You won't see a great deal of public criticism of religion in America. There will occasionally be criticism of some extremist forms of religion, that is true, but criticism of religion in general isn't that common - and those criticisms that are typically come from other religious people who simply disagree with a religion that is not theirs. Why?

Chuck Slothower writes:

It's considered impolite in America to point out the absurdity and foolishness of religious belief. Religion is, and always has been, a rather poor attempt to explain where we came from and to comfort us when we cringe at the thought of mortality. ... As the brilliant essayist Christopher Hitchens said in an interview, "They say that a first-century execution gives me a reason to live and was conducted so that I wouldn't have to answer for my actions. I haven't the faintest idea what it would feel like to believe that. It's a belief so absurd that it can't even be justified by its own rationale."

Slothower makes a good point here - both about religion generally and about Christianity specifically. Not many people are likely to acknowledge that or even appreciate just how absurd so much religion appears from the outside. It's the job of religious believers to justify and validate their claims, but it's rare that they even make a decent attempt, much less actually succeed in any way.

Read More:

• Religion 101
• Philosophy of Religion
• Books on Religion and Religious Beliefs