The End of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason by Sam Harris Zendog wrote in the Servetus Forum on Oct 31: “Sam Harris has written an intelligent, incisive, honest book, The End of Faith: Religion, Terror and the future of reason, published by Norton, that is in the tradition of Michael Servetus. He calls for open inquiry, critical thinking and discussion of religion, including Islam, Christianity and Judaism. He has the guts to say publically that the problem with Islam is Islam, and that the terrorists are not on the fringe, they are living out the basic teachings of Muhammed. In the US, we have a fundamentalist Christian for president. Harris is not poliltically correct. He is trained as a scientist and philosopher. He does not discuss Servetus in his book, but I think Servetus would like him and see a kindred spirit.” We thank Zendog for his contribution and here we give some more details on this publication given by Amazon. Editorial Reviews From Publishers Weekly In this sometimes simplistic and misguided book, Harris calls for the end of religious faith in the modern world. Not only does such faith lack a rational base, he argues, but even the urge for religious toleration allows a too-easy acceptance of the motives of religious fundamentalists. Religious faith, according to Harris, requires its adherents to cling irrationally to mythic stories of ideal paradisiacal worlds (heaven and hell) that provide alternatives to their own everyday worlds. Moreover, innumerable acts of violence, he argues, can be attributed to a religious faith that clings uncritically to one set of dogmas or another. Very simply, religion is a form of terrorism for Harris. Predictably, he argues that a rational and scientific view—one that relies on the power of empirical evidence to support knowledge and understanding—should replace religious faith. We no longer need gods to make laws for us when we can sensibly make them for ourselves. But Harris overstates his case by misunderstanding religious faith, as when he makes the audaciously naïve statement that "mysticism is a rational enterprise; religion is not." As William James ably demonstrated, mysticism is far from a rational enterprise, while religion might often require rationality in order to function properly. On balance, Harris's book generalizes so much about both religion and reason that it is ineffectual. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Natalie Angier, The New York Times Book Review An important book, on a topic that...should not be shielded from the crucible of human reason. The Economist Will strike a chord with anyone who has ever pondered the irrationality of religious faith and its cruel, murderous consequences. The San Francisco Chronicle [Harris] writes with such verve and frequent insight that even skeptical readers will find it hard to put down. Joseph C. Hough, Jr., President, Union Theological Seminary, New York Here is a ringing challenge to all Americans. Peter Singer, author of The President of Good and Evil At last we have a book that...links Islamic terrorism with the irrationality of all religious faith. Alan Dershowitz, author of America on Trial Harris's tour de force demonstrates how faith...threatens our very existence... A must read for all rational people. Product Description: An impassioned plea for reason in a world divided by faith. This important and timely book delivers a startling analysis of the clash of faith and reason in today's world. Harris offers a vivid historical tour of mankind's willingness to suspend reason in favor of religious beliefs, even when those beliefs are used to justify harmful behavior and sometimes heinous crimes. He asserts that in the shadow of weapons of mass destruction, we can no longer tolerate views that pit one true god against another. Most controversially, he argues that we cannot afford moderate lip service to religion—an accommodation that only blinds us to the real perils of fundamentalism. While warning against the encroachment of organized religion into world politics, Harris also draws on new evidence from neuroscience and insights from philosophy to explore spirituality as a biological, brain-based need. He calls on us to invoke that need in taking a secular humanistic approach to solving the problems of this world.

Commemorative Bust of Michael Servetus 450th Death Anniversary ! Edition Limited to 450! If you act quickly, you can own this valuable collectible - an individually signed, numbered commemorative Servetus Bust (pictured at right) by the artist Bernardo Vera, originally from the land of Servetus. Edition strictly limited to 450 numbered pieces. Each statue (10 in) is accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity signed by the Servetian Schollars A. Alcalá and M. Hillar. You can receive your Servetus Bust by giving a donation today to support the activities of the Servetus International society. Your donation can be made online using our online donation form and a suggested minimum amount of 60€ (75$) is required. They're not available anywhere else, and the supply is limited, so order Now >>>