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Essential Reading for Theists (A book recommendation thread)
July 13, 2015 at 2:50 pm
I was thinking about my Mormon penpal while I was rage-typing a portion of my response to her last email and got to wondering:
Mormons challenge people to read the Book of Mormon (and praying about it to convince yourself it's true) as one of their tactics get people to consider Mormonism, and if she eventually puts this challenge to me I would challenge her to read a book that I recommend to her.
Which got me thinking:
What single book, besides the bible, would you recommend a theist read?
Would you recommend a book on atheism?
Would you recommend a book on critical thinking?
On comparative religion?
On textual criticism?
On counter-apologetics?
On history?
Titles and authors welcome!
Teenaged X-Files obsession + Bermuda Triangle episode + Self-led school research project = Atheist.
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RE: Essential Reading for Theists (A book recommendation thread)
July 13, 2015 at 3:04 pm
(This post was last modified: July 13, 2015 at 3:05 pm by Clueless Morgan.)
You mean theists should read it?
Or other atheists?
I'm wondering what books an atheist might recommend to a theist.
Teenaged X-Files obsession + Bermuda Triangle episode + Self-led school research project = Atheist.
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RE: Essential Reading for Theists (A book recommendation thread)
July 13, 2015 at 3:08 pm
I recommend Swedenborg's Divine Providence.
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RE: Essential Reading for Theists (A book recommendation thread)
July 13, 2015 at 3:15 pm
Recommended religious material for thesist would be...other holy books.
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RE: Essential Reading for Theists (A book recommendation thread)
July 13, 2015 at 3:28 pm
I would recommend reading the wikipedia entry on atheism, theism and each position's arguments. If that doesn't convince you, hardly anything will
Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you
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RE: Essential Reading for Theists (A book recommendation thread)
July 13, 2015 at 3:36 pm
(July 13, 2015 at 3:15 pm)Chad32 Wrote: Recommended religious material for thesist would be...other holy books.
Not to mention reading their own cover to cover at one go preferably in a respectable scholarly translation and not one geared to your own sect. Christians really should read a good Jewish translation of the OT. Pay close attention when you get to the parts referenced in the NT. You might understand why the Jews don't see the prophecies the way you do.
If there is a god, I want to believe that there is a god. If there is not a god, I want to believe that there is no god.
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RE: Essential Reading for Theists (A book recommendation thread)
July 13, 2015 at 3:37 pm
(This post was last modified: July 13, 2015 at 3:43 pm by Simon Moon.)
I would recommend theists read Sagan's 'Demon Haunted World'.
(July 13, 2015 at 3:08 pm)ChadWooters Wrote: I recommend Swedenborg's Divine Providence.
Yeah, because god did such a bad job explaining himself, that humanity needed to wait thousands of years for Swedenborg to come along and clarify "god's perfect word".
You'd believe if you just opened your heart" is a terrible argument for religion. It's basically saying, "If you bias yourself enough, you can convince yourself that this is true." If religion were true, people wouldn't need faith to believe it -- it would be supported by good evidence.
