Agnosticism and atheism Books

Book SynopsisA National Bestseller -- now in paperback!Is Atheism Dead? is a highly entertaining, impressively wide-ranging, and decidedly provocative answer to that famous 1966 TIME cover that itself provocatively asked “Is God Dead?” In a voice that is by turns witty, muscular, and poetic, Metaxas echoes C.S. Lewis and G.K. Chesterton in cheerfully and logically making his case, along the way presenting breathtaking—and sometimes astonishing—new evidence and arguments against the idea of a Creatorless universe. Taken all together, he shows that much we have assumed about the biggest questions of human existence is in fact dramatically outdated — and is therefore in need of the most urgent reevaluation.

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Book SynopsisDisproving Christianity and Other Secular Writings compiles popular and lesserknown arguments against the principles established by the Christian canon.Using a phenomenological approach to build his case based on indepth study at the University of California, Santa Barbara, McAfee analyzes the Hebrew Scriptures and New Testament doctrine to build a logical and reasonable case against their validity. From contradictions between lived and portrayed religions to factual errors within the texts themselves, no stone is left unturned in this fully updated and expanded refutation of Christianity.

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Book SynopsisA unique take on death and bereavement without a belief in God or an afterlife Accepting death is never easy, but we don’t need religion to find peace, comfort, and solace in the face of death. In this inspiring and life-affirming collection of short essays, prominent atheist author Greta Christina offers secular ways to handle your own mortality and the death of those you love.Trade Review"In this book Greta Christina tackles the subject of death with the insight of a philosopher and the relaxed candor of a friendthat really cool, intelligent friend who understands and cares." David Niose , author, Fighting Back the Right: Reclaiming America from the Attack on Reason"This is a book about the philosophy of death that actually confronts the practical reality of it, and helps you come to practical terms with it . . . The best book on the atheist philosophy of death you are likely ever to read." Richard Carrier, author, Sense and Goodness without God"Greta Christina continues to provide unique advice and information to the growing community of seculars. We all need to consider our mortality and learn positive and productive ways to deal with our inevitable deadline. Thanks for this little book of wisdom. Christina has written a handbook we can all use. But it should be in the hands of every hospital and military chaplain, every hospice care giver, even ministers, etc. No secular person should be subjected to supernatural ideas and wishful thinking when they are dealing with death, dying and grief." Darrel Ray, founder , Recovering from Religion

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Book SynopsisScience and Catholicism in Argentina (1750–1960) is the first comprehensive study on the relationship between science and religion in a Spanish-speaking country with a Catholic majority and a "Latin" pattern of secularisation. The text takes the reader from Jesuit missionary science in colonial times, through the conflict-ridden 19th century, to the Catholic revival of the 1930s in Argentina. The diverse interactions between science and religion revealed in this analysis can be organised in terms of their dynamic of secularisation. The indissoluble identification of science and the secular, which operated at rhetorical and institutional levels among the liberal elite and the socialists in the 19th century, lost part of its force with the emergence of Catholic scientists in the course of the 20th century. In agreement with current views that deny science the role as the driving force of secularisation, this historical study concludes that it was the process of secularisation that shaped the interplay between religion and science, not the other way around.

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Book SynopsisAtheists generated widespread anxieties between the Reformation and the Enlightenment. In response to such anxieties a distinct genre of religious apologetics emerged in England between 1580 and 1720. By examining the form and the content of the confutation of atheism, Anti-Atheism in Early Modern England demonstrates the prevalence of patterned assumptions and arguments about who an atheist was and what an atheist was supposed to believe, outlines and analyzes the major arguments against atheists, and traces the important changes and challenges to this apologetic discourse in the early Enlightenment.Trade Review“This enormously valuable addition to the historiography of religious and moral thought is packed with sources and conclusions of significance far beyond England.” Ada Palmer, University of Chicago. In: Renaissance Quarterly, Vol. 70, No. 2 (Summer 2017), pp. 780-782. “The volume is elegantly written and immaculately edited … and may serve as an excellent avenue into a new kind of theologically aware historical “thick description” of the complex discursive fields of early modernity”. Philipp Reisner, Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf. In: Sixteenth Century Journal, Vol. 48, No 1 (Spring 2017), pp. 192-193.Table of ContentsList of Illustrations Acknowledgements Introduction 1. Anxieties About Atheism 2. “The Atheist Answered and His Error Confuted” 3. Atheist Epicurus 4. Anti-Atheist Plato 5. Atheism and Apostasy 6. Atheism and Society 7. Atheism and Happiness 8. From Confutation to Criticism Conclusion Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisFreethinkers of Medieval Islam focuses on the express denial of prophecy in the medieval Islamicate world. The development of Islamic freethinking is analyzed against the background of the significance of prophets in Islam. In her book, Sarah Stroumsa examines the image of freethinkers, and the repercussions of freethinking on Muslim, Jewish and Christian medieval thought. She argue that freethinking, as exemplified by figures like Ibn al-Rāwandī (9th C.) and Abū Bakr al-Rāzī (10th C.), was a pivotal phenomenon, that had a major impact on the development of Islamic thought. In the present context of religious violence carried out in the name of Islam, this book highlights the striking existence of independent freethinking in the world of Islam.

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Book SynopsisAtheism is increasing, but as a phenomenon continues to be at the fringe of current research. Atheist groups and ideologies represent a wide range of attitudes, behaviour and ways of acting towards religion. The lack of a clear definition of what being atheist (or an unbeliever) means today invites us to study the issue in greater depth. This volume represents a first attempt at understanding and scrutinizing atheism, offering both a global perspective as well as specific case studies.

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Book SynopsisThe international “Atheist Bus Campaign” generated news coverage and controversy, and this volume is the first to systematically and thoroughly explore and analyze each manifestation of that campaign. It includes a chapter for each of the countries which enacted – or attempted to enact – localized versions of the original United Kingdom campaign which ran the slogan, “There’s Probably No God. Now Stop Worrying and Enjoy Your Life,” prominently on public buses. Its novel focus, using a singular micro-level event as a prism for analysis, allows for cross-country comparison of legal and social reactions to each campaign, as well as an understanding of issues pertaining to the historical and contemporary status of religion and the regulation of nonreligion in various national settings.

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Book SynopsisThe Great Protector of Wits provides a new assessment of baron d’Holbach (1723–1789) and his circle. A challenging figure of the European Enlightenment, Paul-Henri Thiry d’Holbach was not only a radically materialistic philosopher, a champion of anticlericalism, the author of the Système de la nature – known as ‘the Bible of atheists’ –, an idéologue, a popularizer of the natural sciences and a prolific contributor to the Encyclopédie, but he also played a crucial role as an organizer of intellectual networks and was a master of disseminating clandestine literature and a consummate strategist in authorial fictions. In this collective volume, for the first time, all these different threads of d’Holbach’s ‘philosophy in action’ are considered and analyzed in their interconnection. Contributors to this volume: Jacopo Agnesina, Nicholas Cronk, Mélanie Éphrème, Enrico Galvagni, Jonathan Israel, Alan Charles Kors, Mladen Kozul, Brunello Lotti, Emilio Mazza, Gianluca Mori, Iryna Mykhailova, Gianni Paganini, Paolo Quintili, Alain Sandrier, Ruggero Sciuto, Maria Susana Seguin, and Gerhardt Stenger.Table of ContentsAcknowledgements List of Illustrations Abbreviations Notes on Contributors Introduction  Laura Nicolì Part 1: Holbach: Philosopher and Philosophe 1 Holbach’s Skepticism  Alan Charles Kors 2 The Concept of Natural Order in the Système de la Nature  Brunello Lotti 3 An Empire of Lies: Holbach on Vanity and Philosophy  Enrico Galvagni Part 2: Holbach: Strategist of the Enlightenment 4 Holbach traducteur, stratège et philosophe  Mladen Kozul 5 The Role of Prophecies: Baron d’Holbach as a Translator of Anthony Collins  Jacopo Agnesina 6 D’Holbach and the “Spirit of Judaism”  Gianni Paganini 7 The Absent Guest: D’Holbach’s Strategic Use of Voltaire’s Texts  Ruggero Sciuto Part 3: Holbach: Encyclopédiste 8 La critique religieuse du baron d’Holbach dans l’Encyclopédie : une approche méthodique  Alain Sandrier 9 L’autre d’Holbach : l’encyclopédiste traducteur de chimie et d’histoire naturelle  Mélanie Éphrème Part 4: Holbach and His Time 10 How Many Atheists at d’Holbach’s Table?  Emilio Mazza and Gianluca Mori 11 D’Holbach et Diderot : une amitié plus que philosophique  Paolo Quintili 12 Voltaire contre la coterie holbachique  Gerhardt Stenger 13 D’Holbach, les cercles holbachiques et la circulation de la littérature philosophique clandestine  Maria Susana Seguin 14 Who Are D’Holbach’s Readers?  Nicholas Cronk Part 5: Holbach and Revolutionary Consciousnesses 15 D’Holbach’s Political and Social Thought: The Democratic “Revolution” in Western Values Prior to 1789  Jonathan Israel 16 D’Holbach’s Legacy in the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union  Iryna Mykhailova Index Nominum

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