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Through a systematic analysis of the conflicts emerging when the public church encounters the public world, The Scandal of Pentecost argues that the public advent of the church stands in continuity with the public scandal of the incarnate and crucified Christ. The book traces the contours of this scandal in the confrontation of the dominant ruling hermeneutic of authority with a Christian hermeneutic of resistance. This highlights the brokenness of the human condition manifested by the church in the drunkenness of the disciples, the speaking in other tongues, the baptism with the Spirit, the empowerment of the flesh, and its public witness to a scandalized world.The effects of the scandal transform both the disciples'individual and communal witness and their public recognition as the church. Through the lens of a symbolic hermeneutic, the public witness of the church at Pentecost reveals a Christian scandal of anthropological proportions: with the outpouring of the Spirit on all flesh the church emerges as the symbol of humanity.

Where Christianity Errs comprises a group of essays that aim to carefully, clearly, fairly, and without rancor argue that Christianity has significantly erred in some of its important beliefs and activities. Among the topics assessed are original sin, prayer, faith, hell, the meaning of life, Christian apologetics, Christian ethics, Christianity and politics, and Christianity and atheism. This book contains novel arguments and insights that will be of interest to non-specialists as well as those who have some background in religion and the philosophy of religion.

Classical Christian ideas loom large in philosophy of religion today. But arguments against Christian doctrine have been neglected. J. L. Schellenberg's new book remedies this neglect. And it does so in a novel way, by linking facts about human intellectual and moral development to what God would have known at the time of Jesus. The tide of human development, which the early Christians might have expected to corroborate their teaching, has in fact brought many results that run contrary to that teaching. Or at least it will be seen to have done so, says Schellenberg, when we think about the consequences of any God existent then being fully cognizant, when Christian doctrine was first formed, of all that we have laboriously learned since then. Newly discovered facts, not just about such things as evolution and the formation of the New Testament but also about mental illness, violent punishment, the relations between women and men, and the status of same-sex intimacy, suggest detailed new arguments against the content of the Christian revelation--Schellenberg designs and defends twenty--when the prior understanding of the purported revealer is taken into account. Written with Schellenberg's characteristic combination of verve and careful precision, What God Would Have Known offers a thorough and incisive treatment of its subject that remains respectful and fair-minded throughout. It is not concerned with the overworked question of whether classical Christians believe irrationally, but with what overlooked arguments about human development show in relation to the truth or falsity of Christian claims about reality. Fully conversant with relevant developments in science, the book is particularly generous in its attention to recent developments in social and ethical spheres as it works toward its striking conclusion that the God of the Christians, all good and all wise, would not have believed Christian doctrine.

The Essence of Christianity is a book by Ludwig Feuerbach in which he explains his philosophy and critique of religion. Feuerbach's theme was a derivation of Hegel's speculative theology in which the Creation remains a part of the Creator, while the Creator remains greater than the Creation. In Part One, Feuerbach developed what he calls the'true or anthropological essence of religion', treating of God in his various aspects. Thus God is nothing else than man: he is, so to speak, the outward projection of man's inward nature. In Part Two he discusses the'false or theological essence of religion', i.e. the view which regards God as having a separate existence over against man.

A 50th anniversary revised edition of the beloved classic, God is Red. First published in 1973, Vine Deloria, Jr.'s God Is Red remains the seminal work on Native American religious views, asking the reader to think about our species and our ultimate fate in novel ways. Celebrating five decades of publication with this new edition, Deloria's classic work reminds us to understand'that we are a part of nature, not a transcendent species with no responsibilities to the natural world.'It is time again to listen to Vine Deloria, Jr.'s powerful voice, informing us about a spiritual life that is independent of Western religion and that reveres the interconnectedness of all living things. This new edition includes critical essays engaging with the original material by well-known Indigenous thinkers - Philip Deloria, Suzan Shown Harjo, Daniel Wildcat, and David E. Wilkins. Inside, the book covers a wide variety of topics including: the problem of creation, the origin of religion, Death, and Human personality.'God is Red should be read and re-read by Americans who want to understand why the United States keeps losing the peace, war after war.'– Leslie Marmon Silko

The Profits of Religion: An Essay in Economic Interpretation is a nonfiction book, first published in 1917, by the American novelist and muck-raking journalist Upton Sinclair. It is a snapshot of the religious movements in the U.S. before its entry into World War I.

Finding a renewed Christian story in a time of skepticism and doubt Is Christianity just a fairy tale for the infantile? Or worse, a cruel fantasy—the perpetrator of terrible harm and the cause of endless conflict? At most, one path among many? Such questions reflect the skepticism of outsiders and the doubts of insiders—some perennial, some underscored by recent events and movements. The answer to these objections isn't a louder faith to shout them down—it's a humbler faith that points to a bigger God. Samuel Wells shows the way through his generous, respectful, and earnest engagement with ten difficult questions about Christianity. In each case he portrays the traditional position and the skepticism of the modern age as two rival stories. Transcending both, he then offers a revitalized Christian story that better renders the radical, courageous, and vulnerable nature of authentic faith. Wells is unwaveringly honest about the failures of the institutional church and acknowledges many people's negative prior experiences of Christianity—making this a book for both Christians and non-Christians who have found the stories of their lives disrupted and now seek a fulfilling and truthful story to live by.

This book is about what Celsus wrote about Jesus in the Second Century, what Celsus's image of God was like, and especially where Celsus found the ammunition to criticize Jesus so fiercely. Why did Christianity's growth bother a pagan philosopher, who was committed to Roman religion? Why did it bother a Platonic philosopher, although Christianity was never meant to be a philosophy? Egge Tijsseling explores the idea that Christians finished the Roman Empire, because they did not want to join the army - Jesus preached nonviolence, and if they did join the army, they only recruited more Christians, and finally because Christianity was'soft', and therefore attractive for many in the strict and hierarchic Roman world. This book investigates Celsus'reasons to write such a versatile book against Jesus, that Origen almost a century later needed eight books to refute him.

Taking up where Christopher Hitchens'God Is Not Great left off, 24 Reasons to Abandon Christianity reveals Christianity's cruelty, dishonesty, fear-mongering, hypocrisy, misogyny, homophobia, dogmatism, and authoritarianism, and all of the misery, destruction, and death caused by these things. 24 Reasons to Abandon Christianity also reveals the roots of these characteristics, and why Christianity leads to all of these evils. While the book treats serious topics, its tone—much like Hitchens'book—is analytical, but also breezy and biting.

'Mensch und Gott'ist ein philosophisches Werk, das die Interaktion von Mensch und Gott beschreibt und sich auf Studien der vergangenen Jahrhunderte sowie auf die Werke berühmter Theologen bezieht. Chamberlain untersucht das Leben eines gewöhnlichen Menschen durch das Prisma der Geschichte des Evangeliums und der Lehren der Priester. Daher wird dieses Buch für diejenigen nützlich sein, die die Ursprünge des Glaubens und seine Entwicklung lernen möchten, und die Zugang zu vielen Religionswissenschaften in einer Sammlung erhalten möchten.

Where does morality come from? Apologists—people who offer a formal defense of their religion—point to God as the answer. By inspiring scriptures that people can read, study, and teach, God supposedly gave humanity a guidebook for how to live.Award-winning scholar of religion and politics Mark Alan Smith shows the errors in this chain of assumptions. Apologists find themselves forced to accept a book that condemns same-sex love and authorizes slavery, genocide, capital punishment for minor offenses, and many other practices widely recognized today as immoral. Apologists try to protect their worldview by ignoring the offending passages, constructing strained reinterpretations, rationalizing the indefensible, or appealing to God's mysterious ways.Is there a non-religious method for discovering the elements of an objective morality? Yes, Smith argues—the worldview of humanism. Humanists apply reason, logic, and, evidence to all subjects. Smith's humanist approach to morality relies on discussion and debate among diverse participants as the best means to attain a moral code stripped of the biases of each individual, group, and society. The result is a hopeful portrait of how to build on the moral progress humans have achieved since the writing of religious scriptures

Christianity is more than just a religion. It is a social organism that affects the lives of every person on earth in significant ways, even if they are not Christians themselves. In the United States its influence is pervasive with often profound influence on public policies, but it is largely unchallenged as a belief system, relegated to that quarantined area outside the zone of polite conversation. Despite much academic ink being allotted to the weaknesses of Christianity as a valid belief system, the general public remains unaware of these flaws. In Cross Examined, John Campbell applies his almost thirty years of experience as a trial lawyer to dissecting Christianity and the case of apologists for the Christian God. He addresses the best arguments for Christianity, those against it, and the reasons people should care about these questions. His purpose is to fill a void in books on atheism and Christianity by systematically taking Christian claims to task and making a full-throated argument for atheism from the perspective of a trial lawyer making a case.

The Kingdom of God Is Within You is the non-fiction magnum opus of Leo Tolstoy and was initially banned in his home country of Russia. It is the culmination of thirty years of Tolstoy's Christian thinking, and lays out a new organization for society based on a literal Christian interpretation of the Bible. Here Tolstoy introduces the world to the concept of Christian non-violent resistance. A classic in modern Christian and Western thinking.

Er ist der Inbegriff des miesen Verräters und sie die schillerndste Frau im Christentum: Um Judas und Maria Magdalena ranken sich unzählige Gerüchte und Vermutungen, sie faszinieren seit zwei Jahrtausenden die Menschen. Nach jahrelangen Recherchen zeigt Franz Alt in diesem bahnbrechenden Buch, dass Judas ein Freund Jesu war und Maria Magdalena als vertraute Gefährtin Jesu nicht länger das Schmuddelimage und Quotenfrau-Dasein verdient. Ein fesselnder Streifzug durch die Bibel und Kirchengeschichte mit spektakulären Wendungen. Eine Antwort auf die Frage, wie Kirche wieder'systemrelevant'sein kann.

'Japan's “Christian Century” began in 1549 with the arrival of Jesuit missionaries led by Saint Francis Xavier, and ended in 1639 when the Tokugawa regime issued the final Sakoku Edict prohibiting all traffic with Catholic lands. “Sakoku”—national isolation—would for more than two centuries be the sum total of the regime's approach to foreign affairs. This policy was accompanied by the persecution of Christians inside Japan, a course of action for which the missionaries and their zealots were in part responsible because of their dogmatic orthodoxy. The Christians insisted that “Deus” was owed supreme loyalty, while the Tokugawa critics insisted on the prior importance of performing one's role within the secular order, and denounced the subversive doctrine whose First Commandment seemed to permit rebellion against the state. In discussing the collision of ideas and historical processes, George Elison explores the attitudes and procedures of the missionaries, describes the entanglements in politics that contributed heavily to their doom, and shows the many levels of the Japanese response to Christianity. Central to his book are translations of four seventeenth-century, anti-Christian polemical tracts.'

“The Antichrist” was written by philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche. The reference to the antichrist is not meant to refer to the biblical antichrist, but rather to an attack on the “slave's moral” and the apathy of Western Christianity. Nietzsche's fundamental claim is that Christianity (as he saw in the West) is a poisoner of Western culture and the perversion of Jesus'words and practice. In this light, the provocative title expresses primarily the animus of Nietzsche towards Christianity, as such. In this book, Nietzsche is very critical of the institutionalized religion and its priestly class, from which he himself descends.

The Cross of Christ: Islamic Perspectives takes an in-depth look at all of the classical Muslim scholars considered to have affirmed Jesus'crucifixion. Each chapter provides the important historical and intellectual context for the commentators. As well, critical new translations of key texts are provided, offering important access to vital documents. The author argues that, rather than affirming the historicity of the crucifixion, the Isma'ilis tend to assume its historicity, in order to advance important Isma'ili doctrines. The author also contends that the commentators who explored ways to affirm the crucifixion, nonetheless made extensive use of traditional substitution legends that deny the crucifixion. In order to orient the reader, the book starts by introducing the reader to the Jesus of the Qur'an. It then compares Him to the Jesus of the New Testament and the Jesus of para-biblical literature. Upon this Qur'anic skeleton, the author layers a myriad of details found in seventeen works of classic Islamic literature, so that a truly unique, authentic and authoritative Jesus of Islam emerges.

The Kingdom of God Is Within You is the non-fiction magnum opus of Leo Tolstoy. A philosophical treatise, the book was first published in Germany in 1894 after being banned in his home country of Russia. It is the culmination of thirty years of Tolstoy's Christian anarchist thinking, and lays out a new organization for society based on a literal Christian interpretation.

Why does our theology of salvation focus on forgiving sinners, but not on healing those wounded by sin? Much of Western Christianity has subdued the narrative of Jesus as a Palestinian Jewish healer and liberator who served the sick and oppressed. But the Jesus of the Gospels is a revolutionary who stands with the sinned against, the wounded, and the marginalized. In Jesus of the East, author Phuc Luu re-narrates the life of Jesus to show how he made it his work to topple systems that privileged the few and disregarded the many, especially the poor and lowest. In this provocative book, Luu offers a counter-narrative to Western Christianity, which for centuries has legitimized colonization and violence to prop up the powerful at the expense of the masses. Pulling from the tradition of the early Eastern church, the present work of theologians of the oppressed, and Luu's own experiences as a Vietnamese immigrant, Jesus of the East offers a transformative vision of healing for the world. For those living in the land between pain and hope, Luu's prophetic words will renew our imaginations and draw us closer to the heart of God.

Beyond Parochial Faith: A Catholic Confesses weaves the author's personal story of woundedness and healing with her spiritual evolution. While working through and growing from personal relationships, Clancy wrestles with large questions of life's meaning. Her spiritual transformation allows no denial of God's existence, but her rational mind cannot accept the Christian Father/Son myth. She moves from parochial faith to faith informed by science, world religions, and the arguments of atheists. Clancy denounces what she calls sexist God-talk and espouses'secular spirituality,'while also honoring Jesus and religious myths for being avenues to transcendence. Beyond Parochial Faith shows a deeply spiritual life independent of religion's dictates.'Nones,'the Goddess, sexual assault, the #MeToo movement, and a gay priest play roles in this story. The author's questioning epitomizes Western spiritual evolution in the twenty-first century.

O Anticristo é uma das obras-chave para compreender a filosofia de Nietzsche e os próprios métodos empregados pelo filósofo na genealogia da moral cristã. Nietzsche busca não só criticar o cristianismo visando superá-lo, mas como também superar o sistema filosófico platônico – e, com isso, – toda a filosofia ocidental. Sua crítica parte da'ética'por trás dos valores cristãos, que valorizam aquilo que não permite o crescimento da vontade de potência do homem e de sua afirmação enquanto ser no mundo. O Anticristo faz parte da Coleção Nietzsche, publicada pela Editora LeBooks.

This collection both reflects and contributes to the recent surge of philosophical interest in The Antichrist and represents a major contribution to Nietzsche studies.Nietzsche regarded The Antichrist, along with Zarathustra, as his most important work. In it he outlined many epoch-defining ideas, including his dawning realisation of the'death of God'and the inception of a new, post-moral epoch in Western history. He called the work'a crisis without equal on earth, the most profound collision of conscience, a decision that was conjured up against everything that had been believed, demanded, hallowed'. One certainly need not share Nietzsche's estimation of his achievement in The Antichrist to conclude that there is something significant going on in this work. Indeed, even if Nietzsche overestimated its transformative power, it would be valuable nonetheless to have a clearer sense of why he thought so highly of this particular book, which is something of an outlier in his oeuvre. Until now, there has been no book that attempts to account with philosophical precision for the multiple themes addressed in this difficult and complex work.

Considerada por muitos como uma espécie de autobiografia, Ecce Homo é a última produção literária de Nietzsche, escrito quando ele já estava com sua enfermidade já em estágio avançado. Trata-se de uma anáise de sua própria obra, na qual ele se coloca diante de si como se fosse um psicanalista. Considerada enigmática e desconcertante, é um de seus textos mais polêmicos e controvertidos. Ecce Homo é uma corajosa obra de Nietzsche e faz parte da Coleção Nietzsche.

The story of Bodo begins in the ninth century around the time of the death of Charlemagne in 814. It centres on a young Aleman aristocrat and his conversion to Judaism in 838, followed by his flight to the Muslim world of Al-Andalus. His apostasy constitutes an arresting footnote in the history of the Carolingian period, his change of faith viewed as a shocking episode attributed by some to an overly lax policy towards Judaism and its powerful merchants. Another factor could be ascribed to the study of Judaism and its links with Christianity, which was a feature of the time.Bodo moved from a monastery on the Rhine, where he went as a small boy, to the imperial court, where he was now a gifted young scholar groomed for a top position. His unexpected abandonment of Christianity challenged his background and learning, and this was seen as a rebuke of the court network to which he belonged. Bodo left behind a growing conflict over succession between the emperor, Louis the Pious, and his sons that culminated in a civil war following the emperor's death. As a result, the Frankish Empire was partitioned into three separate kingdoms in 843.Meanwhile in Spain, two years after fleeing the Frankish world, Bodo debated the merits of Judaism and Christianity in Córdoba with Albarus Paulus, a beleaguered Christian in the Muslim world, not only airing criticisms of Christianity, but also some failings of the Carolingian imperial court. In 847 he is mentioned in the court annals as stirring up opposition in Islamic Spain against Christians, asserting that they should be forced to convert or be executed. This reported incident may be linked to a significant number of self-imposed deaths by Christians who, feeling increasingly persecuted, sought to provoke Islam by denouncing the Prophet and bringing about their execution.The experience of Bodo's apostasy was far from unique: other men and women who renounced Christianity for Judaism are also examined in conversion narratives recorded in the following two centuries. These episodes offer an illuminating study of religious changes taking place in Europe and the East where Christianity, Islam and Judaism competed in the ninth century and beyond. Bodo's experience can be viewed as part of a wider phenomenon depicting men and women who travelled as pilgrims, refugees or converts seeking to find a home and escape persecution because of their beliefs.

The grand claim of the Christian religion is that it alone has the answer to the human'plight,'which is that all people are born into a state of'lostness,'and are estranged from God. If they die outside of God's grace and salvation, they will enter an eternal state of separation from God. The solution to this terrible plight is the saving death of Jesus. But does the Christian doctrine of salvation make sense? Curiously, most believers assert that faith isn't supposed to make sense in a human, rational way. It is God's revealed truth, the'mystery of faith,'and it can only be understood through faith. That response, however, has long ceased to be acceptable to most thinking people. The more the theologians explain their view of salvation, the deeper the hole of incomprehensibility they dig. We are in the midst of a paradigm shift in our perception of the'truth'that is shaking the foundations of our inherited religious traditions.

Friedrich Nietzsche was an extremely popular 19th century German philosopher. Nietzsche wrote on a variety of topics including religion, morality, science, and modern culture. Many scholars still study Nietzsche's works and ideology today. This edition of The Antichrist includes a table of contents.

Fromme Christen und Theologen müssen tapfer sein, wenn sie dieses Buch lesen. Der Autor analysiert und kommentiert die Bibel mit einem neuen Ansatz und kommt dabei zu verblüffenden Erkenntnissen. Er porträtiert die wichtigsten Figuren des Alten und Neuen Testaments, beschreibt die zum Teil grotesken Widersprüche der'Heiligen Schrift'und führt gleich mehrere Gründe an, warum Jesus mit großer Wahrscheinlichkeit verheiratet war. Seine Bewertung der Offenbarung und der Theodizee (Gerechtigkeit Gottes) ist ebenso spannend wie die unglaubliche Geschichte von der Lustfeindlichkeit des Christentums. Am Schluss des Buches legt der Autor dar, warum'Gott'aber trotz aller Ungereimtheiten sowie der weiter zunehmenden Säkularisierung der Gesellschaft 4.0 nicht'sterben'kann.

Mikhail A. Bakunin was a famous 19th century Russian anarchist. Bakunin is often known as the father of anarchist theory. Bakunin wrote God and the State in 1871, but like most of his work it is disjointed and unfinished. This version of God and the State includes a table of contents.

The Kingdom of God Is Within You is the non-fiction magnum opus of Leo Tolstoy. The book was first published in Germany in after being banned in his home country of Russia. It is the culmination of thirty years of Tolstoy's Christian anarchist thinking, and lays out a new organization for society based on a literal Christian interpretation. The title of the book is taken from Luke 17:21. In the book Tolstoy speaks of the principle of non-violent resistance when confronted by violence, as taught by Jesus Christ. When Christ says to turn the other cheek, Tolstoy asserts that Christ means to abolish violence, even the defensive kind, and to give up revenge. Tolstoy rejects the interpretation of Roman and medieval scholars who attempted to limit its scope.'How can you kill people, when it is written in God's commandment: ‘Thou shalt not murder'?” Tolstoy took the viewpoint that all governments who waged war are an affront to Christian principles. As the Russian Orthodox Church was—at the time—an organization merged with the Russian state and fully supporting state's policy, Tolstoy sought to separate its teachings from what he believed to be the true gospel of Christ, specifically the Sermon on the Mount. Tolstoy advocated non-violence as a solution to nationalist woes and as a means for seeing the hypocrisy of the church. In reading Jesus'words in the Gospels, Tolstoy notes that the modern church is a heretical creation:'Nowhere nor in anything, except in the assertion of the Church, can we find that God or Christ founded anything like what churchmen understand by the Church.”

In her book Barbarian or Greek?: The Charge of Barbarism and Early Christian Apologetics, Stamenka Antonova examines different aspects of the charge of barbarism in the Greek and Latin Christian apologetic texts (2-4th centuries) and the various responses to it by the early Christians. The author demonstrates that the charge of barbarism encompasses a broad range of meanings, such as low social class, inadequate education, immorality, criminal activity, political treason, as well as foreign ethnicity and language. In addition to contextualizing the charge of barbarism in ancient rhetorical practices, the author also applies literary criticism and post-colonial theory to shed light on the concept of the barbarian as an ideological-rhetorical tool for othering, marginalization and persecution in the Roman Empire.

Die Vorstellung der Auferstehung des physischen Körpers und des ewigen Fortlebens mit diesem Körper in einem zukünftigen paradiesischen Reich Gottes auf Erden gehört zu den rätselhaftesten religiösen Ideen. Sie widerspricht gänzlich unserem Wissen von der Vergänglichkeit aller Dinge dieses Kosmos. Nach der Hypothese des Autors liegen dieser Idee bestimmte Formen von Jenseitserfahrungen zugrunde, wie sie beispielsweise von Menschen mit Nahtoderfahrungen häufig berichtet werden: Begegnungen mit Verstorbenen in strahlend- schönen Körpern und Erlebnisse paradiesischer, irdisch anmutender Landschaften. Derartige Jenseitserfahrungen seien in Kulturen mit einer prämodernen Kosmologie mitunter ins Diesseits, an entlegene, unbekannte Orte der Erde projiziert worden. Sie hätten auch die Vorlage für eine – notwendig vergebliche und potenziell tragische – Erwartung jenseitiger Verhältnisse auf Erden geliefert. Der Autor weist Parallelen zwischen den Berichten über Jenseitserfahrungen und eschatologischen Vorstellungen des Zoroastrismus, des Judentums und des Christentums nach, wobei er besonders ausführlich auf Jesus von Nazareth eingeht. An der Geistertanz-Bewegung der Lakota von 1890 zeigt er, dass Jenseitserfahrungen tatsächlich die Erwartung jenseitiger Verhältnisse auf Erden fördern können. Er vermutet, dass die Verwechslung der Welten nicht nur den Lakota, sondern auch Jesus von Nazareth zum Verhängnis wurde.

The Religious Polemics of the Muslims of Late Medieval Christian Iberia examines the corpus of polemical literature against the Christians and the Jews of the protected Muslims (Mudejars). Commonly portrayed as communities in cultural and religious decay, Mònica Colominas convincingly proves that the discourses against the Christians and the Jews in Mudejar treatises provided authoritative frameworks of Islamic normativity which helped to legitimize the residence of their communities in the Christian territories. Colominas argues that, while the primary aim of the polemics was to refute the views of their religious opponents, Mudejar treatises were also a tool used to advance Islamic knowledge and to strengthen the government and social cohesion of their communities.

Tout en faisant la critique des religions, l'auteur rappelle comment il est possible de penser et de vivre dans un monde désacralisé.

Alec Woods prangert mit spitzer Zunge und Wortwitz in seinem mit zahlreichen Quellen belegten Buch das an, was im Namen Gottes und der Heiligen Kirche Menschen - vor allem auch den jungen, leichtgläubigen - angetan wird und wurde. Er versucht ein Spagat zwischen geschriebenen biblischen Worten, Gesagtem und der Realität. Er will sich selbst Fragen beantworten, auf die kaum jemand eine Antwort geben will. Wenn es einen Gott gibt, warum lässt er dann all die grausamen Dinge zu, die Menschen anderen Menschen antun? Wenn sich Menschen der Nächstenliebe verschreiben, warum vergewaltigen sie dann Kinder? - In diesem vorliegenden Werk wird in erster Linie das Christentum betrachtet, wobei Woods vorwegnimmt, dass es in anderen Religionen ähnliche unbeantwortete Fragen gibt.

Great journeys often start with a single question. For D. K. Evans, a newly married professional in the Christian-dominated South, that question was,'Why Do I Believe in God?'That simple query led him on a years-long search to better understand the nature of religion and faith, particularly as it applies to the Black community. While many taking such a journey today might immerse themselves in the writing of Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennett, Sam Harris, and Christopher Hitchens, Evans took inspiration not only from John Henrik Clarke, Yosef-Ben Jochannan, Hubert Harrison, and John G. Jackson, champions of a rich Black tradition of challenging religious orthodoxy, but also from many others in his own community who had similarly come to question their core religious beliefs. While this journey eventually led him to discount the notion of God, he calls on all to ask their own questions, particularly those within the Black community who act on blind faith. While their own journey might not lead to his truth, he acknowledges, that is the only way they will ever emancipate themselves from the truths thrust on them by others and arrive at their most important truth—their own.

This eBook features the unabridged text of ‘The Essence of Christianity by Ludwig Andreas Feuerbach by George Eliot - Delphi Classics (Illustrated)'from the bestselling edition of ‘The Complete Works of George Eliot'. Having established their name as the leading publisher of classic literature and art, Delphi Classics produce publications that are individually crafted with superior formatting, while introducing many rare texts for the first time in digital print. The Delphi Classics edition of Eliot includes original annotations and illustrations relating to the life and works of the author, as well as individual tables of contents, allowing you to navigate eBooks quickly and easily.eBook features: • The complete unabridged text of ‘The Essence of Christianity by Ludwig Andreas Feuerbach by George Eliot - Delphi Classics (Illustrated)'• Beautifully illustrated with images related to Eliot's works • Individual contents table, allowing easy navigation around the eBook • Excellent formatting of the text Please visit www.delphiclassics.com to learn more about our wide range of titles

This eBook features the unabridged text of ‘The Antichrist by Friedrich Nietzsche - Delphi Classics (Illustrated)'from the bestselling edition of ‘The Complete Works of Friedrich Nietzsche'. Having established their name as the leading publisher of classic literature and art, Delphi Classics produce publications that are individually crafted with superior formatting, while introducing many rare texts for the first time in digital print. The Delphi Classics edition of Nietzsche includes original annotations and illustrations relating to the life and works of the author, as well as individual tables of contents, allowing you to navigate eBooks quickly and easily.eBook features: • The complete unabridged text of ‘The Antichrist by Friedrich Nietzsche - Delphi Classics (Illustrated)'• Beautifully illustrated with images related to Nietzsche's works • Individual contents table, allowing easy navigation around the eBook • Excellent formatting of the text Please visit www.delphiclassics.com to learn more about our wide range of titles

If the Bible is the infallible word of God, why is it full of stories that strain credulity, not to say fly in the face of reality? While standing up for morality and responsibility, the author pokes fun at some of the tales we were told in Sunday School in this series of short essays questioning various aspects of the Old and New Testament, the beliefs ofChristianity and religion in general, morality, and ethics.

Collected here in this omnibus edition are three of Nietzsche's three most important books: The Anti-Christ, Beyond Good and Evil, and Thus Spake Zarathustra, as well as The Philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche by Henry Louis Mencken. A perfect book for new readers of Nietzsche or anyone hoping to understand his writing and philosophy more thoroughly. The Philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche by Henry Louis Mencken was the first, and many believe the best book on the subject. Mencken was known for his attention to detail. This book is a must read for anyone who wishes to understand Nietzche and his underlying philosophy. Thus Spake Zarathustra is a masterpiece of philosophical literature, and it is here that Nietzsche uttered the famous phrase'God is dead!'This powerful book spells out Nietzsche's belief in the will to power, and serves as an introduction to his doctrine of eternal return. One of the most influential books of philosophy ever written. Nietzsche writes with style, power, and conviction. In Beyond Good and Evil, Nietzsche attacks past philosophers for their alleged lack of critical sense and their blind acceptance of the Christian premises in their consideration of morality. The work attempts to moves'beyond good and evil'in the sense of leaving behind the traditional morality which Nietzsche subjects to a destructive critique in favor of what he regards as an affirmative approach that fearlessly confronts the perspectival nature of knowledge and the perilous condition of the modern individual. Here is Friedrich Nietzsche's great masterpiece The Anti-Christ, wherein Nietzsche attacks Christianity as a blight on humanity. This classic is essential reading for anyone wishing to understand Nietzsche and his place within the history of philosophy.

The present volume contains two contrasting treatises. The first is religious, and shows in Count Tolstoï's earnest and eloquent manner the meaning of Christ's words which he takes for his text,—'The Kingdom of God is within you.'The outward forms of religion, however helpful they may be to some souls, are not essential; the superstitions with which Faith sometimes clothes or masks herself may or may not be uplifting; but the foundation of Christianity is the truth contained in Christ's words, his simple, plain, undogmatic commands and prohibitions. One word sums it all up, and that word is Love. If the world should take love for its guiding star, it is evident that all the evils of the world would cease,—wars, crimes, poverty, ambitions; the millennium would come! Count Tolstoï shows how that blessed period may begin in every man. The translation of this beautiful and inspiring book has been made by Mrs. Aline Delano of Boston. In answering the question,'What is Art?'Count Tolstoï analyzes and tests the various definitions given by other writers....

Khrisna of India. Thammuz of Syria. Esus of the Celtic Druids. Mithra of Persia. Quexalcoati of Mexico. All were crucified gods, and all met their fates hundreds of years before Jesus appeared on the scene. In this foundational work of modern atheism, American spiritualist KERSEY GRAVES (1813-1883) breaks the Christ myth down into its component parts and ably demonstrates how the story of Jesus has its roots in the depths of antiquity. Here you'll read about the surprising prevalence throughout global folklore of:. the miraculous and immaculate conception of the gods. stars that point out the time and place of a savior's birth. angels, shepherds, and magi visiting an infant savior. the 25th of December as the universal birth date of gods. saviors who descend into Hell. and much more. This is essential reading for students of comparative mythology and modern freethinkers. Also available from Cosimo: Graves's The Biography of Satan and The Bible of Bible.

The Essential Nature of Man The Essence of Religion Considered Generally THE TRUE OR ANTHROPOLOGICAL ESSENCE OF RELIGION. God as a Being of the Understanding God as a Moral Being or Law The Mystery of the Incarnation; or, God as Love, as a Being of the Heart The Mystery of the Suffering God The Mystery of the Trinity and the Mother of God The Mystery of the Logos and Divine Image The Mystery of the Cosmogonical Principle in God The Mystery of Mysticism, or of Nature in God The Mystery of Providence and Creation out of Nothing The Significance of the Creation in Judaism The Omnipotence of Feeling, or the Mystery of Prayer The Mystery of Faith—The Mystery of Miracle The Mystery of the Resurrection and of the Miraculous Conception The Mystery of the Christian Christ, or the Personal God The Distinction between Christianity and Heathenism The Significance of Voluntary Celibacy and Monachism The Christian Heaven, or Personal Immortality THE FALSE OR THEOLOGICAL ESSENCE OF RELIGION.

The Bible is the most overrated book in the world, and Jesus of Nazareth the most overrated person in world history. These are some of the propositions which the author, who has a doctorate in theology, formulates in his examination of the Christian religion. In a very readable and often humorous style the book asks whether the Bible really is such a good, ethically valuable book, as the Churches always claim, or whether the God of the Old Testament is not rather an irascible war god while the New Testament announces the destruction of all unbelievers at the end times:'He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned'(Mark 16: 16). The book also asks whether the Churches are right to invoke that Jesus of Nazareth whom they announce as the Son of God. After all, academic research has long established that the real Jesus was very different and had almost nothing in common with the Jesus of the Churches. Christianity has been driving through history without a driver's licence. This book is addressed both to believers who do not shy away from confronting uncomfortable facts, and to those people who have nothing to do with the Church and who have always suspected that something in Christianity is not quite right.

Dios y el Estado es la obra más conocida del pensador y anarquista ruso Mijaíl Bakunin; fue escrita entre febrero y marzo de 1871. Originalmente fue pensada como la segunda parte de un trabajo más amplio llamado El imperio Knouto-Germánico y la Revolución Social. La primera parte, por su lado, trataba sobre los antecedentes de la guerra Franco-prusiana y una historia general de la resistencia europea al imperialismo. Dios y el Estado, así como gran parte del trabajo de Bakunin, quedó sin terminar ni ordenar. Esto no es algo extraño, particularmente debido a que ninguno de los trabajos escritos de Bakunin está, de hecho, completo. Cuando Bakunin fue criticado por ello respondió:''Mi vida es un fragmento''. Dios y el Estado es de hecho un fragmento; el libro posee algunos párrafos, incluyendo el final del libro, que terminan abruptamente en mitad de una frase.

An eye-opening condemnation of the economic sins of organized religion Throughout his adult life Upton Sinclair was an unapologetic idealist and a tireless crusader for the rights of the common man. In this powerful and scrupulously researched critique, he argues that organized religion is a gargantuan moneymaking operation in collusion with industry in their shared quest to strike down dissent while bleeding profits from the millions in their thrall. Sinclair catalogs how spirituality, “the most fundamental of the soul's impulses,” is used as a tool for exploitation by unsavory clerical organizations. He specifically details the hypocrisy and self-serving, parasitic nature of churches in the West, from the entrenched fortresses of ancient Christianity to the “nonconforming” Protestant sects to the cultist “new religions” that came into vogue in the early twentieth century. A controversial, impassioned broadside, The Profits of Religion is Upton Sinclair at his most provocative and persuasive. This ebook has been authorized by the estate of Upton Sinclair.

The first book on Christian apologetics written by a leading atheist figure that teaches Christians the best and worst arguments for defending their faith against attack The Christian faith has been vigorously defended with a variety of philosophical, historical, and theological arguments, but many of the arguments used in an earlier age no longer resonate in today's educated West. Where has apologetics gone wrong? What is the best response to the growing challenge presented by scientific discovery and naturalistic thought? Unlike every work on Christian apologetics that has come before, How to Defend the Christian Faith is the first one written by an atheist for Christians. As a former Christian defender who is now a leading atheist thinker, John Loftus answers these questions and more. He tells would-be apologists how to train properly, where to study, what to study, what issues they should concern themselves with, and how poorly the professors who currently train them practice their craft. In the process, he shows readers why Christian apologists have failed to reach the intelligent nonbeliever. For those Christian apologists who think this book will provide a secret formula to convert the nonbelieving masses, be warned: as an exposé of the present state of Christian aplogetics, it can just as easily be used by atheists to refute apologetic arguments. Thus, this book presents both an opportunity and a challenge to Christians: they must either change how apologetics is done, or quit doing apologetics altogether.

Christianity without an omnipotent god, without a divine savior, without an afterlife? In this bold and hopeful book, theologian Daniel C. Maguire writes that traditional, supernatural aspects of Christianity can be comforting, but are increasingly questionable. A century of scholarly research has not been supportive of the dogmatic triad of personal god, incarnate savior, and life after death. Demonstrating that these beliefs have questionable roots in historical traditions, Maguire argues for a return to that brilliant and revolutionary moral epic of the Hebrew and Christian Bible. Rescued from god, Christianity can offer a realistic global ethic to heal a planet sinking under the effects of our ungrateful mismanagement.

For about two decades John W. Loftus was a devout evangelical Christian, an ordained minister of the Church of Christ, and an ardent apologist for Christianity. With three degrees--in philosophy, theology, and philosophy of religion--he was adept at using rational argumentation to defend the faith. But over the years, doubts about the credibility of key Christian tenets began to creep into his thinking. By the late 1990s he experienced a full-blown crisis of faith. In this honest appraisal of his journey from believer to atheist, the author carefully explains the experiences and the reasoning process that led him to reject religious belief. The original edition of this book was published in 2006 and reissued in 2008. Since that time, Loftus has received a good deal of critical feedback from Christians and skeptics alike. In this revised and expanded edition, the author addresses criticisms of the original, adds new argumentation and references, and refines his presentation. For every issue he succinctly summarizes the various points of view and provides references for further reading. In conclusion, he describes the implications of life without belief in God, some liberating, some sobering. This frank critique of Christian belief from a former insider will interest freethinkers as well as anyone with doubts about the claims of religion.

Though he is best remembered for his renowned expose of the meatpacking industry in the United States, The Jungle, Upton Sinclair was a voracious thinker and writer who grappled with big ideas throughout his career, completing close to 100 books in the process. The Profits of Religion offers an interesting critique of religion and its role in society.