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Summary: Let's Face It: THIS is it! -- Life is good, but it ends
Review: I spent many years searching for "Truth" and sampled several religions. Bertrand Russell's book pretty much sums it up: This is it, friends! Enjoy your earthly stay, because there is no heavenly reward nor eternal hellfire to be condemned to after death. Russell's arguments are sound and delivered with some good British humor. One fact he could have dwelled on a bit more is that blind faith in Christianity lead to the murder (and suicide!) of tens of millions of good people to this very day. How could that possibly be the will of a loving God? -- There is much good in religion, I do not doubt that, however I feel that people should be respected for chosing NOT to believe.
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Summary: You people!!
Review: I'm tired of writing thoughtful reviews just so 3/4ths of the people can vote "not helpful" because I don't share their opinion. If a review is informative you vote HELPFUL. Heaven forbid that we should think for ourselves. (Gee I think your Russell might agree...) You nay-sayers are just as closed-minded as the Christians you bash. Could you people be any more insecure in your atheism?! Russell my foot. Bah!
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Summary: better reasoned than most books of this type
Review: In college the philosophy professor gave us this book to read. He is an atheist and since I was raised a christian I wanted to see if I was wrong in my beliefs. This book claims that God does not exist. Russell argues that since no one had to create God then no one had to create the world either. In other words,theres no reason why matter can't be eternal. From this Russell, then gives us his other reasons why he doesn't believe; that Christianity is a version of the old pagan beliefs that had gods born of virgins, etc. I found the book to be well written and argued, but it did not convince me. Let me point out that despite my religious upbringing I was an atheist and a skeptic at 7 or 8 years old. There is something very comforting about atheistic beliefs. That is there is no God out there, and that when you die you are out of suffering and pain forever; you dont exist any more. That you dont have to worry about hell and you can live life the way you think is best. Anyone who has suffered whether with a bad illness or other kinds of pain has probably entertained the thought that they wish they never existed and that death ends all. I would have still been an atheist but in all fairness to truth, I did look at counter arguments to the atheist position. I examined the arguments for the unmoved mover and other arguments for the existance of God and religions. I came to the conclusion that there does seem to be a God and that all religions are teaching parts of the truth. Try as I might I could not think up of or see any arguments that would overthrow the position on the existance of God, and the claims of religion. Russell could indeed be right, but I do not believe it to be honest for me to hold onto a postion(atheism) that has strong counter evidence against it. I am still researching evidence that could refute God and religions, but I have not come upon any strong counterevidence in over 35 years. This book is good reading because Russell is very sincere about his beliefs and it shows through in his writing.
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Summary: A Youth In Search of Answers
Review: This book was a "god send" (if I may be permitted that biblical liberty) to me at age 17 when I was questioning everything around me and getting nothing but pat answers and advice to stop using my brain and accept on blind faith all that was told me. I persisted... and found Lord Russell's book along with other literature on the subject. This book shaped my life. Living a life on blind faith is an invitation to dictators and other beastly persons to control the "goyim". You will have to read "Behold a Pale Horse" by William Cooper to understand that reference. While you are purchasing Lord Russell's book you should include Mr. Cooper's also.
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Summary: A very poor work for such a brilliant man.
Review: I found this book in the library when I first entered college 20-plus years ago. My initial reaction was, 'Wow, the author of Principia Mathematica has written a book on why he's not a Christian. This should be good!' Unfortunately, that was not the case. In "Why I Am Not a Christian," Bertrand Russell reduces himself to a ranting village atheist who sounds more like someone who is mad at God than someone who has legitimate philosophical arguments. If you *really* want to know why he's not a Christian, then I would suggest you read his autobiography instead.
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Summary: So many logical fallacies it's funny
Review: After reading through half of Bertrand Russell's "Why I Am Not A Christian," it's hard to believe that he was considered a good logic teacher. You can hardly read a sentance into it without finding a fallacy in his logic. His favorite fallacy is the category mistake. Probably his worst one of which I've read so far is by basing his entire rejection of the First-cause Argument for the existance of God around the statement (which belonged to Russell in the first place) that God fell into the causal category. Not true at all. Christians say that God is a necessary being and that it is in His nature to exist. God is defined by existance. He is eternal, everlasting, and definatly not caused or had a beginning, as Russell stated. I'd say that it isn't a very good rejection of God, but it is a good example to students studying logic of what not to do and how to recognize obvious as well as not-so-conspicuous fallacies in logic. Although I do give Russell some credit for convincing so many not-so-bright people to believe that what he said was valid.
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Summary: Defending or Exploring Your Beliefs
Review: Why I Am Not a Christian is an excellent book for anyone hoping to defend their choice to abandon Christianity, as well as for anyone who wishes to explore their decision after the fact. I personally had rejected the religion at an early age...I was just too young to realize it. I was just blindly following it because that is what I was told to do. I was made to go to church and Sunday school and Bible school (for a week during the summer). However, I fortunately have very open-minded parents. Once I got to a certain age (between 10 and 13 I think it was), they decided to allow me to decide for myself what I wanted to do in regards to religion. And I chose not to follow Christianity, and pursued alternative religions. I finally settled on being an atheist, more or less. This book gave me the material and arguments to reinforce (for myself) why I made my initial decision regarding religion. I have been subject to religious prejudice (however remarkably enough, only from Christians). Before I defended myself in saying that I just can't make myself believe such things. I only had a few reasons for it. Russell's books cites all the problems that are associated with the Christian religion. He doesn't tear it down, but rather analyzes it in a fair way. It just turns out that his analysis turns out mostly negative ideas. He takes a very clear and fair approach and speaks in words that are easy to understand (though not elementary). I strongly recommend this book to anyone who is questioning their religion, facing religious oppression for their beliefs, or simply wants to reassure themselves in their decision.
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Summary: Starts with a flawed premise
Review: Russell takes on religion from a flawed perspective. He focuses on the religious literalism that puts off so many people, and proceeds to dismantle Christianity based on this interpretation. A better title might be "Why I Am Not a Fundamentalist". It would be more interesting to challenge the literalism that can make religion divisive or irrelevant, but to also explore the roots of religion, the role of religion in addressing issues that logic simply cannot touch, and the great importance that religious thought can play for the individual and society. Try Joseph Campbell for a stimulating alternative.
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Summary: Defending your grandfather's Humanism
Review: American Christians, especially, have further internalized the utilitarian values promoted by Russell & other Humanists when they market their religion as a means to human happiness, apart from whether there's an angry & dangerous god out there to appease. When ministers like Tim Lahaye publish books about using biblical principles to improve your married sex life, they have basically capitulated to the assumptions of the Humanist worldview. The lack of a state religion in the U.S. leaves churches in a kind of social-entrepreneurial free market where ministers have to compete with one another for customers. Consequently they have been forced to market their theologies in ways that appeal to basic human desires, and as a result they have been moving more & more in a Humanist direction. Russell probably would have approved of this trend. This book, while extremely well written, is more of historical interest now. Prometheus Books has published critiques of religion that are more in line with the current state of the debate, and they are worth a look.
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Summary: Wonderful! Courageous!
Review: The reader of this book who still maintains his or her Christian faith and simply laughs at the common sense written here is doing so out of fear. And in this life, it takes determination and the ability to leave the safety of our mental interior walls to transcend this fear as opposed to covering over it with religion and theism.This is not something that comes easy.There are many who need the big daddy cop in the sky for strength and courage, limited, but nevertheless, the crutch needed for support of survival. It is not all who can reduce their anxieties into objects of fear that can be transcended in courage. So not all are psychologically able to bear such non-philosophical and sound reasoning. To quote Russell from the book, "Religion is based, I think primarily and mainly upon fear. It is partly the terror of the unknown and partly, as I have said, the wish to feel that you have a kind of elder brother who will stand by you in all your troubles and disputes. Fear is the basis of the whole thing - fear of the mysterious, fear of defeat, fear of death. Fear is the parent of cruelty, and therefore it is no wonder if cruelty and religion have gone hand in hand. It is because fear is at the basis of those two things. In this world we can now begin a little to understand things, and a little to master them by help of science, which has forced its way step by step against the Christian religion, against the churches, and against the opposition of all the old precepts. Science can help us to get over this craven fear in which mankind has lived for so many generations. Science can teach us, and I think our own hearts can teach, no longer to invent allies in the sky, but rather to look to our own efforts here below to make this world a fit place to live in, instead of the sort of place that the churches in all these centuries have made it
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