Religion:
The Battle for God by Karen Armstrong
A look at fundamentalism and its causes.
Bertrand Russell on God and Religion; Al Seckel, editor
Critiques of God: Making the Case Against Belief in God
edited by
Peter A. Angeles
A collection of essays on the subject.
Does God Exist: The Debate Between Theists and Atheists
J.P.
Moreland and Kai Nielsen
This book was okay, nothing to get excited about. The atheist, Kai
Nielsen, maintained a narrow focus, but did well with his argument. The
theist side was well represented, and I didn't feel that Mr. Nielsen adequately
addressed Moreland's points. The downfall of the book lay in its final
chapter in which Peter Kreeft advised us all on the methods we might use to
determine which side we will go with. Basically, emotionalism and Pascal's
Wager were his strongest recommendations. What feels right? And,
only belief will earn you "the infinite prize of eternal life." Yep, I'm
not kidding.
The Dogma of Christ and Other Essays on Religion, Psychology, and Culture
by Erich Fromm
This book helped me to understand why people believe the things they do--what
emotional and societal rewards belief has.
A History of God: The 4000-Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity and Islam
by Karen Armstrong
Misquoting Jesus: The Story Behind Who Changed the Bible and Why by Bart
Ehrman
Ehrman's book is a valuable read and a great book to give to your moderate
Christian friends and family. It shouldn't offend their faith, unless they're
hard-line literalists. Ehrman suggests a few times that Jesus was an historical
figure (something that never ceases to amaze me about otherwise intelligent
historians), but not in an overtly stupid way. His basic premise, that we have
no originals, and what we do have has undoubtedly been changed for several
reasons, not least of which was to further the scribe's own viewpoint, is strong
throughout.
Moses and Monotheism by Sigmund Freud
A fascinating book outlining Freud's theory that Moses was an Egyptian and the
two gods in the Pentateuch are a combination of the Egyptian Moses' loving god
and Jahve, the Arabian volcano god. Freud briefly explains his theory of
primeval man, totemism, and their relationship to Judaism and Christianity.
Basically, primeval man lived in patriarchal family groups with the sons being
banished, murdered or emasculated by the father/leader. At some point, the
sons, together, murdered the father and ceremonially ate him. Thus arose
Totemism, a religious reenactment of their crime and remembrance of their guilt.
Judaism was a return of the father/leader/god. Christianity was an
admission that the sons killed the father (god) and the belief in the necessary
(spiritual) sacrifice and worship of the eldest son in his place. A great
read. Led me to put Totem and Taboo by Freud on my reading list.
The Origin of Satan by Elaine Pagels
Secret Origins of the Bible by Tim Callahan
Well, if you were paying attention (which I assume you were not) you noticed the
seemingly interminable length of time I spent reading this book. It was so
thick, so jam-packed with information, and so academically refreshing that I
took my time absorbing it.
The pagan origins of the Bible are not secret because no one knew about them
until Callahan exposed the truth. They are secret because those well aware of
the Bible's origins are either in the business of God and not inclined to tell
the truth, or they are the rest of us--knowledgeable unbelievers to whom
apologists and believers refuse to listen and toward whom they direct their
vilest diatribes.
I highly recommend this book. I wish everyone would read it!
However, I do have one criticism. After his detailed and scholarly dissection of
both the Old Testament, the New Testament, the complete lack of historical
evidence for Jesus, and the overwhelming evidence of his mythological origin,
Callahan still claims, "I have no doubt that Jesus, having claimed to be the Son
of man, was put to death by crucifixion." He does admit to accepting that the
myths built up around him are just that: mythology. But how can he not doubt the
existence of an historical Jesus?
There is no reason to accept, and plenty of good reasons to dismiss, the
historicity of Jesus. To have "no doubt" about it sounds very much like someone
desperately clinging to the popular view. One is left only to wonder why
Callahan would do such a thing.
Christianity:
Adam, Eve, and the Serpent by Elaine Pagels
A very interesting read! Fabulous insights on the early history of
Christianity.
The Bible and its Influence
by Cullen Schippe and Chuck Stetson
This book is intended as a textbook for high school students. Certain educators
believe that Biblical literacy will help students in their studies and
test-taking skills. The class would be an elective.
Overall, I think they've done a good job in writing a textbook that walks a fine
line between asserting the existence of God and the validity of Christianity,
and teaching about the Bible as a set of religious books. Once or twice they
crossed the line ever so slightly and affirmed God's existence or the
historicity of Jesus, but still not in a blatant way...which may be worse. For
instance, on page 51, in a discussion of Sodom and Gomorrah, the authors say,
"This is not the last time the Bible depicts God as being open to petition from
human beings." It's very subtle. Are they saying that the Bible is depicting its
main character "God" in this way? Or are they saying there is a god, and the
Bible is depicting it in certain ways?
More blatant an example is on page 331 in which the authors claim First John
"deals with a false teaching that seemed to deny Jesus' humanity."
Now...shouldn't they say that the author of First John claims the
teaching is false?
There are more problematic elements in this textbook. An excerpt from The
Screwtape Letters shows no influence of the Bible, but allows Lewis to
defame science and rationalism to students without any rebuttal. And a two-page
section at the end of the book is devoted to convincing the student that
religion is essential for morality and that Christianity is the foundation of
our national greatness.
Backgrounds of Early Christianity by Everett Ferguson
For anyone interested in the history of the time period, this is an excellent
resource. Ferguson outlines the political, philosophical and religious history
from about 300 BCE to about 300 CE. While I eagerly absorbed the information in
this book, I was several times struck by Ferguson's lack of historical
scholarship with respect to the Bible, both old and new Testaments, especially
the Gospels. Instead of viewing the Gospels as questionable sources, as they are
propaganda for a faith, he took them for history and even attempted, at times,
to apologize for their weaknesses and conflicts with real historical data. While
I understand that a large number of academics do not seriously question the
existence of the Gospel Jesus, time might be better applied reading a book by an
historian of the time period, rather than commentary by a Bible scholar.
The Bible Handbook; Revised Edition. 1986; American Atheist Press
This book lists thousands of contradictions, absurdities and atrocities in the
Bible. Available from American Atheists bookstore online at
American Atheists and American Atheists
Press (see below).
The Bible Unearthed: Archaeology’s New Vision of Ancient Israel and the
Origin of its Sacred Texts
by Israel Finkelstein and Neil Asher
Silberman.
This book was a real eye-opener!
The Born Again Skeptic's Guide to the Bible
by Ruth
Hurmence Green.
This book is an excellent resource on the Bible and Christian theology. The
author presents carefully reasoned arguments and wonderful insights even for the
well-read Biblical critic.
The Case Against Christianity by Michael Martin
Challenging the Verdict by Earl Doherty
Books by apologists frustrate me because as I read, counter-arguments enter my
head and the authors just ignore them! I could barely get through Lee Strobel's
The Case for Christ. He claimed he was being impartial but he never
challenged the "experts" he questioned; he just accepted all they had to say.
Doherty has written a comprehensive rebuttal to Strobel's book highlighting all
the arguments Strobel conveniently left out or glossed over.
The Christ Conspiracy: The Greatest Story Ever Sold
by Acharya S
Acharya S's scholarship has been called into question by people I respect, so
don't take this book too seriously. But, I did find it fascinating. It's
a wild ride that will have you questioning everything you once thought true
about Christianity. The trick is to keep questioning; never take just one
person's word as truth until you've fully researched the idea yourself.
Christian Fundamentalism: A Journey into the Heart of Darkness by
David W. Hopewell
Available from American Atheists at American
Atheists or American Atheist Press (see below)
This book was scary!
Christianity Before Christ by John G. Jackson
The Encyclopedia of Biblical Errancy by C. Dennis McKinsey
An excellent, scholarly, well-organized explanation of the contradictions and
difficulties in the Bible.
An Evolutionist Deconstructs Creationism by Arndt Von Hippel
I bought this book because of its title; I admit it--I judged a book somewhat by
its cover. I was expecting to read a basic, point-by-point refutation of
Creationism in favor of evolutionary theory. Instead, this book is a
pretty good critique of Christianity in general.
The Fabrication of the Christ Myth by Harold Leidner
Leidner presents a well-researched and documented case that the gospels were
lifted from earlier sources and the Jews are innocent. Explosively brilliant!
Highly recommended. "Where is the moral authority of a religion that must resort
to forgery to establish its cause?" p. 306
Farewell to God: My Reasons for Rejecting the Christian Faith by
Charles Templeton
Forgery in Christianity by Joseph Wheless
An old book without enough good documentation to make it scholarly; but filled
with much excellent information about early Christianity.
God's Secretaries: The Making of the King James Bible
by Adam Nicolson
This book offers insight into the people who translated the King James Version
of the Bible and the struggle for balance between divergence from the Papacy and
strict Puritanism (as exemplified by the Separatists). Nicolson fawns over the
language of the translation as rich and majestic whereas the skeptic might query
first as to its correctness. Good history, good anecdotes; worth a read.
The Incredible Shrinking Son of Man by Robert M. Price
This fascinating, scholarly book dissects the aspects of the Christ myth,
searching for an historical Jesus. Guiding us through the birth narratives,
early childhood fables, Jesus' time of teaching, his betrayal, death and
resurrection, Price finds that the evidence for validity is scant. The most
damning evidence against historicity, and taught to us in this book, is that
every part of the Jesus story is lifted from another source. The idea that Jesus
was god, born of a virgin, a miracle-worker, teacher, died on the cross and
resurrected is told to us, not in any original words, but by simply cutting and
pasting earlier testimonies of other gods and other events into the Jesus
narrative. If Jesus really did walk the earth and do all he is purported to do,
why did his chroniclers explain him only in borrowed words? Highly recommended
reading.
Is it God’s Word by Joseph Wheless
An old book without good documentation to make it scholarly; but filled with
valuable information on the Bible.
The Jesus Mysteries: Was the "Original Jesus" a Pagan God?
By
Timothy Freke and Peter Gandy.
Highly researched, scholarly book outlining the evidence for the theory that
Jesus originated as a Pagan deity. This is the book that finally put it
all in place for me--the theory that finally gave some sense to Christianity, in
my eyes.
The Jews in the Time of Jesus: An Introduction
by Stephen M. Wylen
This book is very helpful in understanding the nature of the gospels.
Leaving the Fold: Testimonies of Former Fundamentalists edited by
Edward T. Babinski
These former fundamentalists became liberal Christians, agnostics or atheists,
etc.
Losing Faith in Faith: From Preacher to Atheist by Dan Barker
This was the first book I read supporting atheism. Mr. Barker explains his
deconversion and offers many of his thoughts on religion as published in Freedom
From Religion Foundation's periodical Freethought Today.
The Mythmaker: Paul and the Invention of Christianity
by Hyam
Maccoby
Maccoby makes a strong case for his theories that Paul was not a Pharisee, but a
Jewish convert of Pagan parentage; Jesus was a Pharisee; Jesus' disciples in
Jerusalem remained distinctly Jewish; Jesus did not create a new religion; and
the Jerusalem church was seriously opposed to Paul's Pagan Christianity. With
knowledge of Judaism in the time of Jesus, the propaganda and lies of the
Gospels become clear.
Psycho Bible: Behavior, Religion and the Holy Book
by
Armando Favazza
Favazza is a professor of psychiatry; he discusses the Bible and Christians from
that perspective. His book is a valuable resource for anyone interested in the
Bible, what it says, what people believe about it, historical backgrounds of its
subjects, and human nature with respect to its doctrines. I was frustrated
periodically in reading his book as it was often difficult to determine his
position with respect to Christianity. He either understands and appreciates
non-belief, or he is a non-Christian himself, or both; either way, his viewpoint
was refreshing. However, he does make a few statements that are rather
credulous. For example, he states, "Isaiah is an Old Testament prefiguration of
Jesus..." as if this is fact. He claims: "By becoming a man Christ entered into
human history and, therefore, could be depicted in images that documented
history." Assertions such as these, casually strewn throughout this work must be
forgiven, as Favazza is a student of psychiatry, not history.
Why I Am Not a Christian by Bertrand Russell