Category Archives: Religion

Why an atheist says, ‘We must rekindle our religion’

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According to Richard Dawkins, religion is ‘the root of all evil’, and the teaching of religion to children is tantamount to ‘child abuse’.  Not to be outdone, Christopher Hitchens declares that ‘religion poisons everything’.

Now, I do not hold a brief to defend either the truth or the goodness of religion generally.  We must distinguish between what is good, what is neutral, and what is actually evil in religion.

But we should not assume that the blanket condemnation of all religions by Dawkins et al is condoned by all atheists.…

Prophets today?

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‘Christ,’ says Paul in his Letter to the Ephesians (Eph 4:11f), ‘gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up.’

Most Christian teachers would agree that the office of apostle was limited to those who were the first witnesses of Christ’s resurrection.  On the other hand, they would take it for granted that evangelists and pastor-teachers are found in every era and place.…

Bias confirmation

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‘Bias confirmation’ refers to the tendency that people have to notice evidence that seems to confirm their existing beliefs, and to ignore or discount contradictory evidence.  It amounts to unconscious ‘cherry-picking’ from the available evidence, and can lie behind expressions such as, “There – I told you so!  Now will you believe me?”

To a lesser or greater extent, we are all prone to bias confirmation.  We cannot objectively and rationally evaluate all the sense experiences that come our way, and yet we need quick and easy ways of making sense of things, and of fitting them into our existing world views.…

Does religion lead to violence?

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I’ve been listening to another of Premier Radio’s Unbelievable podcasts.

This one featured a debate between atheist Ed Turner (a lawyer) and Christian Meic Pearse (a historian).

The focus of discussion was Pearse’s recent book The Gods of War (IVP 2007).  His contention is that while religion can play a significant part in armed conflict, that point is often over-stated, and the main factors leading to warfare are cultural and economic.

The debate was, as is usual for this show, thoughtful and civilised. …

Bertrand Russell’s strange collocation

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Bertrand Russell (1872-1970) was a prominent British philosopher.  He was an outspoken agnostic, and his essay entitled Why I Am Not A Christian (based on a talk given in 1927) remains one of the most celebrated statements of unbelief.

That man is the product of causes which had no prevision of the end they were achieving; that his origin, his growth, his hopes and fears, his loves and his beliefs, are but the outcome of accidental collocations of atoms; that no fire, no heroism, no intensity of thought and feeling, can preserve an individual life beyond the grave; that all the labors of the ages, all the devotion, all the inspiration, all the noonday brightness of human genius, are destined to extinction in the vast death of the solar system, and that the whole temple of man’s achievement must inevitably be buried beneath the debris of the universe in ruins.

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Watching the English do Religion

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Kate Fox, in her book Watching the English (Hodder, 2004, pp 353-357), offers a fascinating account of the ‘rules’ underlying English behaviour.  The book is full of witty and insightful observations.  After all, Fox writes as a trained anthropologist (which she defines as a being a professional ‘nosey parker’).  She talks engagingly about how we English converse about the weather, the way we approach humour, the rules that govern our behaviour regarding driving, work, dress, sex, and so on.…

Islam and the Cross

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John Stott has written about the Muslim attitude towards the cross of Christ:-

‘One of the saddest features of Islam is that it rejects the cross, declaring it inappropriate that a major prophet of God should come to such an ignominious end.  The Koran sees no need for the sin-bearing of a Saviour.  At least five times it declares categorically that “no soul shall bear another’s burden’.  Indeed, “if a laden soul cries out for help, not even a near relation shall share its burden”. …

Darwinism as religion

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It’s not an original idea, but Andrew Marr’s thoughts about the dangers of turning Darwinism into a secular religion are of some interest.  Describing himself as a ‘lapsed Presbyterian Christian’ (“I had a blinding revelation of disbelief at the age of around 15”), Marr reminds us that science in general, and Darwinism in particular, can offer some of the nourishment that religion provides.

The natural history museums of both London and Oxford are ‘temples of nature’ and mimic cathedrals in their design. …

‘Maximal Conservatism’

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It occurs to me that theological liberalism reached the height of its influence in the period leading up to 1977.  In fact, Alister McGrath makes a comment to this effect in his biography of J.I. Packer, To Know and Serve God, p212.  In that year two books were published by SCM Press which seemed finally to demonstrate that liberalism was, in the end, an impoverished, negative, destructive influence that was incapable of serving the purpose of Christ in this or any other generation. …

Top Audio Downloads on Christianity & Islam

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Mark Ryan has a helpful series of lectures called, ‘An Islam Primer’.  The first four talks are mainly descriptive, giving a balanced and informative account of Islam and its beliefs and practices.  The last lecture is, as the title suggests, more evaluative but even here the discussion is irenic and even-handed:-

  1. Islam’s Holy Prophet
  2. The Qu’ran
  3. The Pillars of Islam
  4. Islam’s One and Only God
  5. Why I am not a Muslim

 Jay Smith engages in regular debate with Moslem scholars, and offers a more forceful – but still respectful – critique of Islam. …