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Unfortunately, the title of the book is inappropriate. The title implies that god exists and contends that he is not great. Greatness of an object can only be considered and discussed when the object actually exists. Although God Is Not Great contains an abundance of valuable information pertinent to the author's main thesis, unfortunately it is commingled with other irrelevant verbiage. - Mohammad Gill

Michael Coren recently wrote an Easter column for the Toronto Sun entitled "Answering Christianity Haters." In the column he gives short responses to some typical criticisms of Christianity. I go through these criticisms and his responses to show that the issues aren't nearly so pat as Coren wants his readers to think.

Sam Harris didn't write his book The End of Faith with the sense of purpose as did Richard Dawkins who, when he wrote his book The God Delusion, proclaimed, "If this book works as I intend, religious readers who open it will be atheists when they put it down." No such claim is made by Harris about The End of Faith, yet The End of Faith might well change many readers into skeptics of religion.
- Mohammad Gill

"If Richard Dawkins is right, then everything he concludes is suspect. If 'memes' are ferociously replicating 'selfish-genes' in the social pool, tantamount to a computer virus, then disbelief in God may also be the result of aberrant memeplexes."

"Science and Religion: Are They Compatible covers a vast terrain, including almost every field of human epistemology. All in all, it is valuable both for its own sake and as a useful reference covering the incompatibility between science and religion."

"Dr. Stenger's learning is vast and he expresses his thoughts with enormous clarity, making them accessible to a large audience. He is a master communicator. One will not find a better book on the scientific evidence for atheism."

"Let's see a real test put before the immovable object; the irresistible force; the ultimate omniscience, the omnipotent, omnipresent supremacy of all that the believers in a supernatural being endow that Master Architect with."

"Science should not be a political tool, and nature is neither an excuse nor a license to thieve the life and liberty of fellow humans here in the 21st century nor anytime henceforth."

While there are many areas of dogma over which theists of even the same denomination will disagree, one thing that most believers agree upon is the notion that God is perfect. But is it reasonable to make that assumption? The author doesn't think so. He looks at the meaning of "perfection," and then proposes a conclusion about the feasibility of a God who is "perfect."

"Peppered throughout with enchanting quotations from other writers, philosophers and scientists, The God Delusion is an extremely read-worthy book which is very persuasive in supporting its basic thesis of a delusion about a God that does not exist."

Does reality include a supernatural realm, inhabited by God and, perhaps, other spiritual beings? Or is the familiar natural world all there is to it? If there is a supernatural world, how do we relate to it? Are we composite creatures with souls as well as bodies? Is it possible that our souls live on after our bodies are no more? Or is physical death the end? What is the nature of the free will that we commonly suppose ourselves to enjoy during our sojourn here on earth? Do we in fact have free will? Or are our lives little more than pointless scribbles on the fabric of the universe, as devoid of real significance as scratches on a piece of glaciated rock?

While Christianity professes belief in the existence of one god, the careful observer will find that Christianity actually presents us with three gods: the Tribal God, the Cerebral God, and the Absentee Landlord God. Additionally, because each of these three gods corresponds with a different stage in the development of human consciousness, with each stage representing a different conception of deity and the nature of the world, these three gods are ultimately irreconcilable, forming an "Irreconcilable Trinity."

Einstein once said that "God does not play dice." But he also said, "It seems to me that the idea of a personal God is an anthropomorphic concept which I cannot take seriously." What, then, did Einstein mean by "God"? What sort of "God" did Einstein have in mind?

Antony Flew. a long-time ace atheist and once-astute philosopher, now a born-again deist, responded to Bradley's "Antony in Wonderland," by appealing to Gerald Schroeder's Genesis and the Big Bang--calling Bradley a "secularist bigot" in the process. Bradley responds.

Pyrophobia, people's fear that they will go to hell if they do not believe propositions x, y and z, is a significant barrier to the use of reason that arose in European/American history. It was pervasive in Puritan times and it is pervasive today. No one wants a one-way ticket to hell, of course, but pyrophobia can nevertheless be overcome.

"The same glorious past that lends us our cultural pride has bestowed upon us some of the darkest curses of mankind. Our inheritance has been flawed and imperfect. The evil of the caste system continues to irk us even into the twenty-first century. Likewise the ugly chapters of violent evangelism and inquisition serve as fodder to the perverted mind. Nationalism often simmers up to fascist ideology and religious bigotry when it derives inspiration from such flawed perception of history. Routinely, extremist groups and religious bigots twist history to spread their divisive philosophy."

Daniel C. Dennett has provided a valuable insight into the operation of the conscious mind in his book, Consciousness Explained. This work demolishes the fallacy of the Cartesian Theater and replaces it with a scientifically verifiable Multiple Drafts model. Dennett disqualifies the mystery of qualia but conspicuously neglects the much greater mystery of sentience. Most interestingly, he not only acknowledges sentience in his later book, Kinds of Minds, but also admits to both its great moral implications and lack of present explanation. This discussion is not intended as a book review but rather as a critique of Dennett's claim that anything fitting his Multiple Drafts model is conscious in the fullest sense.

"According to the Selfish Gene theory, there is no meaning to life beyond the meaningless reproduction of genes: we are just survival machines for our genes. I suggest that, notwithstanding the initially unpromising impression, the Selfish Gene theory, when taken in conjunction with the creativity thesis below, can be liberating, and can lend to constructing a meaning or purpose to life, bringing about peace, prosperity, care for the environment, and harmonious social coexistence."

"I like to find secular counterpoints to Christmas, not secular counterparts. That, in a nutshell, is the topic of this essay. There is a secular side to Christmas, one that a nontheist can enjoy with the rest of society without betraying their nontheist views. In fact, I propose that the very shape and spirit of the holiday is significantly nonreligious, from twinkling lights and fake snow to the eggnog and fruitcake. Yes, Virginia, there is an atheist's Christmas!"

Kiefer posits that the strategies employed by fundamentalist Christians to induce doctrinal belief diminish human potential by evoking fear and guilt, and by promoting powerlessness in adherents. The author illustrates the adverse effects suffered by adherents, he discusses the maladaptive coping strategies developed as a result of these beliefs, and he demonstrates how circular reasoning entraps believers and leaves them ignorant of their helplessness. Finally, he describes how personal vulnerabilities are manipulated by rigid doctrine and strict authority in order to control adherents and propagate the religion.

Nearly every religion asserts that human beings possess a soul or immaterial eternal essence, a "ghost in the machine" that animates our flesh. However, this extraordinary assertion is backed by essentially no hard, scientific evidence. Science makes it quite clear that the brain is the place in which one's personality, character and memory are stored. Only one conclusion can be drawn from the available scientific evidence: "Mind" is merely a self-organized emergent property of matter.

The God Delusion is a witty, razor-sharp attack on religious belief of all varieties. Dawkins pulls no punches and does not hesitate to heap scorn on foolish beliefs. Atheists will cheer it; believers will probably be appalled and bypass it, which is unfortunate, since this book presents a great deal of legitimately new and interesting information, and closes with a passionate and powerful defense of atheism that should be heard by all.

This is a general review of the last four chapters, the chapters that deal with evolution, of Ann Coulter's book Godless. "She is a lawyer and a journalist, and the research techniques she uses to study political and historical subjects, which in this case amount to 'quote mining,' are not suitable for studying issues in biological science. What makes her account bearable is her acid wit. She is genuinely funny."

Without dwelling on deep theological issues and arguments, Holt details his journey from Catholic to naturalist, outlining the reasons that led him to give up his belief in God and the supernatural, and to ultimately come to the conclusion that metaphysical naturalism is most likely true.

The legitimacy of the three main commandments of the Gospels--"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you," "Love your neighbor as yourself," and "Love God with all your heart with all your soul and with all your mind"--is accepted not only by believers, but the first is admired by many unbelievers as well. However, although they sound pretty, they do not pass philosophical scrutiny, and they must be rejected by a morally-minded and reasonable person.

O'Kane argues that even if a punishing god were to exist, it would remain a logical and ethical necessity to behave as if it did not, that to succumb to such a being would be a moral failure, and that the only moral course of action would be nonbelief and the acceptance of damnation--"in essence, the virtuous must all 'go to hell.'"

"Theists frequently make the assertion that it is just as impossible to prove that there is no such thing as god as it is to prove that there is such a thing as god; therefore, atheism (the positive assertion that no god can exist) is rooted in blind faith, just as theism (the positive assertion that a god does exist) is. I believe, however, that there is a rational basis for the positive assertion that god cannot exist, which can be arrived at through extrapolation on empirical evidence, and through deductive reasoning regarding the properties of the universe."

A popular theistic "explanation" for why God would permit even a slim evidential basis for atheism goes something like this: "God does not give us absolute proof because this would work against our free will. He gives us just enough evidence so that we can find Him and just enough to reject His existence if that is our desire." But is this reasonable? Kuchar says not.

One of the most acclaimed poets and Latin scholars of the twentieth century, Housman's poetry and prose contain eloquent observations palatable to atheists.

Those who advocate displaying the decalogue in classrooms, courtrooms, and public parks assert that the Ten Commandments are a declaration of fundamental principles that are the cornerstones of a fair and just society. But a careful study of the Bible indicates that it isn't as simple as that; there are many questions that would need to be answered before it could be decided which version and which interpretation--if any--should be displayed.