Cover of 50 Reasons People Give for Believing in a God

50 Reasons People Give for Believing in a God

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Many books that challenge religious belief from a skeptical point of view take a combative tone that is almost guaranteed to alienate believers or they present complex philosophical or scientific arguments that fail to reach the average reader. This is undoubtably an ineffective way of encouraging people to develop critical thinking about religion.

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This unique approach to skepticism presents fifty commonly heard reasons people often give for believing in a God and then raises legitimate questions regarding these reasons, showing in each case that there is much room for doubt. Whether you're a believer, a complete skeptic, or somewhere in between, you'll find this review of traditional and more recent arguments for the existence of God refreshing, approachable, and enlightening.

From religion as the foundation of morality to the authority of sacred books, the compelling religious testimony of influential people, near-death experiences, arguments from Intelligent Design, and much more, Harrison respectfully describes each rationale for belief and then politely shows the deficiencies that any good skeptic would point out.

As a journalist who has traveled widely and interviewed many highly accomplished people, quite a number of whom are believers, the author appreciates the variety of belief and the ways in which people seek to make religion compatible with scientific thought. Nonetheless, he shows that, despite the prevalence of belief in God or religious belief in intelligent people, in the end there are no unassailable reasons for believing in a God.

For skeptics looking for appealing ways to approach their believing friends or believers who are not afraid to consider a skeptical challenge, this book makes for very stimulating reading.

Audience
adult
Length
medium · 354 pages
Form
essays

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Liked 50 Reasons People Give for Believing in a God? Here’s where I’d start.

These suit anyone who liked 50 Reasons People Give for Believing in a God. Sign in and mark a few books for picks shaped around your own taste.

  1. The God Virus: How Religion Infects Our Lives and Culture Shares religion, atheism, nonfiction
  2. Why I Became an Atheist: A Former Preacher Rejects Christianity Shares atheism, religion, nonfiction
  3. The Quotable Atheist: Ammunition for Nonbelievers, Political Junkies, Gadflies, and Those Generally Hell-Bound Shares atheism, religion, nonfiction
  4. Why There Is No God: Simple Responses to 20 Common Arguments for the Existence of God Shares religion, atheism, nonfiction

“People who read 50 Reasons People Give for Believing in a God tend to reach for these next.”

  1. Irreligion: A Mathematician Explains Why the Arguments for God Just Don't Add Up
  2. Sense and Goodness Without God: A Defense of Metaphysical Naturalism
  3. The New Atheism: Taking a Stand for Science and Reason
  4. Society Without God: What the Least Religious Nations Can Tell Us about Contentment

“If you want more of the same (philosophy about religion), start with these.”

  1. The Atheist's Bible: An Illustrious Collection of Irreverent Thoughts
  2. The Good Atheist: Living a Purpose-Filled Life Without God
  3. God, Chance and Necessity
  4. God: The Most Unpleasant Character in All Fiction

“If it was the religion that hooked you, try one of these.”

  1. Letter to a Christian Nation
  2. The End of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason
  3. The Reason Driven Life: What Am I Here on Earth For?
  4. There Was No Jesus, There Is No God

“These start from a similar idea, even if they go somewhere else with it.”

  1. The God Argument: The Case against Religion and for Humanism
  2. The Authenticity of Faith : The Varieties and Illusions of Religious Experience
  3. Faith and Reason: The Philosophy of Religion
  4. Born Believers: The Science of Children's Religious Belief