Atheism For Dummies by Dale McGowan (EPUB)

Description

The easy way to understand atheism and secular philosophyFor people seeking a non-religious philosophy of life, as well as believers with atheist friends, Atheism For Dummies offers an intelligent exploration of the historical and moral case for atheism. Often wildly misunderstood, atheism is a secular approach to life based on the understanding that reality is an arrangement of physical matter, with no consideration of unverifiable spiritual forces.Atheism For Dummies offers a brief history of atheist philosophy and its evolution, explores it as a historical and cultural movement, covers important historical writings on the subject, and discusses the nature of ethics and morality in the absence of religion.A simple, yet intelligent exploration of an often misunderstood philosophyExplores the differences between explicit and implicit atheismA comprehensive, readable, and thoroughly unbiased resourceAs the number of atheists worldwide continues to grow, this book offers a broad understanding of the subject for those exploring atheism as an approach to living.

User’s Reviews

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐The author has a Ph.D. in Music and was a former professor. He now makes his living as a writer.The importance of evolution as the doorway to atheism is covered in detail. He shows it was difficult to be an atheist until the question of the origin of life, and the entire creation, was answered. The choice, until 1859, was God or chance. Most people answered they believed in a designer (p. 47). The problem that impeded the acceptance of atheism, McGowan writes, was answered only in 1859 when “British naturalist Charles Darwin published his theory of evolution by natural selection… Darwin’s theory, properly understood, finally provided a credible fit for the evidence.” (p. 47). He then quotes Dawkins who opined that “Darwin’s theory made it possible to be an intellectually fulfilled atheist.” (p. 48) McGowan then added that many people have tried to reconcile evolution with religion, noting that evolution works without any guiding hand whatsoever (p. 47). Evolution explains everything. He concludes that some people find evolution and Christianity compatible, something he doesn’t see how that is possible but is glad they do because “it’s nice to have their support for evolution education.” (p. 50). Evolution, he explains, works by natural selection of normal random variation, ignoring the fact, as every breeder knows, that normal variation is very limited. We have failed to breed a dog as large as an elephant or a bear as large as a whale, as Darwin expected would be possible. The genome places clear limits on variety which can be overcome only with the intelligent design by humans, such as the use of CRISPR, an acronym for Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeat system used to modify the genome by scientists. All of the other familiar other arguments for atheism, such as the inquisition and the crusades, claiming the Christians have spilled gallons of blood are covered, ignoring the fact that the purpose of the Inquisition was to replace the old unjust system, such as trial by ordeal, which was banned by the Church in the year 1215. Trial by ordeal forced the accused to endure some painful act, such as sitting in boiling water, and, if he survived, it was assumed that he was innocent. The new system also replaced the accusation system with the investigative system, in which an impartial magistrate would investigate the alleged crime by interviewing witnesses and examining the evidence to determine guilt. The new system was a major improvement over the old and slowly spread to the secular justice systems. In fact, it worked so well that it formed the backbone of a criminal investigation in continental Europe and America to this day. If anything, the punishment by the Inquisition for those found guilty was quite lenient.” McGowan discussed three cases that illustrated his point, two of which, as punishment, the guilty had to wear a double yellow cross around their necks! (pp. 87-90). I expected some grueling gross punishment for their fairly major sins, but these were real cases.

⭐I’ve been wondering when the Dummies series would finally get around the atheism. It’s been worth the wait–Dale is the perfect choice to write this book. Articulate, funny, balanced and moderate in his approach, wide-ranging in his knowledge and interests, it’s hard to imagine a better tour guide for the often bewildering world of secularism.Some will criticize this book for its lack of depth, but of course it was only ever intended to be an introduction, as Dale makes clear from the outset. Throughout the book, ample reference is given to works with greater scope and depth. But how not to love a work that covers George Carlin and Tim Minchin, PZ Myers and Greg Epstein, Hume, the Greeks, The Simpsons and The Onion, and so much more.Whirlwindy? You bet. But it’s become a trope within secularism that the movement’s organization (such as it is) is “like herding cats.” Dale has rounded up about as many kitties as one non-tome book could handle.And perhaps “Atheism for Dummies'” best feature is that it does all this while presenting a relatable, human, even friendly face to the religious reader, allowing her to get to know us better and come to understand how generally non-threatening we really are.Mr. Rogers might never gotten around to finding an atheist in his neighborhood, but I’m glad the Dummies folks finally have. They made absolutely the right choice.

⭐TOP 2 REASONS AS TO WHY YOU SHOULD READ THIS BOOK:1. The Dummies books are known for their clear and coherent language, simple organization of topics, and plenty of references to outside works for additional insight. This book is no exception. It’s sections are modular enough so you don’t have to read one before the other, which may be useful for somebody who just wants to find out something specific or save different sections for later reading.2. If you’re looking for more than just a Wikipedia article about Atheism, or you’re not quite sure who to talk to or where to go to find out about what atheists think, then this book will do just the trick. It breaks down the different flavors of Atheism as well as going over the sociological and anthropological background from whence it came.IF YOU ARE AN ATHEIST:1. You’ll definitely appreciate the historical background this book presents. It’s always good to have an understanding of the ideological history of one’s own worldview. It helps you appreciate it even more.2. You’ll find plenty of references to outside sources to further your quest in becoming a freethinking non-believer.IF YOU ARE A CHRISTIAN:1. And you interact with atheists in a negative manner, or regard them negatively, then it’s time to humble yourself and seek to understand the opposing worldview you don’t like.2. If you interact with atheists in a positive manner, this book will no doubt give you some good discussion topics!IF YOU ARE A CHRISTIAN APOLOGIST:1. You will NOT find compelling arguments against the existence of God or for the Atheistic worldview. However, this book is afterall for Dummies, and as such should not be regarded as a heavyweight in terms of theology or philosophy.WHAT THE ATHEISTIC WORLDVIEW HOLDS TO BE CONSISTENTLY BELIEVABLE:1. There is no God or gods.2. There is no afterlife. This is the only life you have, and your consciousness and brain waves will simply fade into the cosmic background radiation when you die. Welcome to thermodynamic immortality.3. Human life is valuable and sacred. Humanism and the Golden Rule are the de facto social creeds of atheists.4. There is no absolute or religious morality worth considering. Your morality is self-defined, although largely based on your culture.5. There is no “Problem of Pain”, since any meaning or consequence of human suffering is temporary.6. Religion can be oppressive to free thought and personal liberty, and should stay out of the public sphere.7. Since there aren’t any gods to pray to, you should try and nurture your spirituality anyway through thoughtful meditation and reflection, as to maintain a healthy and balanced life.8. Reality is best explained without evoking God.

⭐Don’t fear it – try and understand!If you are on your journey of learning and understanding away from invisible friends, myths and fairytales this is a good pointer (as the dummies series so often is) to guide you through the history of humanism and atheism, give you helpful insight and follow up reading advice.Nothing made me a quicker unbeliever than actually reading the so called holy books themselves, but this will give you a good understanding why more and more people wake and question our traditional belief systems!

⭐I bought this book as part of a reading list for my studies.It is excellent

⭐I liked this book. A simple guide for anyone wanting to know more about the subject

⭐This is a brilliant book – outlining the history and philosophy of atheist thinkers, written from the perspective of a one-time Christian (who seems to have many religious friends) – and respectful and open-minded towards all beliefs.

⭐Extensive coverge of the topic and well structured

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