Atheism Considered : A Survey of the Rational Rejection of Religious Belief

__Atheism Considered__ is a systematic presentation of challenges to the existence of a higher power. Rather than engage in polemic against a religious worldview, C.M. Lorkowski charitably refutes the classical arguments for the existence of god, pointing out flaws in their underlying reasoning and highlighting difficulties inherent to revealed sources. In place of a theistic worldview, he argues for adopting a naturalistic one, highlighting naturalism’s capacity to explain world phenomena and contribute to the sciences. Lorkowski demonstrates that replacing theism with naturalism, contra popular assumptions, sacrifices nothing in terms of ethics or meaning. Instead, morality ultimately proves more important than religion and does not rely on it. Appropriate for classroom use, this book is meant to cultivate understanding, tolerance, and fruitful dialogue between believers and nonbelievers. Front Matter ....Pages i-xiv Introduction and Overview (C. M. Lorkowski)....Pages 1-9 Of the Philosophy of Religion and Its Methodology (C. M. Lorkowski)....Pages 11-18 Atheism and Atheists (C. M. Lorkowski)....Pages 19-27 The Burden of Proof (C. M. Lorkowski)....Pages 29-37 Theology and Reason (C. M. Lorkowski)....Pages 39-47 Ontological Arguments (C. M. Lorkowski)....Pages 49-62 Cosmological Arguments (C. M. Lorkowski)....Pages 63-76 Design Arguments (C. M. Lorkowski)....Pages 77-88 Conclusions Regarding Existential Natural Theology (C. M. Lorkowski)....Pages 89-96 The Concept(s) of God (C. M. Lorkowski)....Pages 97-105 The Problems of Evil—Logical, Evidential, and Moral (C. M. Lorkowski)....Pages 107-119 The Character of Revelation (C. M. Lorkowski)....Pages 121-131 Challenges to Sacred Texts (C. M. Lorkowski)....Pages 133-144 Challenges to Miracles (C. M. Lorkowski)....Pages 145-155 Challenges to Religious Experience (C. M. Lorkowski)....Pages 157-165 Moral Critiques to Religion (C. M. Lorkowski)....Pages 167-178 Personal Survival and the Afterlife (C. M. Lorkowski)....Pages 179-189 The Case Against Christianity (C. M. Lorkowski)....Pages 191-203 Naturalism in the Sciences (C. M. Lorkowski)....Pages 205-215 A Soulless World (C. M. Lorkowski)....Pages 217-231 The Naturalization of Religion (C. M. Lorkowski)....Pages 233-246 The Loss of Thou Shalt (C. M. Lorkowski)....Pages 247-257 Excising God from Value (C. M. Lorkowski)....Pages 259-271 Concluding Thoughts (C. M. Lorkowski)....Pages 273-281 Back Matter ....Pages 283-291 "'Atheism considered' is a systematic presentation of challenges to the existence of a higher power. Rather than engage in polemic against a religious worldview, C.M. Lorkowski charitably refutes the classical arguments for the existence of god, pointing out flaws in their underlying reasoning and highlighting difficulties inherent to revealed sources. In place of a theistic worldview, he argues for adopting a naturalistic one, highlighting naturalism's capacity to explain world phenomena and contribute to the sciences. Lorkowski demonstrates that replacing theism with naturalism, contra popular assumptions, sacrifices nothing in terms of ethics or meaning. Instead, morality ultimately proves more important than religion and does not rely on it."-- From publisher's description