The End of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason | Sam Harris

The End of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason | Sam Harris | Must Read

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The End of Faith: ...

	The End of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason Sam Harris W. W. Norton, 2005 - 224 pages average customer review:based on 836 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Grappling with the Extremes of Faith

This is a deeply engaging book; one that I wasn't able to quit reading until the last page. Harris argues coherently, logically and -- unlike many recent books that are critical of western religion --'compassionately.' The author takes on conservative, fundamentalist forms of religion, and argues that we are at a cross-roads; that we have allowed so many malignant forms of religion to flourish in our midst -- under the guise of protecting religion from criticism -- that we are now in danger of losing our freedom.

While many writers critical of religion argue from a solely intellectual and logical standpoint, often seeming detached from religion and cerebral, Harris engages the reader ethically, emotionally and -- dare I say it -- 'spiritually' -- without muddying his train of thought or the stringency of his arguments. Harris' line of thought takes him into some hard places -- some of which will be easily misconstrued by some readers -- and while being thoroughly reasonable and logical, shows a degree of compassionate consideration of the issues that other writers simply don't evince.

The implied critique of the three monotheistic western religions in this book is devastating; in human terms. Complementing his razor-sharp negative assessment of religion, however, is a positive rhetoric about "spirituality." Unlike many of his fellow atheists, Harris seems to understand that there is something to the experiences human beings have had while practicing certain spiritual disciplines such as meditation. He allows for what I have long called a "naturalistic" mysticism; an experience of the mystery of the universe, within us and beyond us. He makes a plea for love and the whole of ethics being grounded in our biological nature, as an outgrowth of our evolutionary development, and seems to urge that while we need to outgrow religion, our sense of meaning, our ethical nature and our sense of wonder must be attended to and given a ground in science and human experience, without all of the supernatural and metaphysical rigmarole.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to come to terms with the dangers of religion (the kind that has been for too long left to its own devices in this country and has thus been allowed to mutate into forms that endanger the rest of us and that diminish the value of religion overall). Such a person might also need to be open to spirituality and mysticism without the need for a veil of superstition, in order not to be irked by certain passages. The author poses some hard questions, strikes out toward some equally hard answers; his positions are not always easily swallowed, and some of his opinions may need critiqued -- from one vantage or another -- yet this book is not one that you will walk away from without deep reflection and some hard thinking; i.e., it will be a spiritually as well as an ethically and intellectually rewarding read.

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Must Read

I recommend reading "Letter to a Christian Nation" as well. It is a quick one day read and really highlights the inconsistencies and hatred brought about as part of organized religions.

A Sobering Message

Sam Harris' book is a sobering and well-written discussion which basically outlines the evils that have been committed historically by religious people, and sets forth the threat that religion poses to our modern world. My copy of the book is heavily underlined and highlighted, and contains my hand-written comments, both in the text and in the extensive footnotes. I found myself saying "Yes!" frequently while reading it. The text is amazingly literate (although occasionally obtuse), but horrifying at the same time. I agree with Mr. Harris on almost every point he makes with regard to the ignorance, intolerance and even pure hatred that is fostered within the religions of this world. Harris makes the point that we should love one another, not because we fear the wrath of some god, but because we simply should get along, for the sake of our own survival. His arguments can sometimes be lost in philosophical discussions regarding perception, mysticism and the like, but the bottom line is clear. Although he is sharp in his criticism of both the extremists and the moderates alike, he calls for us all to work together to save ourselves. He does not think this is possible as long as we hold onto our religious beliefs, which by their nature make us enemies of one another. He effectively makes the point that, no matter what faith you adhere to, if you are true to the tenets of that faith, you MUST believe that all non-believers are doomed, and that no religion accepts acceptance, even moderate, of any other tenets. He firmly believes that, unless we make an end to faith, we are doomed to destroy ourselves. This, more than anything else, makes this book a sobering and frightening piece of work. I did get a little bogged down at the end, when he goes off into a discussion of meditation and mysticism apart from religion, but I believe that what he wanted to say was thatwe can find ways to achieve inner peace that don't require a belief in a supreme being that has control over us. I think that Mr. Harris wants us to assume responsibility for our own peace, both within and without. A fine piece of work, even with its weaknesses. A brave and thought-provoking effort on behalf of reason in a world gone mad.

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faith and religion and our actions

The author presents good points of argument to look at and determine where we stand on the issues. My only criticism of this book is that the NOTES section of this book is 1/3 of the entire book!

reviews: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, page 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15

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