What You Don't Know about Religion (but Should)

What You Don't Know about Religion (but Should) PDF Author: Ryan T. Cragun
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780985281533
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Get Book Here

Book Description
Studying religion as a social phenomenon, Cragun follows the scientific data to answers questions about the nature and state of religion (and nonreligion) across populations. If you've ever wondered whether religion helps or hurts society, Cragun argues, our world needs a new way of thinking about religion.

What You Don't Know about Religion (but Should)

What You Don't Know about Religion (but Should) PDF Author: Ryan T. Cragun
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780985281533
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Get Book Here

Book Description
Studying religion as a social phenomenon, Cragun follows the scientific data to answers questions about the nature and state of religion (and nonreligion) across populations. If you've ever wondered whether religion helps or hurts society, Cragun argues, our world needs a new way of thinking about religion.

How to Defeat Religion in 10 Easy Steps

How to Defeat Religion in 10 Easy Steps PDF Author: Ryan T. Cragun
Publisher: Pitchstone Publishing (US&CA)
ISBN: 1634310144
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 159

Get Book Here

Book Description
Do you want the greatest challenges of the day to be addressed with thoughtful, reality-based solutions rather than with cherry-picked quotations from scripture? Do you want to shrink religion—especially fundamentalist religion—to the point that it plays no noticeable role in American public life? Do you want right-wing religious leaders to be so unpopular that politicians avoid them rather than pander to them for endorsements? Drawing on the latest social-scientific research on religion to help interested nonbelievers—and even progressive believers—weaken the influence of fundamentalist religion in society at large, How to Defeat Religion in 10 Easy Steps illustrates specific, actionable steps we all can take to facilitate fundamentalist religion's decline. It covers topics as far ranging as education, welfare, sex, science, capitalism, and Christmas, and each of the 10 chapters focuses on a specific action that research has shown can weaken religion, detailing why and how, and concluding with specific recommendations for individuals, local groups, and national organizations.

Relax, It's Just God

Relax, It's Just God PDF Author: Wendy Thomas Russell
Publisher: SCB Distributors
ISBN: 1941932010
Category : Family & Relationships
Languages : en
Pages : 201

Get Book Here

Book Description
Gold-medal winner of a Next Generation Book Award, silver-medal winner of the Independent Publishers Book Award. As featured on the PBS NewsHour “A gem of a book.” — LIBRARY JOURNAL (STARRED REVIEW) A step-by-step guide to raising confident, open-minded kids in an age of religious intolerance. Relax, It's Just God offers parents fresh, practical and honest ways to address issues of God and faith with children while promoting curiosity and kindness, and successfully fending off indoctrination. A rapidly growing demographic cohort in America, secular parents are at the forefront of a major and unprecedented cultural shift. Unable to fall back on what they were taught as children, many of these parents are struggling, or simply failing, to address issues of God, religion and faith with their children in ways that promote honesty, curiosity, kindness and independence. The author sifts through hard data, including the results of a survey of 1,000 nonreligious parents, and delivers gentle but straightforward advice to both non-believers and open-minded believers. With a thoughtful voice infused with humor, Russell seamlessly merges scientific thought, scholarly research and everyday experience with respect for a full range of ways to view the world. "Relax, It's Just God" goes beyond the numbers to assist parents (and grandparents) who may be struggling to find the right time place, tone and language with which to talk about God, spirituality and organized religion. It encourages parents to promote religious literacy and understanding and to support kids as they explore religion on their own -- ensuring that each child makes up his or her own mind about what to believe (or not believe) and extends love and respect to those who may not agree with them. Subjects covered include: • Talking openly about our beliefs without indoctrinating kids • Making religious literacy fun and engaging • Talking about death without the comforts of heaven • Navigating religious differences with extended family members • What to do when kids get threatened with hell

Jesus > Religion

Jesus > Religion PDF Author: Jefferson Bethke
Publisher: HarperChristian + ORM
ISBN: 1400205409
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 240

Get Book Here

Book Description
Abandon dead, dry, religious rule-keeping and embrace the promise of being truly known and deeply loved. Jefferson Bethke burst into the cultural conversation with a passionate, provocative poem titled "Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus." The 4-minute video became an overnight sensation, with 7 million YouTube views in its first 48 hours (and 23+ million in a year). Bethke's message clearly struck a chord with believers and nonbelievers alike, triggering an avalanche of responses running the gamut from encouraged to enraged. In his New York Times bestseller Jesus > Religion, Bethke unpacks similar contrasts that he drew in the poem--highlighting the difference between teeth gritting and grace, law and love, performance and peace, despair, and hope. With refreshing candor, he delves into the motivation behind his message, beginning with the unvarnished tale of his own plunge from the pinnacle of a works-based, fake-smile existence that sapped his strength and led him down a path of destructive behavior. Along the way, Bethke gives you the tools you need to: Humbly and prayerfully open your mind Understand Jesus for all that he is View the church from a brand-new perspective Bethke is quick to acknowledge that he's not a pastor or theologian, but simply an ordinary, twenty-something who cried out for a life greater than the one for which he had settled. On this journey, Bethke discovered the real Jesus, who beckoned him with love beyond the props of false religion. Praise for Jesus > Religion: "Jeff's book will make you stop and listen to a voice in your heart that may have been drowned out by the noise of religion. Listen to that voice, then follow it--right to the feet of Jesus." --Bob Goff, author of New York Times bestsellers Love Does and Everybody, Always "The book you hold in your hands is Donald Miller's Blue Like Jazz meets C. S. Lewis's Mere Christianity meets Augustine's Confessions. This book is going to awaken an entire generation to Jesus and His grace." --Derwin L. Gray, lead pastor of Transformation Church, author of Limitless Life: Breaking Free from the Labels That Hold You Back

Give Me an Answer

Give Me an Answer PDF Author: Cliffe Knechtle
Publisher: InterVarsity Press
ISBN: 9780877845690
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 172

Get Book Here

Book Description
Cliffe Knechtle offers clear, reasoned and compassionate responses to the tough questions skeptics ask.

Atheist Universe

Atheist Universe PDF Author: David Mills
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 156975263X
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 281

Get Book Here

Book Description
Using logic, common sense, philosophy, ethics, history, and science, the author rebuts every argument that claims to “prove” the existence of God. IS THERE REALLY A GOD? OR DOES GOD EXIST ONLY IN OUR HEADS? IS THE BIBLE TRULY GOD’S WORD? OR IS IT A JUMBLE OF FANCIFUL MYTHS? Atheist Universe details why God is unnecessary to explain the universe’s diversity, organization and beauty. Using simple, straightforward logic, this book rebuts every argument that claims to “prove” God’s existence. A comprehensive primer for countering today’s religious dogma, Atheist Universe addresses all the historical and scientific questions, including: •What is atheism, and why is it so misunderstood? •If God is a myth, then how did the universe appear? •Without God, is there an objective “right” and “wrong”? •What is the meaning of life without God? •Is there evidence of Jesus’s miracles and resurrection? •Can atheists explain “near death” experiences and medical miracles? •Can science and the Bible realistically be reconciled? •What is the behind-the-scenes relationship between politics and religion? “An admirable work.” —Richard Dawkins “David’s work will be very useful for anyone combating harmful religious beliefs. Honest, frank, and right to the point!”—Albert Ellis, Ph.D., father of modern psychotherapy, author of A Guide to Rational Living

God Is Not Great

God Is Not Great PDF Author: Christopher Hitchens
Publisher: McClelland & Stewart
ISBN: 1551991764
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 322

Get Book Here

Book Description
Christopher Hitchens, described in the London Observer as “one of the most prolific, as well as brilliant, journalists of our time” takes on his biggest subject yet–the increasingly dangerous role of religion in the world. In the tradition of Bertrand Russell’s Why I Am Not a Christian and Sam Harris’s recent bestseller, The End Of Faith, Christopher Hitchens makes the ultimate case against religion. With a close and erudite reading of the major religious texts, he documents the ways in which religion is a man-made wish, a cause of dangerous sexual repression, and a distortion of our origins in the cosmos. With eloquent clarity, Hitchens frames the argument for a more secular life based on science and reason, in which hell is replaced by the Hubble Telescope’s awesome view of the universe, and Moses and the burning bush give way to the beauty and symmetry of the double helix.

Religion Explained

Religion Explained PDF Author: Pascal Boyer
Publisher: Basic Books
ISBN: 046500461X
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 406

Get Book Here

Book Description
Many of our questions about religion, says the internationally renowned anthropologist Pascal Boyer, were once mysteries, but they no longer are: we are beginning to know how to answer questions such as "Why do people have religion?" and "Why is religion the way it is?" Using findings from anthropology, cognitive science, linguistics, and evolutionary biology, Boyer shows how one of the most fascinating aspects of human consciousness is increasingly admissible to coherent, naturalistic explanation. And Man Creates God tells readers, for the first time, what religious feeling is really about, what it consists of, and how it originates. It is a beautifully written, very accessible book by an anthropologist who is highly respected on both sides of the Atlantic. As a scientific explanation for religious feeling, it is sure to arouse controversy.

Religion Satan’S Philosophy of Truth

Religion Satan’S Philosophy of Truth PDF Author: Bubba
Publisher: AuthorHouse
ISBN: 1524650307
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 45

Get Book Here

Book Description
If you have come across this book either by chance, by purchase, or someone has given it to you, I pray you will read it. I promise it will be a blessing to your soul. We are told by the Word of God to seek Him diligently! Without any denominational pull to my understanding Gods Word, I have done so for many years. I am sixty-five years old and a common man in my walk with Christ. I was a little slow in the beginning, but now, after thirty-five years, I have been running to catch up with Him. Why am I running? Time is of great importance. No matter how young or old we are, we just never know how much time we have in this world. Please read what I have learned from the Word of God and the knowledge He will give us. You may or may not agree with all my views and opinions. After all, I am just a common man. What I do promise youthis book will open your eyes and hearts! It will give you an incentive to seek God diligently! No matter what religion we may follow, we must seek Him diligently!

I Am Restored

I Am Restored PDF Author: Lecrae Moore
Publisher: Zondervan
ISBN: 0310358043
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 188

Get Book Here

Book Description
When the challenges you've faced threaten to destroy your life, how do you find your way back to the truths you thought you believed? I Am Restored tells the untold story of how Lecrae's past nearly ruined his future--until he learned that the wounds we carry can have the potential to be unlikely guides to healing and freedom for ourselves and others. Throughout I Am Restored, Lecrae documents the shattering yet hopeful story of how he faced the scars of his past--sexual abuse, physical trauma, addiction, and depression--and emerged more fully human than ever before. With remarkable transparency and vulnerability, Lecrae reveals that at the height of his professional success, his life was spinning out of control, driven by a past that he had never confronted and a religious perspective that was incapable of meeting the challenge. I Am Restored takes an unflinching look at the personal and public spaces that are too often at the societal core of our pain and heartache--culture, politics, family, church, and more--and teaches us that forgiveness can be the birthplace of the life that God has created for us. Throughout this powerful, deeply personal account, Lecrae shares the life lessons he's learned about: Confronting the pain and trauma that has shaped your story Breaking the cycle of sin and shame and embracing joy and authenticity Finding hope and healing in the midst of chaos The simple practices that can change your mental, emotional, and spiritual health Leading a life that's bursting with creativity and true freedom I Am Restored is a hopeful, inspiring charge to start your journey to lasting healing today. No matter what your past has held, God is near you, he hears you, and he's not done writing your story.