When a poll is taken on the subject of religious belief, very few people will admit that they don't believe in something. But why? Many people also wonder how anyone could be an atheist and still live a happy and meaningful life. What are the benefits of atheism? Why be a nonbeliever? What is the future of atheism?
These questions and others are looked at from the minority point of view by George H. Smith, a defender of reason and personal liberty. Stressing the positive dimensions of atheism, Smith discusses agnosticism, skepticism, secular humanism and the burden of proof; the nature of religious experience; problems in proofs of God's existence; the ethics of Jesus; sex and guilt; Christian values in American society; religion and culture; the lure of "afterlife"; concepts of heaven, hell, and original sin; tearing death; hedonism and stoicism; sex without God; tolerance; atheism, ethics, and the pursuit of happiness; the sacred and the profane; the impact of Paul, Aquinas, Luther, and Calvin and the assault on reason.
The modern revival of reason, skepticism, atheism, and secular humanism ensures that hope remains for a future without the constraints of dogmatic doctrine and religious tyranny. Why Atheism? is an accessible guide to living a positive life without a supreme being.
George H. Smith (San Francisco, CA) is the author of the world's most popular book on nonbelief, Atheism: The Case Against God, and Atheism, Ayn Rand, and Other Heresies.
Approx 170 pages ISBN 1-57392-268-4
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