FullReviews Index
Sartre, by Neil Levy
Sartre: Jean-Paul Sartre was acclaimed by the people of France in ways normally reserved for rock stars in other countries. When he died in 1980, fifty thousand people lined the streets of Paris to watch his coffin go by. What did he do to merit such respect and attention?
Life Evolving: Molecules, Mind, and Meaning, by Christian de Duve
Life is an amazing thing. Throughout human history, we have tried to understand life - what it is, why it exists, and how it has developed. Only in the last fifty years or so, however, have we developed enough of an understanding about the nature of life - from the tiniest cells up through the workings of the human brain - to really move forward on understanding how life might have developed. We still have quite a ways to go of course, but we've already come farther than most people realize.
Oberammergau: The Troubling Story of the World's Most Famous Passion Play
In the German village of Oberammergau, both theater and life intermingle to the point where it has become difficult to tell which is which - and in more ways than one. It hosts the oldest continuous staging of a 'Passion Play,' the drama of Jesus' arrest, crucifixion, and resurrection. It also hosts, as a result, one of the oldest continuous debates about the presence of anti-semitism in Christian theology - and whether or not that anti-semitism can ever be removed.
Review: Sacred Choices: Right to Contraception and Abortion in World Religions
Family planning, contraception and abortion are all intimately related issues which are often subject to rancorous debates in modern society and international politics. According to conventional wisdom, traditional religious beliefs and institutions are opposed to all three. According to conventional wisdom, religion is inevitably anti-choice in such matters. What if conventional wisdom is wrong?
Sleeping with Extra-Terrestrials: The Rise of Irrationalism and Perils of Piety
As many have surely noticed by now, America has a buoyant love affair with all things irrational. It's not just religion, but also astrology, psychics, wacky conspiracy theories, and worse. This has been going on since last century at least and while some may treat it as unimportant to how society functions, the widespread irrationalism and uncritical acceptance of things like angels, aliens, gurus, etc. has serious repercussions for everyone.
Can We Be Good Without God? Biology, Behavior, and the Need to Believe
For much of human history, there has been the perception that morality is largely or wholly dependent upon religion. Thus, people have argued that a person simply cannot be good without a religious belief system and, more importantly, a belief in some god. But is this perception accurate? Is it perhaps arguable that ignoring the existence of any gods might actually be preferable? Perhaps it shouldn't matter to us whether any gods exist or not when debating moral values.
Can We Be Good Without God? Biology, Behavior, and the Need to Believe
For much of human history, there has been the perception that morality is largely or wholly dependent upon religion. Thus, people have argued that a person simply cannot be good without a religious belief system and, more importantly, a belief in some god. But is this perception accurate? Is it perhaps arguable that ignoring the existence of any gods might actually be preferable? Perhaps it shouldn't matter to us whether any gods exist or not when debating moral values.
Book Review: A Rumor About the Jews: Reflections on Antisemitism
The Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion was a forged pamphlet, probably created by the secret police of Imperial Russia in the late 1890's. The goal was to get people to believe that it was actually the minutes of meetings of Jewish leaders plotting to take over the world. What it attacked, however, was not simply Jews but in fact the entire project of the Enlightenment - religious diversity, freedom, toleration, and social progress.
How to Think About Weird Things: Critical Thinking for a New Age
Belief in paranormal, supernatural and mysterious claims have always been very popular, so how can skeptics best approach such claims to evaluate their credibility and offer a critical perspective? What tools and principles should we employ in dealing with obviously weird things that come up in life? What are the methods of thinking which people should be employing more often, but aren't? So long as separating truth from falsehood is important, these are vital questions for everyone.
Southern Cross: The Beginnings of the Bible Belt, by Christine Leigh Heyrman
What is the American 'Bible Belt' and how did it originate? Why did the most conservative strains of Christianity moved from New England down to the South? Much has been written about Southern evangelical and fundamentalist Christianity in America, but not a lot has been written about its very earliest origins: how a mostly Anglican region based upon money and commerce was converted to the Baptist and Methodist denominations based on authoritarianism and masculinity.
The Vatican Exposed: Money, Murder, and the Mafia, by Paul Williams
There is no disputing the fact that the Vatican, the clerical bureaucracy which controls and leads the Roman Catholic Church, is a very powerful and secretive organization. There is also little disputing the fact that great power and great secrecy typically help an organization to become corrupt. Has the same occurred with the Vatican? Many believe so and there is quite a bit of evidence through the centuries of corruption at the Vatican which would rival that in any government or corporation.
Sexual Shame: An Urgent Call to Healing, by Karen A. McClintock
Questions about sexuality are fundamental to the health and welfare of Christian communities - the problem is, few Christians seem to realize this. Sexuality has become a proverbial elephant sitting in the room: no one can help but see it, but no one wants to acknowledge it, either. This, however, is part of what leads to scandals, abuse and worse. The more Christians suppress frank talk about sex and sexuality, the more they raise the risk of sexual problems for individuals and the community.
Becoming Evil: How Ordinary People Commit Genocide and Mass Killing
Humans have committed great evil against each other over the course of millennia, often in the name of religion but also often in the context of secular ideologies - especially during the 20th century. Such evil is not the standard means by which people relate to one another because we are usually quite a bit more civil and kind to one another. How is it that kindness is left behind and heinous barbarism develops - especially among those whose religion ostensibly promotes kindness as a virtue?
Preaching Eugenics: Religious Leaders and the American Eugenics Movement
Eugenics is a word with few, if any, positive connotations for most people. It started as an optimistic, if naive, idea but it wasn't long before eugenics became a force for misery and suffering. Although eugenics may be most commonly associated with Nazi Germany, the truth is that the Nazis looked to America for inspiration for their own programs. Americans were way ahead of everyone else in their eugenics programs and Christians assumed a leading role in promoting its ideals.
Paperback Apocalypse: How the Christian Church Was Left Behind, by Robert Price
Apocalyptic literature has been popular with Jews and Christians for millennia, but it has gained a special place in the hearts of Americans. There has of course been a recent surge in such literature, not to mention movies and video games, but it's not a recent phenomenon. Americans have been eating up stories about the apocalypse and Jesus' second coming for decades now. Understanding the current popularity of such stories is helped by understanding their cultural history and context.
The Age of American Unreason, by Susan Jacoby
Have you gotten the impression that Americans are disdainful of intellectual pursuits, complex ideas, and thought that requires real work? Well, you should have because it's true. Anti-intellectualism isn't just alive and well in America, but it's gained the high ground. There's arguably more anti-intellectualism in America than intellectualism, which spells trouble for American politics, culture, and future.
Bad Faith: The Danger of Religious Extremism, by Neil J. Kressel
Anyone studying religion is immediately and unavoidably faced with a difficult dilemma: believers report that their religion is a source for morality and values in their lives - and there are many examples of religion inspiring good behavior - but at the same time religion is also demonstrably a source for violence, terrorism, war, and evil. What is it about faith that it can inspire so much negative behavior even while being promoted as a force for good? What is the connection?
Portable Atheist: Essential Readings for the Nonbeliever, Christopher Hitchens
The popularity of books by atheists about atheism will, hopefully, create more interest in older works about atheism. There is a lot out there for people who are interested in the historical development of skeptical critiques of supernatural religion. Atheism itself is just the absence of belief in gods and thus is not the least bit complicated; however, anyone who wants to claim to understand atheists and atheism should be familiar with more than just the last couple of books.
Onion Breath, by Steph and Dan Allosso
Religious parents have a large supply of materials to teach children about their religion, their god, and their doctrines in a manner which integrates it all into life generally. What about atheists and freethinkers who want to teach about skepticism, or who merely want to teach about moral values without relying on religion as a crutch? Atheist, agnostic, freethinking, and skeptical parents all seek out books which can speak to children; unfortunately, their options are much more limited.
What Is Secular Humanism? by Paul Kurtz
In the debate over religion and religious violence, it's important to remember that there are viable non-religious alternatives - world views which have a lot to offer but which are both completely secular and completely lacking in any gods. Religious believers sometimes object to atheist critics by asking what they have to offer in place of religion; atheism itself is not a philosophy and thus not an alternative to religion secular humanism, however, is well suited to that task.
God, the Devil, and Darwin: A Critique of Intelligent Design Theory, by Niall Sh
Intelligent Design may simply be another and newer form of age-old creationism, but it's been one of the more popular and successful forms of creationism. It has managed to get positive attention from Christians working in a variety of academic fields and the scientific-sounding language used by its apologists helps many other Christians imagine that they have found a secure rationalization both for their theism and their denial of naturalistic science. It's all empty pretense, though.
American Theocracy: Peril and Politics of Radical Religion, Oil, Borrowed Money
The power and influence of America's Christian Right is an important story, but it's not the whole explanation for the political success of the Republican Party - nor is it the whole problem for America when the GOP is in power. There are other important factors at work and a thorough understanding of what's going wrong in America requires an ability to put all the pieces of the puzzle together. This requires more historical understanding than most Americans seem to have.
The Trouble With Christmas, by Tom Flynn
Why do non-Christians make a fuss about Christmas in America? How could anyone have problems with Christmas? There are parties, gifts, days off - this should be a fun time for all concerned. Anyone who would challenge and/or reject Christmas sounds like a Scrooge, right? As Tom Flynn explains in "The Trouble With Christmas," this is part of the problem - the expectation by the majority that everyone else should be happy to conform and accommodate themselves to a traditional Christian holiday.
Faith-Based Diplomacy: Trumping Realpolitik, edited by Douglas Johnston
Religion is a powerful factor in conflicts around the world, whether causing the conflict, simply helping sustain conflict, or used as a pretext for conflicts that have deeper roots in other issues. Considering how much of a role religion can play, is it reasonable to think that we can find solutions and resolutions that don't involve religion? Then again, if religion is playing a role in the conflict, perhaps we should find ways to remove it entirely?
A Solstice Tree for Jenny, by Karen I. Shragg. Published by Prometheus Books
Christmas is prevalent throughout American culture. Everywhere you go, you can find Christmas greetings, Christmas decorations, Christmas displays, Christmas advertisements and more. All over people experience social and cultural pressures to "conform" and adopt this traditionally Christian holiday as their own, regardless of what their actual religious or cultural beliefs are. How can a secular, non-religious family cope with the political, religious, and consumer pressures being created?