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Dec 16, 2009

-uht! rated it:

By the time I read this book, I was already not a Christian, but it was still hard for me to read. It was kinda like accidentally figuring out a magician's trick. You knew he wasn't *really* doing magic, but seeing how he did it somehow made the world less fun.

That said, this is a great book. It's not without bite, but it's also not bitter. Having been a big fan of Russell's epistemological books, I was impressed that this book displayed the same clarity of thought and communication. More...

0 comments like (10 people liked it)

Dec 16, 2009

Alex rated it:

I love these essays! Russell never argues that faith is impossible, but makes it clear why he doesn't have it. (I cannot believe in a god who, given an infinite universe and millions of years in which to perfect it, can come up with nothing better than the nazis and the KKK) - paraphrase

3 comments like (9 people liked it)

Sep 26, 2008

LJ rated it:

WHY I AM NOT A CHRISTIAN...- Ex
Russell, Bertrand

Dedicated as few men have been to the life of reason, Bertrand Russell has always been concerned with the basic questions to which religion also addresses itself -- questions about man's place in the universe and the nature of the good life, questions that involve life after death, morality, freedom, education, and sexual ethics. He brings to his treatment of these questions the same courage, scrupulous logic, and lofty wisdom for More...

2 comments like (7 people liked it)

May 16, 2008

Craig rated it:

After reading most of the "new Atheist" books -- I read the ones by Sam Harris, Daniel Dennett, and Christopher Hitchens -- this old one by Betrand Russell is still miles better than they. To be sure, I disagree with most of what he says, but his writing is much more clear-headed and articulate than the new ones. There really aren't many new arguments the new generation of atheists bring to the table, therefore I think it is reasonably fair to use Russell's as the standard bearer for More...

3 comments like (7 people liked it)

Dec 03, 2008

Nick rated it:

Russell "demolishes" the classic arguments (ontological, teleological, cosmological) in the quick, sweeping first few dozen pages, then digresses for the remainder, addressing vaguely the tenets of logical positivism he'd better develop in The Problems of Philosophy and The Conquest of Happiness. Overall, though, I can't help but think this is all a wanktastic waste of time. It's unknowable, and the important thing is not to kill God, but to annihilate the willingness to consider tha More...

6 comments like (3 people liked it)

Dec 28, 2007

Brendan rated it:

A mediocre atheism. If you want the real stuff, read Nietzsche, Marx, or Freud. No one has said anything original on the subject since they.

1 comment like (2 people liked it)

Apr 13, 2011

P.J. rated it:

Russell first defines what he means by a Christian: someone who believes in God, the immortality of the soul, and Jesus Christ. Then he explains why he does not believe. Step-by-step he dismisses as fallacious the arguments for the existence of God: the first cause argument, the argument from design, etc. Then he discusses whether we survive death. Then the character of Jesus, as presented in the Gospels. He agrees that Jesus was an admirable man, but not divine and not the best or wisest of men More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jan 28, 2008

Paula rated it:

My downstairs roommates are away for a while, and I am catsitting. It just so happens that my downstairs roommates also have an extensive collection of books. Books that have been on my to-read list for YEARS. And here they are, in one location, with no chance of someone checking them out before I can get my hands on them. So every other day, I brave the cat (actually, a hellbeast), feed and water it, and select a new tome.

One of this week's selection was "Why I Am Not a Christ More...

1 comment like (3 people liked it)

Jan 17, 2008

Donald rated it:

This was an impressive book at the time I read it. This was the most potent statement of unbelief in print at the time and, until the latest swath of the "new atheism," was the most accessible to the philosophically untrained reader. My problem with Russell's thinking is that he essentially aped his arguments from Feuerbach, which were pretty much debunked from the get-go. Russell had three issues:

1. The God = Evil problem (borrowed extensively by Hitchens in his latest More...

4 comments like (1 person liked it)

Nov 14, 2007

Brian rated it:

"Why I Am Not a Christian" is a series of essays and speeches by Bertrand Russell, a famous philosopher. Russell's views were controversial in his time (he was famously denied a teaching position at the City College of New York after being railroaded by religious types), and are still controversial. I didn't read all of the pieces in the book, as my attention span just hasn't been in the right spot lately, but I was impressed by some of them, and disappointed in others.
Some of More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Dec 30, 2007

Julian added it

This is a book of essays by Bertrand Russell that were written in the early part of the 20th century. I read them to compare them to more modern books/essays on atheism. In some ways these were chillingly accurate when read through a modern lens, in other ways disturbingly inaccurate (such as when Russell said something along the lines of "But surely no one 50 years from now would actually believe in the creation myth!"). Recommended for anyone who is, like me, doing a weird persona More...

4 comments like (1 person liked it)

Nov 28, 2007

Joe rated it:

Also known as In Which Bertrand Russel Uses Logical Fallacies to Answer Dead Questions. This book is a decent intro into the standard (bad) arguments and apologetics that surround Christianity. As a thought-primer for people who need a good starting point, it works well. As a legitimate contribution to the worlds of philosophy and theology, it falls frustratingly short.

Your sixteen-year-old nephew can articulate better reasons not to be a Christian, and they'll actually be relevant.

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jun 19, 2011

Mike rated it:

To be precise, I read only the title essay, plus one other, but that was plenty to chew. Much here to commend and agree with; but on the whole, I'm not persuaded to abandon my faith, idiosyncratic though it may be. I have not the time, inclination, or mental firepower to attempt a rebuttal, by any means; nonetheless, a couple of observations. 1. Despite his cynicism, Russell displays unbounded faith in the infinite progress of science and the perfectibility of humankind, neither of which I share More...

1 comment like

May 28, 2011

Vasha7 rated it:

Why is "New Atheism" called new? As far as arguments specifically directed against religion, I can't recall anything said recently that Russell (and many others) didn't already say in the first half of the century. However, there are many other topics covered in this book, and that's where plenty of room for disagreement comes in. In particular, his idea of psychology seems very debatable to me. He's convinced that all competitiveness and aggression could be eliminated by a simple prog More...

0 comments like

Apr 14, 2011

Jorge rated it:

Resulta difícil comentar obras de un filósofo tan trascendente como Bertrand Russell, y esto por varias razones: 1) no me considero ni remotamente capaz de entender toda su obra y pensamiento (principalmente porque no soy científico ni matemático como lo era él); 2) la ciencia y el conocimiento humano han vivido un salto tan importante y rápido desde la muerte de Russell a la actualidad, que resulta muy difícil situarse en el contexto del mundo de la primera mitad del siglo XX y darse cuenta de More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Mar 02, 2011

Toni rated it:

I think the title is misleading. There are many profound essays in this book and Why I Am Not a Christian is merely one of them & a short one at that.

Many regard Bertrand Russell as a 19th Century Socrates and those who don't, should read this text. His final essay after he was denied a teaching position at City College, prior to his professorship at Harvard, I think is his best essay ever! It is so eloquently written and speaks of liberties, justices, & simple logic, so important More...

0 comments like

Nov 11, 2010

Scott rated it:

Russell lays out in concise, unemotional fashion how organized religion and Christianity in particular is not only entirely irrational but also hugely destructive. This work could easily serve as the foundation of the "new atheism" movement, and is superior to works such as "The God Delusion" by Dawkins and "God is not Great" by Hitchens for its clarity of thought and lack of distracting vitriol.

This question of the value (and necessity?) of organized rel More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Apr 25, 2009

Rhonda rated it:

This book had a truly profound impact on my teenaged life and principally my wholesale rebellion against God. At the behest of my older brother, I began devouring books on philosophy when I was 12, even though I noticed that I would often receive queer looks from my friends when I mentioned such or quoted from them. My favorite phrase from Russell of all time originates, I think, in this book, a typically snotty English phrase of superiority: "This strikes me as curious." I used this More...

1 comment like (2 people liked it)

Jun 12, 2011

Zach rated it:

There's no doubt that Bertrant Russel was one of the great minds of the 20th century, but this collection of essays, chosen by the editor to reinforce a theme of secular humanism in the philosopher's work, doesn't function strongly enough as a whole to reveal the depth of that mind. The essays are all good, some excellent, and Russel was indeed a leader in the cause, but secularism is, as a unifying theme, insufficient, and in most of the essays barely present.

The most interesting par More...

0 comments like

Oct 02, 2011

Jean rated it:

Christopher Hitchens references Bertrand Russell a lot. This books seems to be
a good place to start to understand Bertrand Russell.

The book is actually a collection of essays written by Russell over a 55 year
period. I will comment on each one separately.

<h2>Why I Am Not a Christian (1927)</h2>

Defines what is a Christian. More than just living a good life, it implies a
certain credo that begins with the existence of God. The piece then debunks
the various proofs for the existence of More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

May 26, 2008

Kissiah is currently reading it

OH, MY! Betrand Russell is hitting it, I tell you! This mans candid talk on God--belief--religion--people, etc., is awesome! I find myself underlining quite a few things as I quickly turn the pages. He's unapologetic in his thoughts, his voice, and his reasons for believing what he does--"that religion is a disease born of fear and a source of untold misery." This is definitely not for the faint or lighthearted. He is simply saying it!! Whew!!

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Aug 30, 2007

Jo rated it:

As I read this, I just kept thinking, "Yes!" The essays are surprisingly easy to digest and use very basic, nearly irrefutable arguments. I was pleasantly surprised to find an essay on Thomas Paine and another on spirituality and sexuality. Both inspired and encouraged me to continue on my own spiritual quest. I'd recommend this book to Christians and non-Christians alike. It makes for very interesting reading.

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

May 21, 2009

Shea rated it:

I've read through some of the goodreads reviews of this book, and there seem to be two major themes in the criticisms that Russell is getting:

a) "I don't agree with him."

That's great. Russell would love that. Why? Because his argument is not that everyone should be atheists like him...his argument is that everyone should be free to express and debate their opinions without fear of repression or retaliation. He claims that the issue of god and religion should go More...

1 comment like

Jun 25, 2011

Jc rated it:

I last read this in the last 1980s. At that time there was not a lot of decent, worth reading, works describing the basic philosophical arguments for atheism. So, this collection of classic Russell essays, lectures, and short articles from the 1920s through the 1950s was by default a must-read work. Now, in 2011, it is sadly still worth reading -- as the same nonsense arguments for various theisms are still dragged out on to the philosophical stage. What I had not read in previous readings was t More...

0 comments like

May 03, 2007

Angela rated it:

The first book I read when I started to question life after death, morality, education, ethics, and all those other things we know nothing about. Based almost entirely on logic, Russell's was a point of view I was unfamiliar with. It's a must-read for anyone who knows they will never know anything but loves pondering it all just the same.

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Sep 04, 2011

Nadine rated it:

I kind of felt reading this book without a background in history or philosophy was kind of jumping off a ship and swimming to shore. There were a few buoys where I could mentally rest and actually understand what Dr. Russell was discussing, but other times I felt like I was treading water. I think just casually picking this book up without more of an understanding of history and antecedent philosophy is a mistake, because I think historical context is important for this book (and indeed the ap More...

0 comments like

Jul 04, 2010

Tom rated it:

There was a time in my life when I thought it would be a reasonable thing to try and put myself in a position where I could explain to people why I was an atheist, so I read books like this. It's a good book, honestly. It's clear and blunt and not very controversial. The problem is that honestly, after a while, you start to wonder why you have to do so much work to explain what should be self-evident - that you shouldn't just trust ancient books, and that without any evidence, you shouldn't beli More...

0 comments like

Jun 02, 2008

Andrew rated it:

A must read for everyone, especially those who have never tested their faith or religion. I read this as a Peace Corps volunteer and his arguments are some of the most logical and well-written, and do not even appear dated though he wrote them decades ago. You have to continue to question. Always.

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Nov 19, 2007

peishan rated it:

A collection of essays on the problematic nature of religion. Russell succintly counters arguments for religion, such as the first cause argument, natural law argument, argument from design, etc. He believes that a good world needs a free intelligence, and not a reliance on religion based on fear.

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Mar 15, 2010

Jed rated it:

I experianced a similar sensation in reading this as I did in reading Neitzche (HOW DO YOU SPELL THIS MAN'S NAME?? Maybe that's why he went crazy), that is, I expected a theological dogfight: a masterpiece of thought. What I got was pretty wimpy.
Russell had two really good points, and those are: 1: the church has not always acted well and 2: Jesus talks like he expects to come back in power before the end of his disciples' lives. These are good points! Other than that... uh, we've got a l More...

3 comments like