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A review by keishanyc
God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything by Christopher Hitchens
4.0
I’m going to tread lightly in this review. While I am not religious, I have family and friends who are, and while our beliefs may differ, I respect theirs. (Hitchens though might view my “treading lightly” as based in the “lazy morally practice of relativism”. )
With that said, I do not think that this book is going to win over or shift the thinking of any staunch believer. As others have mentioned, Hitchens does come off as arrogant and snooty toward religious people (though his snide derision provides for a few chuckles). It’s clear he thinks believers have deluded themselves and may possibly lack intellectual depth. A less committed religious person could be swayed into a state of cognitive dissonance by the seemingly endless examples provided of cruelty, brutality, injustice and ignorance perpetuated in the name of religion. As a former religious person (by indoctrination, not by choice), it was this cognitive dissonance and the refusal of my elders to acknowledge it or explain it and their attempts try to excise it that led me away from the path of religiosity.
Hitchens delves deeply into history to support his assertions that religion poisons everything. His writings are well-researched and backed by a plethora of historical and some personal examples and information. So much so that if you are not well versed in ancient, theological and world history, you may find you have quite a bit of cross-referencing to do. It’s educational in more ways than one. I also found that, at times, he was more verbose than was necessary to make his point. However, the book provides a Last Supper’s worth of food for thought and is worth the read. While there are many, many passages worth quoting from the book, the following by far is my favorite. In the chapter titled, “Is Religion Child Abuse?” Hitchens says: “If religious instruction were not allowed until the child had attained the age of reason, we would be living in a quite different world.” One could spend years pondering such an idea and the impact it'd have on the world.
One who is not prone to challenging longstanding traditions or beliefs may ask why a non-atheist would choose to read this book. Well, why not? I’ve read the Bible and attended years of Bible study. If one wishes to accumulate a variety of views on religious and non-religious beliefs and facts before coming to a conclusion (if there is one) about the origins and workings of life, why would one NOT give this book a fair reading? Fear? Uniformed derision? Religious condemnation?
Do not be confused by my mention of the Bible. Hitchens is an equal opportunity slayer. All three monotheistic religions are examined, deconstructed and skewered - Hitchens need not provide mere personal opinion to do so, the facts are part of history - as well as several polytheistic and ancient belief systems. It is well worth what can at times be a difficult read due to Hitchens’ occasional circumlocution and graphic examples of barbarism in the name of religion(as a female, reading about female infibulation makes me want to vomit and makes me incredibly angry).
With that said, I do not think that this book is going to win over or shift the thinking of any staunch believer. As others have mentioned, Hitchens does come off as arrogant and snooty toward religious people (though his snide derision provides for a few chuckles). It’s clear he thinks believers have deluded themselves and may possibly lack intellectual depth. A less committed religious person could be swayed into a state of cognitive dissonance by the seemingly endless examples provided of cruelty, brutality, injustice and ignorance perpetuated in the name of religion. As a former religious person (by indoctrination, not by choice), it was this cognitive dissonance and the refusal of my elders to acknowledge it or explain it and their attempts try to excise it that led me away from the path of religiosity.
Hitchens delves deeply into history to support his assertions that religion poisons everything. His writings are well-researched and backed by a plethora of historical and some personal examples and information. So much so that if you are not well versed in ancient, theological and world history, you may find you have quite a bit of cross-referencing to do. It’s educational in more ways than one. I also found that, at times, he was more verbose than was necessary to make his point. However, the book provides a Last Supper’s worth of food for thought and is worth the read. While there are many, many passages worth quoting from the book, the following by far is my favorite. In the chapter titled, “Is Religion Child Abuse?” Hitchens says: “If religious instruction were not allowed until the child had attained the age of reason, we would be living in a quite different world.” One could spend years pondering such an idea and the impact it'd have on the world.
One who is not prone to challenging longstanding traditions or beliefs may ask why a non-atheist would choose to read this book. Well, why not? I’ve read the Bible and attended years of Bible study. If one wishes to accumulate a variety of views on religious and non-religious beliefs and facts before coming to a conclusion (if there is one) about the origins and workings of life, why would one NOT give this book a fair reading? Fear? Uniformed derision? Religious condemnation?
Do not be confused by my mention of the Bible. Hitchens is an equal opportunity slayer. All three monotheistic religions are examined, deconstructed and skewered - Hitchens need not provide mere personal opinion to do so, the facts are part of history - as well as several polytheistic and ancient belief systems. It is well worth what can at times be a difficult read due to Hitchens’ occasional circumlocution and graphic examples of barbarism in the name of religion(as a female, reading about female infibulation makes me want to vomit and makes me incredibly angry).