Comments on: Book Review: 50 Reasons People Give for Believing in a God by Guy P. Harrison

By: NYCatheist

NYCatheist — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 16:44:07 +0000

Looks interesting.

Is anyone else’s Firefox 3 causing the essay list here to blink?
http://www.guyharrison.info/essays.html

What the heck is that about?

By: Mike aka MonolithTMA

Mike aka MonolithTMA — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 18:03:46 +0000

I’m going to need to quit my job just to read all the books on my list. I’m excited about this one. I remember listening to Peter Kreeft’s talks about the philosophy of religion and thinking that none of the arguments for God were even remotely convincing to me, and I was a Christian at the time!

Thanks for the recommendation.

I just ordered it from Amazon and saw John W. Loftus had reviewed it as well. If both of you recommend it, it must be good!

By: Richard Wade

Richard Wade — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 16:49:16 +0000

And, as opposed to many other recent books by atheists, I have no fear that they’ll shy away from this one.

I think many will shy away from it. They’ll shy away by pretending they never heard of it, and then when you hand it to them they’ll shy away by not getting around to reading it. A book like this with a reputation for being simple, powerful and civil will be too scary to read.

If it has simple and straight forward arguments they’ll not be able to hide behind obfuscation and convoluted logic. If it is free of arrogance they’ll not be able to side step the arguments by objecting to the tone. If it is not burdened with erudite philosophy or theology they’ll have no excuse that it’s too high brow for them.

But a few will take it on. To the simple, strong arguments they’ll respond with intricate, fragile arguments (proving that complexity can arise from simplicity. ) To the lack of arrogance they’ll still object that it’s rude in tone simply because they think that effectively challenging their cherished beliefs is a rude thing to do, regardless of how gently and respectfully it is done. Finally to the lack of erudite philosophy and theology they’ll dismiss the book as being simplistic.

Needless to say I’m buying it today.

By: vitaminbook

vitaminbook — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 14:21:23 +0000

Well, this one looks interesting! I’m probably nott Harrison’s intended audience, but I’d probably enjoy it anyway. Thanks for the recommendation!

By: UKShell

UKShell — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 14:18:40 +0000

Roll on payday…. That book will be mine!
Sounds good, I can’t wait to read it!

By: Ken McKnight

Ken McKnight — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 13:56:08 +0000

It just so happens that I am in the middle of Harrison’s book right now, and I agree completely with your review. When I ordered it from Amazon I was a little hesitant because I thought it was just another gimmicky “list” book, but as I began to read it I saw how brilliant his concept was. These are the arguments that most people cling to, and he quickly and logically dismantles each one.