|
Title: Letter to a Christian Nation
Purchase
Item
Manufacturer: Knopf
List Price: $16.95
Our Price: $4.92
|
|
| Customer Reviews: |
| Letter to a Christian Nation by Knopf Eye-opening and thought-provoking, though not infallible | Sam Harris' "Letter To A Christian Nation" is a short, simple essay that took only about two hours to get through; yet those two hours provide a concise summary of the principles of atheism and why (according to Harris) a religion-oriented society is outdated and unnecessary in the modern civilized world of the 21st century. This little book, a followup to Harris' "The End Of Faith," became a New York Times best-seller...and if a better book was written especially to piss off the vast majority of mainstream Americans has been written in the past decade or so, I haven't heard of it. This is Harris' real objective in this book: to make you angry, to make you think about the principles of faith, and to question the absurdities built into religion in general. When taken as a generalized argument against religious faith, the book succeeds pretty darn well.
However, during my reading of the book, I found myself thinking of little ways that would probably be used by a critic of the book to oppose and disassemble some of the individual points Harris puts forth. For instance, one of the reasons why he disdains the Bible stems from the way that Biblical scholars casually toss aside the parts of the book that they don't like, especially the parts that contradict their own beliefs and philosophical points; then he does precisely the same thing near the beginning of the book when he points out that the most completely non-violent and altruistic religious dogma ever devised (at least in his eyes) is that of Jainism, a belief system from India that influenced Mahatma Ghandi. Harris briefly mentions that Jainism isn't perfect and it has its bad parts, too, but he casually puts that fact aside after bringing it up. If he were basing his entire book on Jainism, then he could be faulted for using this rationale; but that's not the major point of this essay, so I'll forgive him for it.
Less easy to take straight is the way he argues in favor of abortion by describing an embryo as a "blastocyst" - not because I disagree with him, but because he falls for one of the more common logical traps used in an emotional debate such as this one: invent a new name to call your opponent, so as to make it easier to see the opposition as less than human, and thus make the easier to dismiss. This is seen regularly in the abortion battles, as pro-lifers refer to pro-choicers as "baby-killing pro-choice yahoos." A seasoned anti-abortion veteran would no doubt ridicule Harris' use of the term "blastocyst," as it takes away from the overused pro-life tactic of using emotional buzzwords to describe the fetus ("baby," "innocent life").
These are not the only details in the book that can be countered; they're just two examples of many presented in the slim book (less than one hundred pages). I don't disagree with Harris on these points, either. I simply note his that his arguments are not infallible, and this is why "Letter To A Christian Nation" has upset so many people to the point that they feel they have to respond (often with threats and Bible quotes). But the flaws in Harris' arguments do not detract from the overall conclusion he reaches: that religious thinking is dangerous in a world where many, many people have access to modern-day technology, because it is standing as a major obstacle to the advancement of science - especially the development of scientific methods and treatments that can help many people worldwide.
As for the book's intended role as a new weapon in the ongoing war between religion and science (which is what many of the more idiotic controversies in modern-day Western society boil down to), Harris does make some logical fallacies at times. These fallacies, naturally, are what his critics seize upon in their published responses to the book...of which there have been at least five so far. The fact that so many people have taken the time to attack Harris and reply specifically to his book shows that he has certainly succeeded in forcing them to think. I consider that a point in his favor. What I consider even more amusing are the ways his self-appointed opponents attack his arguments - often using the very same flawed arguments Harris disproves. Go onto Amazon and read the responses to his book, especially the "one-star reviews" for the book, and count how many of them use quotes from the Bible to prove the Bible is true, and that God exists. I only wish I had the capability to outrage and troll so many readers in the logical and (mostly) cool-headed manner that Harris has done with this book. | | Letter to a Christian Nation by Knopf A true breath of fresh air.... | | BRAVO!!! This is one the most clearly argued and important cultural critiques of the last decade. Mr. Harris gives elegant voice to the concerns many of us have over the power that modern religious groups wield to alter not only history but our daily lives. We need many more rational narrative voices like that of Mr. Harris in contemporary America to expose dangerous religiosity for the divisive force that it is. | | Letter to a Christian Nation by Knopf Amen | Short, sweet, and to the point.
As would be expected, the book generated lots of polarized reviews/comments. | | Letter to a Christian Nation by Knopf Fantastic Book | | This book's message is the most impotant one of our time and should be read by all of you religious nutter Americans. As well as all the other religious nutters (not just christians either) around the world. But it'll never happen, you'll write me off as a heathen who just bought himself a ticket straight to hell and you'll continue to dilude yourself and wage war in the name of your magic invisible man in the sky and his derranged set of ethics. | | Letter to a Christian Nation by Knopf please... | | To be frank, Sam Harris is ignorant. I don't claim much knowledge, but I know enough to know he is wrong. Anyone who says that Martin Luther King's prime "influence" wasn't the Gospel message, and that the Church aspect of the civil rights movement wasn't the greatest faith based movement in history, I won't listen. And Ghandi was animated not only by his faith but also principally influenced by the teaching of Tolstoy, and Tolstoy by the Gospel message. Ghandi, though not a "christian," was one of the greatest christian teachers. And if we are looking for modern men who embody the Prophetic witness of the old testament, it is these three men. Sam Harris is one who's brain stopped developing after freshman year of high school. So, Mr. Harris, Shut up! | | Letter to a Christian Nation by Knopf Product Description | “Thousands of people have written to tell me that I am wrong not to believe in God. The most hostile of these communications have come from Christians. This is ironic, as Christians generally imagine that no faith imparts the virtues of love and forgiveness more effectively than their own. The truth is that many who claim to be transformed by Christ’s love are deeply, even murderously, intolerant of criticism. While we may want to ascribe this to human nature, it is clear that such hatred draws considerable support from the Bible. How do I know this? The most disturbed of my correspondents always cite chapter and verse.”
So begins Letter to a Christian Nation…
www.samharris.org |
No item elements found in rss feed.
|
