non-theists if only to have a genuine understanding of the "other's" point of view.


It is also refreshing to hear about atheism from an ex-Muslim perspective. The majority of atheist writings (I think) deal with the specifically Christian versions of theism. Of course, there are many other forms of theism within which believers struggle and emerge into some form of atheism. This story enriches atheist writings with nuances that would be beneficial for atheists also to read.

One of the most compelling aspects of this book is the way in which it illustrates the power of experience in shaping our beliefs. Very few people are convinced to change their beliefs by argument - even ones that are logically compelling. Our culture, family history, life events, where we're born - all of these and more are more influential than argument in shaping us. The author, by telling his life story, supplemented later perhaps by supporting arguments, illustrates this beautifully.

This is not a book to argue with - it's a story to listen to and meditate on. It's not a handbook as the title implies; it's an honest telling of one man's experience that everyone should read, no matter their theological stripe. 

Book details: Alom Shaha. The Young Atheist's Handbook: Lessons for Living a Good Life Without God. Scribe Publications. 2012.




You will probably enjoy this book if you enjoyed The Australian Book of Atheism.

Book Review: The God Debates

John Shook's The God Debates: A 21st Century Guide for Atheists and Believers (and everyone in between) is a stunning addition to the sometimes highly volatile contemporary arguments over God that are so prominent. The author takes a serious in-depth look at just about every argument used by apologists of religion (particularly Christian) and teases them apart, describing how they are constructed, and uncovering the many flaws that make them ineffective.

Shook categorizes arguments for God in the following way:

• Theology from the scripture - arguments for God based on special revelation and apologetics
  
• Theology from the world - arguments for God derived from the natural world, morality, human experience, and human analogy
  
• Theology beyond the world - cosmological arguments, teleological arguments, and arguments from the laws of nature
• Theology in the know - Reformed epistemology, foundationalism
• Theology into the myst - arguments based in mysticism, relativism, existentialism, and scriptural interpretation

In a section dealing with each of these categories, Shook describes the various arguments and ruthlessly analyses them and evaluates their validity - and most (if not all) of them fall short in terms of their evidence and/or logic. The final chapter presents a summary of where the God debates are now. He describes 12 modern worldviews and presents them in a diagram showing how each relates to the ones next to it and differs radically from those opposite. I've reproduced the diagram here: 

After surveying each of these and their contributions to the relationship to faith and reason - the big question in the God debates - he argues that the best possibilities for the future development of ethical principles will come from humanism - not secular or religious humanism but ethical humanism. Based on reason and experience and without the what Shook sees as the flawed supernaturalism of religious apologetics, Shook sees ethical humanism as the providing the most hope for grounding of morality in a secular culture.

The God Debates is excellent reading and both Christian apologists and atheists will benefit from this comprehensive analysis. Christian apologists will see how inadequate most of the arguments for God's existence are flawed and the challenges they need to meet if they are going to be persuasive - a very difficult task indeed. And atheists will see a model of scholarly dialogue that avoids the emotive rhetoric of the so-called "New Atheists". They will also gain a deeper understanding of the structure of religious apologetics.

The God Debates is must reading for thinking Christians and thinking atheists. It sets a standard for future dialogue around the existence and nature of God and the role of faith and reason in developing a moral framework for those who do not believe in a supernatural being. It will be challenging for both - but, in particular, Christians (and other religions) are going to have to work very hard to sustain a belief in God in the face of this author's critique. I'll be looking forward to the responses of Christian apologists to this one!

Interview with Peter Hitchens about 'The Rage Against God'

Did you know that Christopher Hitchens, the outspoken atheist, has a brother, Peter, who became a Christian after being an atheist? Peter has written a book called The Rage Against God: How atheism led me to faith. I haven't read it but it is on my list. Here is a brief video of an interview with Peter Hitchens.

Book Review: The Dawkins Delusion?

Alister McGrath’s The Dawkins Delusion? Atheist Fundamentalism and the Denial of the Divine is an excellent critique of Richard Dawkins’ The God Delusion. In four brilliant chapters, McGrath shows the absolute paucity of Dawkins’ fundamentalist atheism. As McGrath points out, trying to critique Dawkins’ arguments is difficult. They are naive, emotive, poorly argued, misrepresent religion and Christianity, and are a departure from the usual careful and rigorous approach that Dawkins displays in his other books. Each of McGrath’s chapters answers a question that is raised by Dawkins:

1. Deluded about God?
2. Has science disproved God?
3. What are the origins of religion?
4. Is religion evil?

The Dawkins Delusion? is an excellent read - calm, well reasoned, and respectful - all of the things that Dawkins’ book is not. Alister McGrath was once, himself, an atheist who was converted to Christianity. He is a scientist and theologian so speaks from a number of relevant perspectives. Francis Collins, the Director of the Human Genome Project, speaking about McGrath’s book, says,

Addressing the conclusions of The God Delusion point by point with the devastating insight of a molecular biologist turned theologian, Alister McGrath dismantles the argument that science should lead to atheism, and demonstrates instead that Dawkins has abandoned his much-cherished rationality to embrace an embittered manifesto of dogmatic atheist fundamentalism.

As McGrath points out, even atheists are becoming embarrassed about Dawkins’ approach and fear that he may do more to bolster support for Christianity than any Christian apologist could do! McGrath’s book packs some deep insights into its 78 pages. It’s easy to read and penetratingly exposes the profound deficiencies of Dawkins’ views. It is a must read for anyone interested in religion. Related Links

• Alister McGrath in conversation with Richard Dawkins (downloadable mp3 file)
• Dawkins’ God: Genes, Memes, and the Meaning of Life (downloadable mp3 and video)
• Is God a Delusion? (mp3 file)
• Lots more by Alister McGrath
• My review of Dawkins' The God Delusion