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Atheism And The Case Against Christ, by Matthew S. Mccormick
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Hundreds of millions of people believe that Jesus came back from the dead. This cogent, forcefully argued book presents a decidedly unpopular view —namely, that the central tenet of Christianity, the resurrection of Jesus, is false. The author asks a number of probing questions:
Is the evidence about Jesus as it has been relayed to us over the centuries of sufficient quantity and quality to justify belief in the resurrection? How can we accept the resurrection but reject magic at the Salem witch trials? What light does contemporary research about human rationality from the fields of behavioral economics, empirical psychology, cognitive science, and philosophy shed on the resurrection and religious belief? Can we use contemporary research about the reliability of people’s beliefs in the supernatural, miracles, and the paranormal to shed light on the origins of Christianity and other religions? Does it make sense that the all-powerful creator of the universe would employ miracles to achieve his ends? Can a Christian believe by faith alone and yet reasonably deny the supernatural claims of other religions? Do the arguments against Christianity support atheism?
By carefully answering each of these questions, this book undermines Christianity and theism at their foundations; it gives us a powerful model for better critical reasoning; and it builds a compelling case for atheism. Without stooping to condescension or arrogance, the author offers persuasive arguments that are accessible, thoughtful, and new.
From the Trade Paperback edition.
- Sales Rank: #784162 in eBooks
- Published on: 2012-09-25
- Released on: 2012-09-25
- Format: Kindle eBook
Review
"A must-read for believers and nonbelievers alike.”
-The American Rationalist
"In my judgment, McCormick’s book is one of the best—if not the best—critique of the core of Christianity ever written."
-Michael Martin, philosopher of religion, Boston University, and editor of The Cambridge Companion to Atheism
"Finally, a first-rate philosopher weighs in and utterly demolishes any hope reasonable people have for believing Jesus was resurrected from the grave. . . . No other book presents a better case. Nothing more needs to be said."
-John W. Loftus, author of Why I Became an Atheist
"An extremely good book. Without any technical flourishes, it makes the case against the Jesus story so compellingly that I cannot imagine anyone who takes the trouble to read it carefully and without prejudice being other than completely convinced."
-Colin Howson, professor of philosophy, University of Toronto
"Who should read this book? Theists, atheists, Christians, non-Christians, and those whose lives are affected by these overlapping groups—in short, everyone. It contains bold arguments . . . [and is] plain speaking, fast moving, wide ranging, and hard hitting."
-Russell DiSilvestro, assistant professor of philosophy, California State University–Sacramento
"A fascinating and well-crafted collection of arguments against the resurrection of Jesus and, more broadly, against the existence of God."
-Ricki Monnier, coeditor of The Improbability of God and The Impossibility of God
"McCormick’s treatment of the psychological and epistemological aspects of the Christian outlook is the best I have ever seen."
-Theodore M. Drange, professor emeritus, West Virginia University
"A fascinating and convincing case for generalized atheism."
-Raymond D. Bradley, professor of philosophy emeritus, Simon Fraser University
"This book very convincingly shows that most Christians are not justified in accepting the central doctrines of Christianity. . . . [It] should be read by anyone with an interest in the philosophy and history of religion."
-Eric Sotnak, associate professor of philosophy, the University of Akron
About the Author
Matthew S. McCormick is a professor of philosophy at California State University–Sacramento who specializes in atheism, philosophy of religion, epistemology, and critical reasoning. He has contributed to The Impossibility of God, edited by Michael Martin and Ricki Monnier, and to The End of Christianity, edited by John W. Loftus; and he has published widely in philosophy. Read his blog at www.provingthenegative.com.
Most helpful customer reviews
87 of 99 people found the following review helpful.
Outstanding Critique of Christianity and Theism
By Book Fanatic
The first part of this excellent work is devastating critique of historical evidence for belief in the resurrection of Jesus and for miracles in general. This makes up about 1/2 of the book and it is about the best argument I've ever read on the topic.
The author Matthew S. McCormick then moves on to the hiddenness of God, faith, more liberal forms of belief, and agnosticism and methodically destroys them one by one. This is a manifesto for careful, rational, evidence based reasoning in regards to what we believe and I very highly recommend it. Very well done and two very big enthusiastic thumbs up!
Update: I'm updating this review because I have read a negative two-star review by Stevie Jake below and I wanted to address some of the things in that review.
In discussing the Salem Witch Trials Jake says "McCormick focuses solely on the quantity of evidence." That is a blatant falsehood. In comparing the two he specifically emphasizes both quality and quantity.
In discussing the reliability of the transmission Jake says "This provides a problem for McCormick because scholars are aware that it was Palestinian oral communities that transmitted these stories and not individuals by themselves. This is because oral communities (that have been scientifically studied) show surprising resilience to the aforementioned errors." Did he read the book? McCormick specifically addresses this in two different chapters.
In discussing probability Jake says: "McCormick utilizes theoretical when he should be utilizing evidential. For instance, let's say one is involved in a game of poker and a person claims they have received a royal flush. How does one determine whether the individual actually has a royal flush? Do you calculate the theoretical probability which has a 0.00004 percent probability? No, because in theoretical probability it will always be against the odds to receive this hand. Rather, you must go off the evidential probability by asking the individual to show his cards."
Huh? Of course we would want to have Christians show us the evidence. I want to see the empty tomb and the risen Christ. Of course that is the best evidence. The problem is that we don't have that. McCormick's whole point is that we are depending upon hearsay evidence that has been repeated and copied over and over and what we have is from hundreds of years after the fact. If I read in a book that was produced in the same manner as the NT that somebody 2,000 ago had a royal flush I'm supposed to ask him to "show his cards"?
In discussing counterevidence Jake says "No, we can only base our conclusions on the evidence we do have and sitting around concocting theoretical forms of counterevidence that we don't possess is ridiculous." McCormick's counterevidence chapter is 25 pages of rigorously argued and well supported points about this issue. Jake dismisses it with a wave of the hand. It is a powerful argument and it is Jake's claim that is ridiculous. Any scholar would consider this issue. It is partisans on the internet who dismiss rigorous intellectual discussions as if they didn't exist.
In discussing the chapter on faith Jake says: "his chapter on faith he concocts his own subjective definition and utilizes it throughout the chapter. Thus, the whole chapter he's basically beating his own straw man." It is Jake that is creating a straw man. First of all McCormick's definition of religious faith is basically the dictionary definition (I looked it up). Secondly right at the start in his faith chapter McCormick address a point about different uses of faith so he clearly defines what he is talking about. He defines his terms as any rigorous argument should. To call what he is refuting "beating his own straw man" is pathetic. Christians pull this faith card exactly like McCormick defines it all the time. I've heard it more times than I can count. McCormick is beating something very real and the straw man is Jake's review of McCormick.
What Stevie Jake's review shows is that either Jake does not understand the arguments or that he is intentionally distorting them. In either case his review totally misrepresents the book. He doesn't want you to read the book. I do. I'm perfectly willing to let people judge for themselves. It is an outstanding book. Don't skip it based upon Jake's terrible review.
35 of 40 people found the following review helpful.
The resurrection as a case study in evidence vs faith
By Roberto Perez-Franco
[For MIT's The Tech] In his recent book Atheism and the Case Against Christ, Matthew McCormick - a professor of philosophy at CSU Sacramento - takes issue with the most fundamental claim of Christianity: the claim that Jesus came back to life after being dead for three days. Saying that McCormick "takes issue" with the resurrection claim is an understatement. I read the whole thing, all 288 pages of it, and I can tell you: what he does is taking the critical-thinking equivalent of a chainsaw against the poor claim, and what follows is not nice. I am not sure how a believer may feel when reading McCormick's book (I'm not even sure a believer would pick up the book), but for me - as an open atheist - following his grinding argument against the evidence for the resurrection was like watching him repeatedly beating, with merciless thoroughness, what for me was a dead horse to begin with; then taking a sample of the resulting pulp with the tweezers of skepticism and examining it under the microscope of epistemology, to show us at least half-a-dozen different compelling reasons to not only doubt but - if we are intellectually honest - reject altogether the historicity of the resurrection on the basis of insufficient evidence. He then nods, incinerates the remains of the deceased pony, and blows the ashes in the face of all other religions, since - he contends - they all contain equally fantastic and unsupported claims. McCormick, all the while, touts the moral advantages of atheism, particularly the benefit of being able to think through problems on the basis of facts, instead of wishful thinking.
From cover to cover, McCormick's comprehensive refutation felt to me like overkill. Who, after all, takes the resurrection to be truly a historical fact?, I asked myself. I did not have to wait for long to be reminded who. About a billion Christians, that's who.
Take the Pope, for example. In his latest book on Jesus, published last week in 20 languages and an instant bestseller, Benedict XVI asks: "Is what we profess in the Creed true?" If you are not familiar with the Creed, you don't know what you are missing. It is a public affirmation of series of fundamental Catholic beliefs, including Jesus's birth from a virgin and his resurrection from the dead, along with other fantastic claims worthy of Joseph Smith's hat or L. Ron Hubbard's pen. "The answer is an unequivocal yes," says the Pope: both the virgin birth and the resurrection of Jesus are historical truth. How does he know this, you may ask? Well, it is not because he has found sufficient historical evidence to support these extraordinary claims beyond reasonable doubt, but because these beliefs are cornerstones of his faith, and are supported by scripture, which is taken again by faith as being true. This belief in the absence of evidence is by no means exclusive to Catholics: between half and a third of Americans believe Jesus was resurrected from the dead. The same Americans that vote to elect a president who will run the most powerful country on the planet, who will decide on war and peace, on energy and environmental issues that affect all of humanity.
So lo and behold, I saw the horse that I thought dead come back from the ashes and reconstitute itself into a splendid stallion, if not alive at the very least undead - like the rides of the Wraiths. A zombie horse, if you will, vested with a chainsaw-proof body armor and entirely impervious to McCormick's assaults of critical thinking and evidence-based analysis.
If you are wondering why you should care about other people deciding what is true based on faith instead of evidence, I submit this example for your consideration. This December's issue of GQ includes an interview with GOP preferito Marco Rubio, including a Couric-style gotcha question: "How old do you think the Earth is?" Accordingly, Rubio answered in Palin-speak by distancing himself from science ("I'm not a scientist",) invoking scripture as his reference ("I can tell you what the Bible says",) and declaring the subject beyond our reach ("It is one of the great mysteries.") In Christian circles, doubting the true geological age of the Earth is a proxy for doubting evolution through natural selection, which is itself a defense mechanism for affirming the existence of a Creator. So, when Rubio answers a question about the Earth's age based on faith and ignoring all the scientific evidence, he is publicly affirming his Christian beliefs at the expense of scientific facts.
In a searing op-ed piece, Paul Krugman (PhD '77) characterized Mr Rubio's "inability to acknowledge scientific evidence" as "symptomatic of a much broader problem," namely "the anti-rational mind-set that has taken over his political party," and invites us not to forget Rubio's answer when the 2016 election comes. Such predilection of faith over evidence, of truthiness over truth, "may, in the end, set America on a path of inexorable decline," warns Krugman. I agree with him. McCormick mounted such a formidable attack on the pivotal claim of the predominant religion in this hemisphere, because the case has to be made over and over again, until it sinks in, that faith-based policies should not be accepted by the rational thinkers, that we are in this boat all together, and that anyone's right to believe in fairy tales ends where my right to live based on facts begins. The pressing need to stand this ground is the underlying reason for McCormick's all-out defense of reason above faith. And I see it as a good fight. May his chainsaw stay sharp.
29 of 38 people found the following review helpful.
Memo From The Loyal Opposition
By Russell DiSilvestro
I work with professor McCormick; have read his book; have debated him in public about (parts of) it. Let me begin this short note, which is my first time ever giving such a review of anything on Amazon, by quoting my full blurb for his book that I wrote for his publisher:
"Who should read this book? Theists, atheists, Christians, non-Christians, and those whose lives are affected by these overlapping groups--in short, everyone. It contains bold arguments that we should not believe in the resurrection of Christ. And that, for similar reasons, we should believe there is no God. It's plain-speaking, fast-moving, wide-ranging, and hard-hitting. It engages and advances previous discussions in countless creative ways. And it does not simply "preach to the choir" (at least not often). I believe its arguments are mistaken. But it will take at least another book to say why."
This blurb was not an attempt at flattery. Nor was it an attempt to damn with faint praise. The simple truth of the matter is that people in general, and Christian theists in particular, can read a book like this for profit and for pleasure, even if it leaves them challenged, and/or reassured, and/or perplexed at various points. Yes, one might disagree with something in nearly every chapter (as I do). No, one need not explain to the world what those disagreements are (as I hope to do elsewhere) to be rational in having those disagreements. As one with more authority than me on such things has said, "that's just life in philosophy."
Russell DiSilvestro
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