Religion is increasingly seen as a dangerous source of violence in the world, breeding a fear of faith in a very vocal group of critics. Most Christians are blissfully unaware of the litany of allegations being brought against religion, including that it is the cause of intolerance, imperialism, irrationality, bigotry, and war, to name a few. But ignorance is not the answer. In Why People Don't Believe, Paul Chamberlain strives to represent the concerns...

From the publisher. In recent years a number of bestselling books have forcefully argued that belief in God can no longer be defended on rational or empirical grounds, and that the scientific worldview has rendered obsolete the traditional beliefs held by Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. The authors of these books-Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennett, Sam Harris, Christopher Hitchens, and Victor J. Stenger-have come to be known as the "New Atheists."...

"An accessible discourse written by a trusted expert and scholar critiquing the new atheism on its own merits and claims"--Publisher description.

Daniel C. Dennett and Linda LaScola comprehensively and sensitively expose an inconvenient truth that religious institutions face in the new transparency of the information age-the phenomenon of clergy who no longer believe what they publicly preach.

Caught between the beauty of his grandchildren and grief over a friend's death, Frank Schaeffer finds himself simultaneously believing and not believing in God, an atheist who prays. Schaeffer wrestles with faith and disbelief, sharing his innermost thoughts. He writes as an imperfect son, husband and grandfather whose love for his family, art and life trumps the ugly theologies of an angry God and the atheist vision of a cold, meaningless universe....

The days have passed when the goodness of God -- indeed, the reality of God itself -- could reasonably be called a consensus opinion. God's reputation has come under considerable review in recent days, with some going so far as to say that it's not we who've made a mess of things. Instead whatever it is we call God is to blame. But is such an opinion really a fair assessment? In this magisterial collection, the contemporary complaints against belief...