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The Oxford Handbook of Atheism
Recent books by, among others, Sam Harris, Richard Dawkins, and Christopher Hitchens have thrust atheism firmly into the popular, media, and academic spotlight. This so-called New Atheism is arguably the most striking development in western socio-religious culture of the past decade or more. As such, it has spurred fertile (and often heated) discussions both within, and between, a diverse range of disciplines. Yet atheism, and the New Atheism, are by no means co-extensive. Interesting though it indeed is, the New Atheism is a single, historically and culturally specific manifestation of positive atheism (the that there is/are no God/s), which is itself but one form of a far deeper, broader, and more significant global phenomenon.
The Oxford Handbook of Atheism is a pioneering edited volume, exploring atheism - understood in the broad sense of "an absence of belief in the existence of a God or gods" - in all the richness and diversity of its historical and contemporary expressions. Bringing together an international team of established and emerging scholars, it probes the varied manifestations and implications of unbelief from an array of disciplinary perspectives (philosophy, history, sociology, anthropology, demography, psychology, natural sciences, gender and sexuality studies, literary criticism, film studies, musicology) and in a range of global contexts (Western Europe, North America, post-communist Europe, the Islamic world, Japan, India). Both surveying and synthesizing previous work, and presenting the major fruits of innovative recent research, the handbook is set to be a landmark text for the study of atheism.
The Oxford Handbook of Atheism is a pioneering edited volume, exploring atheism - understood in the broad sense of "an absence of belief in the existence of a God or gods" - in all the richness and diversity of its historical and contemporary expressions. Bringing together an international team of established and emerging scholars, it probes the varied manifestations and implications of unbelief from an array of disciplinary perspectives (philosophy, history, sociology, anthropology, demography, psychology, natural sciences, gender and sexuality studies, literary criticism, film studies, musicology) and in a range of global contexts (Western Europe, North America, post-communist Europe, the Islamic world, Japan, India). Both surveying and synthesizing previous work, and presenting the major fruits of innovative recent research, the handbook is set to be a landmark text for the study of atheism.
763 pages, Hardcover
First published November 16, 2013
11 people are currently reading
206 people want to read
About the author
Stephen Bullivant
25 books21 followersStephen Bullivant is Senior Lecturer in Theology and Ethics in the School of Education, Theology and Leadership. He joined St Mary's in September 2009, after completing his DPhil at Oxford University on the Second Vatican Council's engagement with atheism. In June 2010, he was awarded the Catholic Theological Society of America's 'Catherine Mowry LaCugna Award for New Scholars'.
He is currently Programme Director for the MA in Theology, for which he teaches the 'Scripture and Systematic Theology', 'Themes in Contemporary Theology', and 'Research and Reflective Practice' modules. On the BA Theology and Religious Studies, Stephen teaches both historical and doctrinal topics (inc. 'Foundations in Christian Theology', 'Trinity', 'Vatican II') and religious studies modules ('Atheism and Nonreligion'). He also teaches 'Christ and Christian Ethics' as part of St Mary's well-established foundation course in Youth Ministry.
In addition to his ongoing theological work on - inter alia - the Christian engagement with unbelief, new evangelization, dialogue, and aspects of Catholic Social Teaching, Stephen publishes regularly on the social-scientific study of unbelief and secularity. From 2008 to 2014 he was a co-director of the international Nonreligion and Secularity Research Network. Between 2011 and 2014 he was a committee member of the European Society for Catholic Theology, serving as its delegate to the International Network of Societies for Catholic Theology.
A popular speaker and writer, Stephen has appeared on BBC Radio 4 and Vatican Radio, and has written for (among others) New Scientist, The Guardian, America, and Strange Notions. He has also given invited talks and lectures in the United Kingdom, Finland, Italy, Brazil, the Philippines, and the USA.
He is currently Programme Director for the MA in Theology, for which he teaches the 'Scripture and Systematic Theology', 'Themes in Contemporary Theology', and 'Research and Reflective Practice' modules. On the BA Theology and Religious Studies, Stephen teaches both historical and doctrinal topics (inc. 'Foundations in Christian Theology', 'Trinity', 'Vatican II') and religious studies modules ('Atheism and Nonreligion'). He also teaches 'Christ and Christian Ethics' as part of St Mary's well-established foundation course in Youth Ministry.
In addition to his ongoing theological work on - inter alia - the Christian engagement with unbelief, new evangelization, dialogue, and aspects of Catholic Social Teaching, Stephen publishes regularly on the social-scientific study of unbelief and secularity. From 2008 to 2014 he was a co-director of the international Nonreligion and Secularity Research Network. Between 2011 and 2014 he was a committee member of the European Society for Catholic Theology, serving as its delegate to the International Network of Societies for Catholic Theology.
A popular speaker and writer, Stephen has appeared on BBC Radio 4 and Vatican Radio, and has written for (among others) New Scientist, The Guardian, America, and Strange Notions. He has also given invited talks and lectures in the United Kingdom, Finland, Italy, Brazil, the Philippines, and the USA.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
March 4, 2020
This 700-page anthology represents a wealth of information and current thinking as pertains to atheism, here defined as, "an absence of belief in the existence of a God or gods." While in the popular and journalistic circles the so-called New Atheists have dominated, not least because of the popularity of their books and debate appearances, this volume is suitable to be used as a supplement in a corresponding philosophy or religious collegiate course.
The five sections into which the massive amount of contributions are organized are:
1) Definitions and Debates
2) History of (Western) Atheism
3) Worldviews and Systems
4) Atheism and the Natural Sciences
5) Atheism and the Social Sciences
6) Global Expressions
7) Atheism and the Arts
The structure of the work allows for skimming or cover to cover reading, the latter is what I employed with this massive tome. While I won't attempt to run you through several dozen of the articles some of the highlights for me started immediately at the outset where a precise definition of the term was given followed by two contrasting articles by Mawson and Grayling. The former attempts to make a case against atheism (an admirable start to an anthology on the subject), and the latter quite rightly shows the paucity of those arguments. The clarity of language in the opening section is absolutely key as frequently what is thought of or discussed as atheism is actually a completely different worldview in a completely area. Also, the difference between positive and negative atheism rarely gets mentioned in common conversation but here is dutifully parsed.
David Sedley's article on the early history of atheistic thought beginning with the pre-Socratics through the Hellenistic age is quite engaging and Thomas Zenk's summary of the New Atheists, their work, and the problems with the term itself make a fitting bookend to the "History of (Western) Atheism," chapter. The following section on, "Worldviews and Systems," deals with the notion of atheism and the genuine worldviews to which it is frequently attached. Stephen Law's expository work on Humanism and Charles Pigden's article on the connection with Analytic Philosophy make for the most interesting reading here. Though I will also say that Jessica Frazier's article on the connection and history with Hinduism probably presented the most genuinely new thought here as frequently that is a religion that is skipped over in these debates.
Physicist Victor Stenger's contribution to the "Natural Sciences" chapter is the most potent and the most convincing. Frequently now it is in the stranger realms of particle physics and cosmology that pseudo-intellectual proponents of ID or other theological trespasses into the world of science now resort (the other branches having failed them), Stenger shows how misguided and dishonest these have been, especially in the work of William Lane Craig and others like him. The first two articles of, "Atheism and the Social Sciences," offer a wealth of insights in the areas of atheism and secularization more broadly as well as the psychology of atheism. The latter explores the many ways in which different components of philosophy and the natural sciences take over the roles that religious gathering offer to believers, for non-believers.
The global demographics of atheism are well-explored by Ariela Keysar and Juhem Navarro-Rivera in an introductory article of section 6 before more specific works centered around Western Europe, North America, Central and Eastern Europe, The Islamic World, India, and Japan are presented. The final section, "Atheism and the Arts," is a fun and inspiring capstone to the preceding work with Paul Bertagnolli's article on Music the most engaging at least for me (hugely biased of course).
This makes for extended reading but genuinely necessary reading to discover a position on one worldview that for centuries was one that could not be discussed or openly confessed to in public. Note that I said this was a position on a worldview (theism), not a worldview itself. Recent discussions by various pundits and so-called intellectuals frequently try to cite that even atheism itself has a religious construction and really is just another form of: "insert their favorite sect of their favorite religion here." Lack of belief in something can be due to a myriad of factors but most frequently is the result of the weakness of that which is actually being asserted. That you have not made your case convincingly does not mean that my rejection of it forms another worldview, rather, I simply lack yours and may have several genuine worldviews which will likely be incompatible with yours. Try not to be so deluded into thinking that I could not possibly reject your worldview entirely without also being a part of it without knowing it. This is simply the term that as the opening definition makes clear, falls on a group of people who lack a belief in a particular ideology, namely theism. The wealth of worldviews that ARE asserted by several atheists are well-explored in this volume and merit serious study. Definitely suitable for anyone with an interest in the subject and for collegiate level courses in philosophy and theology.
The five sections into which the massive amount of contributions are organized are:
1) Definitions and Debates
2) History of (Western) Atheism
3) Worldviews and Systems
4) Atheism and the Natural Sciences
5) Atheism and the Social Sciences
6) Global Expressions
7) Atheism and the Arts
The structure of the work allows for skimming or cover to cover reading, the latter is what I employed with this massive tome. While I won't attempt to run you through several dozen of the articles some of the highlights for me started immediately at the outset where a precise definition of the term was given followed by two contrasting articles by Mawson and Grayling. The former attempts to make a case against atheism (an admirable start to an anthology on the subject), and the latter quite rightly shows the paucity of those arguments. The clarity of language in the opening section is absolutely key as frequently what is thought of or discussed as atheism is actually a completely different worldview in a completely area. Also, the difference between positive and negative atheism rarely gets mentioned in common conversation but here is dutifully parsed.
David Sedley's article on the early history of atheistic thought beginning with the pre-Socratics through the Hellenistic age is quite engaging and Thomas Zenk's summary of the New Atheists, their work, and the problems with the term itself make a fitting bookend to the "History of (Western) Atheism," chapter. The following section on, "Worldviews and Systems," deals with the notion of atheism and the genuine worldviews to which it is frequently attached. Stephen Law's expository work on Humanism and Charles Pigden's article on the connection with Analytic Philosophy make for the most interesting reading here. Though I will also say that Jessica Frazier's article on the connection and history with Hinduism probably presented the most genuinely new thought here as frequently that is a religion that is skipped over in these debates.
Physicist Victor Stenger's contribution to the "Natural Sciences" chapter is the most potent and the most convincing. Frequently now it is in the stranger realms of particle physics and cosmology that pseudo-intellectual proponents of ID or other theological trespasses into the world of science now resort (the other branches having failed them), Stenger shows how misguided and dishonest these have been, especially in the work of William Lane Craig and others like him. The first two articles of, "Atheism and the Social Sciences," offer a wealth of insights in the areas of atheism and secularization more broadly as well as the psychology of atheism. The latter explores the many ways in which different components of philosophy and the natural sciences take over the roles that religious gathering offer to believers, for non-believers.
The global demographics of atheism are well-explored by Ariela Keysar and Juhem Navarro-Rivera in an introductory article of section 6 before more specific works centered around Western Europe, North America, Central and Eastern Europe, The Islamic World, India, and Japan are presented. The final section, "Atheism and the Arts," is a fun and inspiring capstone to the preceding work with Paul Bertagnolli's article on Music the most engaging at least for me (hugely biased of course).
This makes for extended reading but genuinely necessary reading to discover a position on one worldview that for centuries was one that could not be discussed or openly confessed to in public. Note that I said this was a position on a worldview (theism), not a worldview itself. Recent discussions by various pundits and so-called intellectuals frequently try to cite that even atheism itself has a religious construction and really is just another form of: "insert their favorite sect of their favorite religion here." Lack of belief in something can be due to a myriad of factors but most frequently is the result of the weakness of that which is actually being asserted. That you have not made your case convincingly does not mean that my rejection of it forms another worldview, rather, I simply lack yours and may have several genuine worldviews which will likely be incompatible with yours. Try not to be so deluded into thinking that I could not possibly reject your worldview entirely without also being a part of it without knowing it. This is simply the term that as the opening definition makes clear, falls on a group of people who lack a belief in a particular ideology, namely theism. The wealth of worldviews that ARE asserted by several atheists are well-explored in this volume and merit serious study. Definitely suitable for anyone with an interest in the subject and for collegiate level courses in philosophy and theology.
December 15, 2024
Dreadful. Too much space devoted to "New Atheism", a minor Anglospheroid phenomenon; nothing about religious experience & ideas; a short incursion into Buddhism (incorrectly characterized & defined); essentially defines "religion" in terms of Christianity- which is an extreme simplification.
In short: They are giving answers without even knowing the questions.
In short: They are giving answers without even knowing the questions.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews