Help needed tracing book...
Posted by: Tim Danaher on 12 February 2005
In yesterday's Independent, there was a book reviewed, title something like 'Losing Faith', written by a neuroscientist, it was a call for atheism. I've lost the bloody review, nothing on indie website or Amazon --
Can anybody help?
TIA
Can anybody help?
TIA
Posted on: 12 February 2005 by BigH47
Posted on: 12 February 2005 by Martin D
Posted on: 12 February 2005 by Martin D
No Wait Its gotta be this
http://enjoyment.independent.co.uk/books/reviews/story.jsp?story=609774
The End of Faith by Sam Harris
http://enjoyment.independent.co.uk/books/reviews/story.jsp?story=609774
The End of Faith by Sam Harris
Posted on: 12 February 2005 by Martin D
Johann Hari
Published : 11 February 2005
A holy alliance of the religious right and the multicultural left has erected a taboo at the heart of our culture. At a crucial moment in the history of fanaticism, they have ring-fenced the edifice of religion from criticism. True, they permit condemnation of the manias of religious literalists - from Osama Bin laden to the Jewish Settlers to Jerry Falwell - but they ensure this happens within tight parameters.
Fanatics must be damned for "perverting" or "distorting" the "otherwise peaceful" religions they follow. Anybody like Richard Dawkins who points out that, on the contrary, these extremists are simply obeying the clear commands of their respective religious texts is damned as "offensive" or "an Ayatollah of atheism."
Sam Harris - a Californian neuroscientist - does not just attack this taboo. He launches a sustained nuclear assault on it. He argues that there has never been a more important time for a campaigning, aggressive atheism - for a simple reason. Before long, technological advances will make weaponry of mass destruction fairly easily available to any group of private individuals. If this technology combines with a religious group that believes death is actually better than life - whether it is the evangelical Christians who pine for the Rapture or jihadists who brag about how much they love death - then it is, at the very least, hard to see a happy outcome. So Harris argues, "Given the power of our technologyÉ we have simply lost the right to our myths and to our mythic identities." So now is the time for to dismantle the religious idea that human action can be justified with reference to afterlives, mystical realms and magical Gods - before those ideas are turned once again on humanity. "Words like 'God' or 'Allah' must go the way of 'Apollo' and 'Baal', or they will unmake our world."
Published : 11 February 2005
A holy alliance of the religious right and the multicultural left has erected a taboo at the heart of our culture. At a crucial moment in the history of fanaticism, they have ring-fenced the edifice of religion from criticism. True, they permit condemnation of the manias of religious literalists - from Osama Bin laden to the Jewish Settlers to Jerry Falwell - but they ensure this happens within tight parameters.
Fanatics must be damned for "perverting" or "distorting" the "otherwise peaceful" religions they follow. Anybody like Richard Dawkins who points out that, on the contrary, these extremists are simply obeying the clear commands of their respective religious texts is damned as "offensive" or "an Ayatollah of atheism."
Sam Harris - a Californian neuroscientist - does not just attack this taboo. He launches a sustained nuclear assault on it. He argues that there has never been a more important time for a campaigning, aggressive atheism - for a simple reason. Before long, technological advances will make weaponry of mass destruction fairly easily available to any group of private individuals. If this technology combines with a religious group that believes death is actually better than life - whether it is the evangelical Christians who pine for the Rapture or jihadists who brag about how much they love death - then it is, at the very least, hard to see a happy outcome. So Harris argues, "Given the power of our technologyÉ we have simply lost the right to our myths and to our mythic identities." So now is the time for to dismantle the religious idea that human action can be justified with reference to afterlives, mystical realms and magical Gods - before those ideas are turned once again on humanity. "Words like 'God' or 'Allah' must go the way of 'Apollo' and 'Baal', or they will unmake our world."
Posted on: 12 February 2005 by Tim Danaher
BigH --
No, not that one. But will put it on my list.
Thanks, All.
No, not that one. But will put it on my list.
Thanks, All.
Posted on: 12 February 2005 by Martin D
Well was it or not
Posted on: 13 February 2005 by Tim Danaher
Martin --
Yes, that was the one, but after reading the extended review on the Indie website, I'm not sure it's the definitive guide to atheism that i'm after.
I've just dowloaded the free one here:
http://www.immediex.com/jciwrong.html
And it's pretty bad.
Yes, that was the one, but after reading the extended review on the Indie website, I'm not sure it's the definitive guide to atheism that i'm after.
I've just dowloaded the free one here:
http://www.immediex.com/jciwrong.html
And it's pretty bad.
Posted on: 13 February 2005 by Martin D
Tim
Thanks for the reply, its an area I’m interested in, and am looking to read up on it myself.
Any good recommendations or web sites gratefully received.
Martin
Thanks for the reply, its an area I’m interested in, and am looking to read up on it myself.
Any good recommendations or web sites gratefully received.
Martin