I’m getting close to finishing these essays. I have looked ahead a bit and there is one lengthy one that has some interesting suggestions, but I don’t think it is too early to start a “best of” list. I will update this list and move it to the top of the list as I change it.
Overall, I categorize the essays into three groups.
1. The really good ones.
2. The “what’s wrong with religion” ones. Mainly complaining about fundamentalist Christians or Muslims.
3. Logical arguments about the non-existence of an omnipotent, omniscient, all-knowing, all-loving God who consciously manages the universe.
The third group doesn’t interest me much anymore because I have been over them a few times. It always ends up with a matter of choice or faith or a premise that can’t be proven. If you have never been through these arguments and you want to know about them, this book covers them all pretty well. There is some repetition, which is good for getting perspectives, but you might be tired of them by time you are done.
A lot of people reject the theology of their parents or their teachers, without considering that there are other theologies. A lot of people reject any theology once they realize that there is more than one. There is some logic to this, especially when you consider there are currently thousands of options, but it rejects the notion that there might some good with one, or from similarities in the many, and I can’t do that.
The second group is interesting, but I’m not sure short essays are the best approach. Again if you are familiar with none of the issues, this is a good place to start. However there are much better sources to learn about the rise of the religious right or the roots of fundamentalism or the history of Islam in Iran.
Buy the book for the best ones, they are:
Why Am I a Nonbeliever – I Wonder (This is the best one on evolution)
Confessions of a Kindergarten Leper
The Accidental Exorcist
The Unconditional Love of Reality
Giving Up Ghosts and Gods
And a sub-group, a couple more on evolution
Gods Inside
An Ambivalent Nonbelief
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