Has anybody read God is Not Great?

[jakobpatterson]

I haven't been able to read the book, but many atheists say that it's the best book for atheists, that and the God Delusion. So has anybody here actually read the book and can tell me if the book is that great or what? I koow he says things like Benjamn Franklin was an atheist, which is wrong, and that Jesus never existed, which many historians (even the atheists) say that atleast he existed.

[PaulSacramento]

Its an interesting read, as is the God delusion.
Of course like most books that are based on opinion and selective understanding (many times erroneous ones), they "preach to the converted".
Hitchens is cool though, I do like his stuff more than the other guys like Dawkins, he makes no pretense that he doesn't care for God because God cramps his style !

[Canuckster1127]

I've read The God Delusion. I haven't read God is Not Great. Not sure I will. I have a full reading agenda and while I occassionally do read in the area of militant atheists, just to keep up, the truth is that I have more positive things to be reading and I find a lot of the whole Dawkins, Hitchins, Dennett etc. crowd to be rather predictable and tedious. Militant Atheism doesn't impress me anymore than some forms of militant fundamentalism within religious circles. In fact, I think the two have a lot more in common than either faction is willing to recognize and admit.

[PaulSacramento]

I've read The God Delusion. I haven't read God is Not Great. Not sure I will. I have a full reading agenda and while I occassionally do read in the area of militant atheists, just to keep up, the truth is that I have more positive things to be reading and I find a lot of the whole Dawkins, Hitchins, Dennett etc. crowd to be rather predictable and tedious. Militant Atheism doesn't impress me anymore than some forms of militant fundamentalism within religious circles. In fact, I think the two have a lot more in common than either faction is willing to recognize and admit.

Very true, it seems that all militant views are expressed the same way, whether under the umbrella of religion or science or philosophy.
I have also noted that a person leaving a fundamentalist religion will either become a militant atheist ( by militant I mean very vocal and open about how horrible ALL relgion is even though he/she has no experience outside the religion they left) or be part of another fundamentalist religion.

It's a personality thing I guess.

[MarcusOfLycia]

I've read The God Delusion. I haven't read God is Not Great. Not sure I will. I have a full reading agenda and while I occassionally do read in the area of militant atheists, just to keep up, the truth is that I have more positive things to be reading and I find a lot of the whole Dawkins, Hitchins, Dennett etc. crowd to be rather predictable and tedious. Militant Atheism doesn't impress me anymore than some forms of militant fundamentalism within religious circles. In fact, I think the two have a lot more in common than either faction is willing to recognize and admit.

Very true, it seems that all militant views are expressed the same way, whether under the umbrella of religion or science or philosophy.
I have also noted that a person leaving a fundamentalist religion will either become a militant atheist ( by militant I mean very vocal and open about how horrible ALL relgion is even though he/she has no experience outside the religion they left) or be part of another fundamentalist religion.

It's a personality thing I guess.

That's a fairly accurate claim based on my experience. I've also seen know-it-all Christians become know-it-all atheists... gets kind of frustrating to be talking to someone who, with less than a full year of college, 'knows' more about cosmology, theology, philosophy, physics, biology, history, and politics than me or anyone else I've met. I suppose 'know' could be properly replaced with 'copies from google' and it would be a more accurate statement.

Its interesting to see people not change (at least for the better) when they change belief systems - they basically just change the mask they're wearing. Its one of the reasons I see something different in Christianity - I've watched people -actually change-.

[PaulSacramento]

I've read The God Delusion. I haven't read God is Not Great. Not sure I will. I have a full reading agenda and while I occassionally do read in the area of militant atheists, just to keep up, the truth is that I have more positive things to be reading and I find a lot of the whole Dawkins, Hitchins, Dennett etc. crowd to be rather predictable and tedious. Militant Atheism doesn't impress me anymore than some forms of militant fundamentalism within religious circles. In fact, I think the two have a lot more in common than either faction is willing to recognize and admit.

Very true, it seems that all militant views are expressed the same way, whether under the umbrella of religion or science or philosophy.
I have also noted that a person leaving a fundamentalist religion will either become a militant atheist ( by militant I mean very vocal and open about how horrible ALL relgion is even though he/she has no experience outside the religion they left) or be part of another fundamentalist religion.

It's a personality thing I guess.

That's a fairly accurate claim based on my experience. I've also seen know-it-all Christians become know-it-all atheists... gets kind of frustrating to be talking to someone who, with less than a full year of college, 'knows' more about cosmology, theology, philosophy, physics, biology, history, and politics than me or anyone else I've met. I suppose 'know' could be properly replaced with 'copies from google' and it would be a more accurate statement.

Its interesting to see people not change (at least for the better) when they change belief systems - they basically just change the mask they're wearing. Its one of the reasons I see something different in Christianity - I've watched people -actually change-.

Indeed, I especially love all those experts on the bible that have never even read one commentary on any of its books OR even read any of the basics books on Christianity like Mere Christianity for example.
Google and youtube seem to be their source for anything that they AGREE on and that fits THEIR views.
Agreed on the visible changes I have seen in Christianity, although I do have to admit they are not always for the best, but in THOSE cases I view it as NOT ENOUGH Christ, not "too much".
Know what I mean?