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The Christian Delusion: Why Faith FailsFrom Prometheus Books
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In this anthology of recent criticisms aimed at the reasonableness of Christian belief, a former evangelical minister and apologist, author of the critically acclaimed Why I Became an Atheist, has assembled fifteen outstanding articles by leading skeptics, expanding on themes introduced in his first book.
Central is a defense of his "outsider test of faith," arguing that believers should test their faith with the same skeptical standards they use to evaluate the other faiths they reject, as if they were outsiders. Experts in medicine, psychology, and anthropology join Loftus to show why, when this test is applied to Christianity, it becomes very difficult to rationally defend.
Collectively, these articles reveal that popular Christian beliefs tend to rely on ignorance of the facts. Drawing together experts in diverse fields, including Hector Avalos, Richard Carrier, David Eller, and Robert Price, this book deals a powerful blow against Christian faith.
From the Trade Paperback edition.
- Sales Rank: #310234 in eBooks
- Published on: 2010-04-20
- Released on: 2010-04-20
- Format: Kindle eBook
Review
"The contributors to this book have interesting, important, and controversial things to say to conservative Christians: It isn't true that modern society has Christian foundations; it isn't true that there is significant historical evidence for the Resurrection; it isn't true that scripture portrays a perfectly good God; it is untenable to suppose that the Bible is the Word of God; and there are many new challenges to the believability of Christianity in contemporary sciences: pyschology, sociology, cognitive science, archaeology, and the like. This book is a fitting successor to Loftus' book Why I Became an Atheist and merits a similarly broad readership." -- Dr. Graham Oppy, associate dean of research and associate dean of graduate studies in the faculty of arts at Monash University, author of Arguing About Gods (2006), and co-editor (with Nick Trakakis) of The History of Western Philosophy of Religion 5 vols. (2009)
"John Loftus and his distinguished colleagues have certainly produced one of the best and arguably the best critique of the Christian faith the world has ever known. Using sociological, biblical, scientific, historical, philosophical, theological and ethical criticisms, this book completely destroys Christianity. All but the most fanatical believers who read it should be moved to have profound doubts." --Dr. Michael Martin, professor of philosophy emeritus and author of The Case Against Christianity and Atheism: A Philosophical Justification
"If John Loftus never wrote anything else he will be remembered a century from now for his Outsider Test for Faith, which figures prominently in this book." --Frank Zindler, PhD, former president of American Atheists and editor of American Atheist Magazine.
"I'm quoted in this book as saying that treating the arguments of others fairly is simply an application of the Golden Rule. Christians regularly ask atheists to listen to their arguments and read their books. If a Christian wishes to return the favor, this volume offers atheist views on a range of subjects, presented respectfully (for the most part) yet with conviction. Christians who wish to critically examine and reflect on their beliefs will benefit from the outsider perspectives offered here. I join with its authors in encouraging you to dare to doubt. If you follow that courageous path, you may at times draw the wrong conclusions. If you do not, you will certainly be wrong at least as often." --James F. McGrath, PhD, Associate Professor of Religion and Clarence L. Goodwin Chair of New Testament Language and Literature at Butler University, and author of The Only True God: Early Christian Monotheism in Its Jewish Context
"For nearly two thousand years apologists have striven mightily to show that the dogmas of Christianity are rationally defensible. For much of the Christian era critics have sought to debunk those apologetic claims. In that long tradition of criticism, there have been few works as effective as The Christian Delusion. The essays are incisive, rigorous, and original, shedding new light on old issues and boldly exploring new paths of argument. The selection of topics is outstanding--at once both comprehensive and innovative. For fresh insights into an old debate, The Christian Delusion is strongly recommended." ----Keith Parsons, PhD, professor of philosophy, University of Houston, Clear Lake, and author of the book, God and the Burden of Proof
"John Loftus is to be congratulated for assembling such a fine collection of papers from such a diversity of fields. This book is not simply an anthology of atheist thought, but a wide sweeping attack on the basis of Christianity. Using these various approaches, the authors subject Christianity to a rigorous critique: challenging it from the psychology of belief to the origins of morality, the historical Jesus, Christian exceptionalism, and claims of eternal truth despite the constant evolution of that religion. The end result is that Christianity is demonstrated to be just one of the many religions humans have invented for themselves." --James Linville, PhD, associate professor of religious studies, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge AB, Canada.
"The culture of Christianity has dominated the U.S., and to some extent the world, for so long that even the act of asking questions or raising doubts is scorned. But with Christian doctrine so far out of whack with scientific, moral, philosophical, and political realities, we cannot afford to leave it unanalyzed. When we do cast an objective and critical eye towards it, its ideas, arguments, and justifications unravel. The thinkers in this volume, who have the courage, the will, and the expertise to conduct that critical evaluation have made a valuable contribution to the sea change." --Matt McCormick, PhD, philosophy professor, California State University, Sacramento, CA
"John Loftus cut his Christian apologetic teeth at our seminary, and I believe that he has since exchanged them for a false set. Nevertheless, in this book he has prepared a buffet with other notable atheistic chefs that 'honest Christians' dare not ignore. Many will simply refuse the menu because of its perceived poisonous entrees. But Christians need to chew on what these cooks are serving, even though much may be hard to swallow or difficult to digest. I say, 'Let the banquet begin!'" --Rich Knopp, PhD, professor of philosophy & apologetics at Lincoln Christian University, Lincoln, Illinois
"The Christian Delusion is an incredibly powerful book that's a must-read for anyone who's ever had a doubt about God--believers and non-believers alike. I wish a book like this was around when I first had my doubts about Christianity. It would have saved me many years in getting to the truth." --William Lobdell, author of Losing My Religion: How I Lost My Faith Reporting on Religion in America--and Found Unexpected Peace
"This book systematically undermines the pillars of evangelical Christianity. It shows the arguments for the divine inspiration of the Bible, the resurrection of Jesus, a supernatural conversion experience, the necessity of the Bible for a proper system of ethics, etc. to be full of holes. It demonstrates that those who believe in the tenets of evangelical Christianity truly are deluded." --Ken Pulliam, PhD, who taught NT Greek, theology, and apologetics for nine years before becoming an agnostic
"The Christian Delusion is a comprehensive and representative presentation of contemporary skeptical thought. Anyone who wants to understand the position of contemporary free thinkers could not do much better than to read this book." --Matthew Flannagan, Christian philosopher and adjunct lecturer in philosophy for Laidlaw College and Bethlehem Tertiary Institute
About the Author
John W. Loftus (Angola, IN) earned M.A. and M.Div. degrees in theology and philosophy from Lincoln Christian Seminary under the guidance of Dr. James D. Strauss. He then attended Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, where he studied under Dr. William Lane Craig and received a Th.M. degree in philosophy of religion. Before leaving the church, he had ministries in Michigan, Illinois, and Indiana, and taught at several Christian and secular colleges. Today he has an online blog at debunkingchristianity.blogspot.com
Most helpful customer reviews
271 of 302 people found the following review helpful.
Best Single Volume Exposing the Fallacies of Evangelical Christianity
By Ken R. Pulliam
This newly published book is an anthology containing 15 chapters written by 9 scholars, most of which were at one time conservative Christians. It surveys the problems with Christianity from a number of different angles--sociological, psychological, scientific, historical, and biblical. It is the probably the single best volume available today to debunk evangelical Christianity. It brings together a variety of arguments into one work, that prior to its publication, would have required one to sift through dozens of books to find them. While there are some areas that still could be covered, for example, the immoral and illogical nature of the atonement (a topic near to my heart), nevertheless, it covers most of the bases.
Chapter One is written by anthropologist David Eller and discusses how Christianity is a phenomena that can be understood purely on cultural and sociological grounds.
Chapter Two is by psychologist Valerie Tarico who examines the concept of belief (or faith) as it is presently understood by neurologists and shows that it is rarely based on evidence or arguments.
Chapter Three is by pharmacist Jason Long who deals with how religious ideas develop in people and how they hold on to them regardless of the evidence.
Chapter Four is by former Pastor and Christian apologist John Loftus who explains his Outsider Test for Faith. He invites people to "step outside" of their belief system and evaluate their religion in the same way they would evaluate a religion that they do not hold.
Chapter Five is by librarian Ed Babinski who has studied Young Earth Creationism extensively. He clearly presents the pre-scientific understanding of the cosmos as held by biblical writers and shows that it is impossible to reconcile that understanding with what is currently known in science.
Chapter Six is by author (The Rejection of Pascal's Wager: A Skeptic's Guide to the Bible and the Historical Jesus ) Paul Tobin who shows that the historical criticism of the Bible reveals that it contains errors, inconsistencies, myths, legends, and forgeries.
Chapter Seven has John Loftus returning to demonstrate how the Bible fails to communicate clearly. He shows how interpretational conflicts over the meaning of Scripture has led to millions of deaths as well as untold suffering through the ages. He argues that one would expect an omniscient God to be able to communicate his will in a much better fashion.
Chapter Eight is by biblical scholar Hector Avalos and discusses why the God of the Old Testament is a cruel and monstrous tyrant in spite of Christian apologists attempt to justify him.
Chapter Nine is my favorite chapter in the book. In it John Loftus returns to lay out the problem of animal suffering and examine 8 different ways Christians have tried to reconcile that suffering with a good God. He shows convincingly that each Christian answer fails and that there is no reconciliation possible.
Chapter Ten is by NT scholar Robert Price who, in his own unique and sarcastic way, demolishes the attempts by evangelicals to wiggle out of the implications of biblical criticism.
Chapter Eleven is by historian Richard Carrier who applies the Outsider Test of Faith to the "historical evidence" put forward by Christian apologists for the resurrection. He demonstrates conclusively that if one treats the NT as historians treat every other ancient document, the teaching that Jesus of Nazareth rose from the dead is untenable.
Chapter Twelve brings John Loftus back again to show that Jesus of Nazareth is but one in a long list of failed apocalyptic prophets. He demonstrates that Jesus taught the world would end in the lifetime of the disciples and that all of the first century believers including Paul thought Jesus would return at any moment. He goes on to show how Christians have had to rethink their eschatological ideas in light of the failure of Jesus to return.
Chapter Thirteen is a repeat performance by David Eller in which he explodes a commonly held myth that morality must be based on a divine being. He proves that morality is merely an expression of one's culture.
Chapter Fourteen has Hector Avalos returning to deal with the argument put forward by Christians that the holocaust and the other atrocities committed by Adolph Hitler were a result of Darwinian or atheistic ideology. He shows that instead Hitler's motivating factors were actually the example of the Roman Catholic Church and the teaching of Martin Luther about the Jews.
Chapter Fifteen is another essay by Richard Carrier in which he shows the absurdity of the Christian claim that modern science is based upon the precepts of the Christian worldview.
Once again, this is an excellent volume and I highly recommend it to anyone who is willing to examine the evidence and think seriously about the Christian faith. I am sure many Christians will be afraid to read it or even advised by their leaders not to read it. But as Socrates is reported to have said: "The unexamined life is not worth living."
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful.
Amazing. Addresses every doubt I've ever had
By Russell D.
Amazing. Addresses every doubt I've ever had. Answers every question I've ever asked. I now reference it in every discussion with believers. Rock solid, undeniable evidence for the mythical origins of both Christianity and Judaism. Thank you all for putting my mind at ease. Your reason and logic has worked its way through 20 years of childhood indoctrination.
134 of 157 people found the following review helpful.
A refreshing anthology of critical discourse
By JohnL
I purchased this book expecting it to be a review of material I had already become familiar with through authors like Bart Ehrman and Dan Barker. While there is some overlap, there is a wealth of additional material here that goes beyond the usual points raised in the critical examination of christianity. The inclusion of substantial content from the perspectives of psychology, anthropology and ancient history makes this book more than just a polemic; it's a nice anthology that provides the buyer with a broad range of discourse that has very uncomfortable implications for theism. All of the authors provide thorough references for their contributions, which is a plus for the intended audience of this book, i.e., any critical reader who is loath to take a statement or an assertion "on faith", regardless of which side (or the middle) of the fence you sit. Another plus for this book is the fact that the authors take time to examine various lines of apologetics with respect to several of the chapter topics and why they believe they are philosophically untenable, historically implausible or distort scientific fact.
It's easy to find books that bash religion (or atheism, for that matter) on superficial levels, and while some parts of this book have an aggressive tone, none of the authors resorts to trite or ad hominem arguments to make their points-they rely on depth of scholarship which makes this a highly readable, if sometimes complex, addition to the increasing body of works critical of christianity and religion in general.
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