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157 books
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111 voters
“Atheism is not a philosophy; it is not even a view of the world; it is simply an admission of the obvious. In fact, 'atheism' is a term that should not even exist. No one needs to identify himself as a 'non-astrologer' or a 'non-alchemist.' We do not have words for people who doubt that Elvis is still alive or that aliens have traversed the galaxy only to molest ranchers and cattle. Atheism is nothing more than the noises reasonable people make in the presence of unjustified religious beliefs.”
― Letter to a Christian Nation
― Letter to a Christian Nation
“While believing strongly, without evidence, is considered a mark of madness or stupidity in any other area of our lives, faith in God still holds immense prestige in our society. Religion is the one area of our discourse where it is considered noble to pretend to be certain about things no human being could possibly be certain about. It is telling that this aura of nobility extends only to those faiths that still have many subscribers. Anyone caught worshipping Poseidon, even at sea, will be thought insane.”
― Letter to a Christian Nation
― Letter to a Christian Nation
“We keep on being told that religion, whatever its imperfections, at least instills morality. On every side, there is conclusive evidence that the contrary is the case and that faith causes people to be more mean, more selfish, and perhaps above all, more stupid.”
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“We have a choice. We have two options as human beings. We have a choice between conversation and war. That's it. Conversation and violence. And faith is a conversation stopper.”
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“Either God can do nothing to stop catastrophes like this, or he doesn't care to, or he doesn’t exist. God is either impotent, evil, or imaginary. Take your pick, and choose wisely.
The only sense to make of tragedies like this is that terrible things can happen to perfectly innocent people. This understanding inspires compassion.
Religious faith, on the other hand, erodes compassion. Thoughts like, 'this might be all part of God’s plan,' or 'there are no accidents in life,' or 'everyone on some level gets what he or she deserves' - these ideas are not only stupid, they are extraordinarily callous. They are nothing more than a childish refusal to connect with the suffering of other human beings. It is time to grow up and let our hearts break at moments like this.”
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The only sense to make of tragedies like this is that terrible things can happen to perfectly innocent people. This understanding inspires compassion.
Religious faith, on the other hand, erodes compassion. Thoughts like, 'this might be all part of God’s plan,' or 'there are no accidents in life,' or 'everyone on some level gets what he or she deserves' - these ideas are not only stupid, they are extraordinarily callous. They are nothing more than a childish refusal to connect with the suffering of other human beings. It is time to grow up and let our hearts break at moments like this.”
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The Study of the Mind: A Psychological Book Club
— 2134 members
— last activity Sep 12, 2023 04:49AM
This is a book club for those who love to read books about Psychology! Each month we will pick a book dealing with psychological topics, read it, and ...more
The Brain and Mind
— 4494 members
— last activity 4 hours, 51 min ago
This is a group for readers to recommend and discuss books related to real and/or artificial brains. Categories include but are not limited to: neuros ...more
Brain Science Podcast
— 889 members
— last activity Dec 25, 2021 06:44AM
This is a discussion forum for fans of the Brain Science Podcast. The Brain Science Podcast is "for everyone who has a brain;" which hopefully include ...more
Popular Science Books for Laymen
— 254 members
— last activity Mar 30, 2019 06:43AM
This is a group where we list and discuss books on topics of scientific interest written for laymen and for people with elementary knowledge in the su ...more
Atheists and Skeptics
— 2215 members
— last activity Jan 26, 2026 02:44PM
This is a group meant for the discussion of atheism and skepticism and the books associated with both. Recommending books arguing for or against relig ...more
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