50 Voices of Disbelief: Why We Are Atheists

Acknowledgments ixIntroduction: Now More Important than Ever - Voices of Reason Russell Blackford Udo Schüklenk 1Unbelievable! Russell Blackford 5My "Bye Bull" Story Margaret Downey 10How Benevolent Is God? - An Argument from Suffering to Atheism Nicholas Everitt 16A Deal-Breaker Ophelia Benson 23Why Am I a Nonbeliever? - I Wonder ... J. L. Schellenberg 28Wicked or Dead? Reflections on the Moral Character and Existential Status of God John Harris 33Religious Belief and Self-Deception Adèle Mercier 41The Coming of Disbelief J. J. C. Smart 48What I Believe Graham Oppy 50Too Good to Be True, Too Obscure to Explain: The Cognitive Shortcomings of Belief in God Thomas W. Clark 57How to Think About God: Theism, Atheism, and Science Michael Shermer 65A Magician Looks at Religion James Randi 78Confessions of a Kindergarten Leper Emma Tom 82Beyond Disbelief Philip Kitcher 86An Ambivalent Nonbelief Tarter Edis 97Why Not? Sean M. Carroll 105Godless Cosmology Victor J. Stenger 112Unanswered Prayers Christine Overall 118Beyond Faith and Opinion Damien Broderick 123Could It Be Pretty Obvious There's No God? Stephen Law 129Atheist, Obviously Julian Baggini 139Why I am Not a Believer A. C. Grayling 145Evil and Me Gregory Benford 157Who's Unhappy? Lori Lipman Brown 161Reasons to be Faithless Sheila A. M. McLean 165Three Stages of Disbelief Julian Savulescu 168Born Again, Briefly Greg Egan 172Cold Comfort Ross Upshur 177The Accidental Exorcist Austin Dacey 182Atheist Out of the Foxhole Joe Haldewan 187The Unconditional Love of Reality Dale McGowan 191Antinomies Jack Darin 197GivingUp Ghosts and Gods Susan Blackmore 200Some Thoughts on Why I Am an Atheist Tamas Pataki 204No Gods, Please! Laura Purdy 214Welcome Me Back to the World of the Thinking Kelly O'Connor 220Kicking Religion Goodbye... Peter Adegoke 226On Credenda Miguel Kottow 230"Not Even Start to Ignore Those Questions!" A Voice of Disbelief in a Different Key Frieder Otto Wolf 236Imagine No Religion Edgar Dahl 252Humanism as Religion: An Indian Alternative Sumitra Padmanabhan 259Why I Am NOT a Theist Prabir Ghosh 263When the Hezbollah Came to My School Maryam Namazie 270Evolutionary Noise, not Signal from Above Athena Andreadis 274Gods Inside Michael R. Rose John P. Phelan 279Why Morality Doesn't Need Religion Peter Singer Marc Hauser 288Doctor Who and the Legacy of Rationalism Sean Williams 294My Nonreligious Life: A Journey From Superstition to Rationalism Peter Tatchell 300Helping People to Think Critically About Their Religious Beliefs Michael Tooley 310Human Self-Determination, Biomedical Progress, and God Udo Schüklenk 323About the Contributors 332Index 338

\ From the Publisher"For students in comparative religion this volume offers ample material and powerful reasons to make them subject most if not all religious claims to a highly critical appraisal, preparing for a constructive and public debate." (Acta Comparanda, 2011)\ "50 Voices of Disbelief: Why We Are Atheists brings together many scholars and intellectuals from a variety of academic fields who explain the reasons why they do not believe in God. Russell Blackford and Udo Schüklenk's unique collection of original essays not only consists of short, digestible essays which are full of introductory presentations of both positive and negative arguments in support of atheism, but also in its candid testimonials which are more personally oriented." (Reviews in Religion, 2011)\ "The international cast of contributors includes many well-known names, from a diversity of fields-notably philosophy (about a third of the writers are philosophers) science, journalism, politics and science fiction. By no means do they agree on everything, but the unifying themes of rejection of conventional religions and acceptance of secular humanism shine through brightly. A descriptive list of contributors and an excellent index complement the essays, many of which are accompanied by useful endnotes and references." (Quadrant, September 2010)\ \ \ \ \ "It was mostly fascinating reading, in particular, those articles that abstained from using dull polemics and cynicism. Some of the articles-most notably from Nicholas Everitt, Thomas W. Clark, Michael Shermer, Peter Tatchell, Michael Tooley, and Udo Schüklenk-can indeed be used in undergraduate courses concerned with the existence of God in philosophy, ethics, and theology. I recommend this volume especially for all those who need to grasp a general and easy introduction into atheistic reasoning." (Ethical Theory and Moral Practice, 2010)\ \ \ "I recommend this volume especially for all those who need to grasp a general and easy introduction into atheistic reasoning." (Ethical Theory and Moral Practice, 2010)“The essays in this book reveal a great concern for our human plight, a concern that is the equal of religious impulses; they raise a richness of issues that are too often ignored, including the ultimate fear of the theists that perhaps in time it may well be possible to settle the question of God’s existence. The fifty voices in this book have spoken out with more than a small amount of courage. What emerges from thinking about these essays is a realization of what human reason is up against, within ourselves.” (Free Inquiry, August/September 2010)\ "Good writing and clear thinking don't always go hand in hand. It's a pleasure, then, to find both in a recent book about going it alone — no deus ex machina for us, please — titled 50 Voices of Disbelief: Why We Are Atheists. In one volume, edited by Russell Blackford and Udo Schuklenk, you'll find idiosyncratic essays by a range of atheists from science fiction authors and philosophers to scientists and activists." (Psychology Today, Creating in Flow Blog, May 2010)\ "Many of the pieces in this book are full of superior contempt for the intellectual inadequacy of theism. Tatchell is forthright in his criticism of religion, but he never sneers. The essays in this book are all clearly argued, and will reassure the already faithful that they are neither daft nor deluded." (Church Times, April 2010)\ "The contemporary relevance,and timeliness of this book is unsurpassed. It is ... an account of various well known non-believers [and] personal viewpoints, directed at a popular audience. Very approachable at all levels, containing a wide range of stories, anecdotes and personal statements about why each of the authors considers themselves to be a non believer. Overall, this book is well suited for a mainstream audience, interested in questioning the power that religion holds over our lives. It [also] has good references ... which will also serve to guide the reader if further information is wanted. Thus, I recommend this book to anyone (regardless of their views concerning religion) interested in understanding why different people hold certain views concerning religion." (Metapsychology, April 2010)\ "By turns witty, serious, engaging and information, it is always human and deeply honest, and immensely rewarding to read." (Times Higher Education Supplement, December 2009)\ "Carefully considered statements … .Contributions range from rigorous philosophical arguments to highly personal, even whimsical, accounts of how each of these notable thinkers have come to reject religion in their lives. Likely to have broad appeal." (Australian Atheist, November 2009)\ "I am strongly recommending it as a present for anyone who has an interest in atheism/theism from either side of the debate. It's just a great read, from great authors." (Stephen Law Blogspot, October 2009)\ "It’s a very good book, and I recommend it for all of us godless ones — or those who are considering abjuring the divine. It’s far more than just a collection of stories about 'How I came to give up God.' Many of the writers describe the philosophical and empirical considerations that led them to atheism. Indeed, the book can be considered a kind of philosophical handbook for atheists." (Why Evolution is True Blog, October 2009)\ "Wow! A book about atheism and it’s not written by Dawkins, Hitchens, Dennett or Harris! So this book is welcome partly because it helps break that knee-jerk reaction. But it’s also welcome because many of its contributors advance interesting ideas. There’s plenty to choose from. And one advantage of a collection like this is that you can dip into it wherever you want. There is something for everyone. And there is the opportunity to discover new ideas." (Open Parachute, October 2009)\ "For many who have spent some time involved in any form of engagement in these matters, the names should appear familiar: from the great AC Grayling to the revolutionary Maryam Namazie. Finally, in one book we can hear their stories – if not about themselves, then about the aspects of religion or lack thereof they find most important. If all these contributors were speakers at a convention, it would be sold out many times over." (Butterflies and Wheels, October 2009)\ "In their excellent collection of essays exploring and defending the philosophical stance of atheism, Russell Blackford and Udo Schüklenk had an inclusive vision. Contributors to the book range from those with science-fiction backgrounds to modern-day philosophy." (Kirkus Reviews, October 2009)\ "In more than 50 brief statements organized by Blackford and philosopher Schüklenk ... contributors share views—their routes toward nonbelief and their feelings about the place of religion in the world ... including James (the Amazing) Randi, a well-known magician and debunker of spurious psychic phenomena. Considering the popularity of Richard Dawkins's The God Delusion, Christopher Hitchens's God Is Not Great, and Sam Harris's The End of Faith, [these] memoirs and observations will be of interest to disbelievers." (Library Journal, October 2009)\ \ \ \ \ \ Library JournalIn more than 50 brief statements organized by Blackford (editor in chief, Journal of Evolution and Technology) and philosopher Schüklenk (coeditor, The Power of Pills: Social, Ethical & Legal Issues in Drug Development, Marketing & Pricing), contributors share views—their routes toward nonbelief and their feelings about the place of religion in the world, for good or ill—as various as those of Christian denominations quarreling over baptism. The only name of note here is James (the Amazing) Randi, a well-known magician and debunker of spurious psychic phenomena. Strikingly, the collection represents a fight of little interest to thoughtful theologians such as John Shelby Spong. VERDICT Considering the popularity of Richard Dawkins's The God Delusion, Christopher Hitchens's God Is Not Great, and Sam Harris's The End of Faith, this unsurprising gallimaufry of memoirs and observations will be of interest to disbelievers.\ \