Product Description

This anthology fills a conspicuous gap in the discussion of religion and theism. The issues that theology addresses, the meaning of life, the existence of God, the truth of the Bible, the possibility of life after death, are so important to people that they ought to examine both sides of these fundamental questions. The atheist and rationalist writings collected here are virtually impossible to obtain anywhere else, even in large university library collections.This material chronicles the contributions of many distinguished thinkers who have carefully investigated key issues in religion and philosophy, but have arrived at remarkably different conclusions from those of the clergy or media. We should not neglect this long and rich history or ignore the insights rooted in the free though tradition. "An Anthology of Atheism and Rationalism", a thorough introduction to the writings of the world's most famous freethinkers, will lead intellectually curious and intelligent people of all religious persuasions to an increased appreciation of the scope and limitations of their own opinions and attitudes on these important issues, including the existence of God, the definition of atheism and rationalism, the possibility of Divine Revelation, the existence of the Devil, and the real history/contribution of atheism to intellectual thought.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #968136 in Books
• Published on: 1989-12
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 354 pages

Customer Reviews

Gordon Stein hits you from all angles
Mr. Gordon has drawn from every direction of rational and atheistic thought. To most the reading may appear dry, but it will always challenge your belief system. I found the book to be based upon fact and rational thought and as close to the emperical truth as one can come. Anyone interested in understanding rational thought should read this book.

Solid Presentation of Great Works
Dr. Stein has assembled a fine collection of atheist and rationalist essays. For the most part they are unique and adequately prefaced. This collection provides a very complete anthology of rare and well known essays from famous authors such as Bertrand Russell and Voltaire, as well as lesser known authors.

Anthology of Atheism and Rationalism
Gordon Stein states that he had two goals in compiling his _Anthology of Atheism and Rationalism_: (1) getting hard-to-find historical atheist and rationalist materials in print, and (2) selecting 'the best written, most concise, cleverest, or more representative' essays on atheism and rationalism. Now certainly (1) and (2) are laudable goals; preserving historical freethought writings is important. Yet it is clear from his comments that Stein not only wants to preserve these historical writings in print, he wants to promote them on par with contemporary writings even when these historical writings wear their date on their face. And his introductions often miss the mark, by refuting simplistic versions of theistic arguments (e.g., the first cause argument instead of the kalam cosmological argument), failing to interact with contemporary scholarship on the issues he addresses (e.g., his suggestion that Tacitus' reference to Jesus is an interpolation), and abusing methodology (e.g., quoting self-described 'atheists' while attempting to define atheism). Stein's book might be of interest to freethought historians and bibliographers, but considered as a book in the philosophy of religion it is very disappointing.