Preserving our Christian Heritage since 2001.
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Preserving our Christian Heritage since 2001.
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| Title: Letter from a Christian Citizen |
| Author: Wilson, Douglas |
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Format: Hardback: 111 pages |
| Publisher: American Vision (April, 2007) |
| ISBN: 0915815664 |
| Review Date: June 5th, 2007 |
| Buy this Book from Amazon.com. |
Rating: |
| Book Description: A Christian response to Sam Harris' Letter to a Christian Nation. |
Review:
This book is a direct response to Letter to a Christian Nation by Sam Harris. I do not think you really need to read Harris' book how ever, because Wilson makes liberal usage of quotes so you can get the context, and in my opinion, if you are very familiar with the bellowing of popular atheists, Harris does not say anything new. Also, he does not say it in a very interesting way either. I see him more as a rallying point for others.
Wilson dismantles his objections to Christianity by pointing out the logical flaws in Harris' arguments. One moment Harris is praising the Jains for their respect for life. The more devout ones wear masks so as to not even breath in small bugs, potentially harming them. The next moment Harris is complaining Christians are holding back stem cell research because of their moralizing, and stopping abortions by imposing arbitrary morals on others. (Reminds me of Cider House Rules, we need abortion because every abortion is the result of incest, or something along those lines). Wilson rightfully points out that Harris is using borrowed capital. Echoing the remarks of Lewis half a century ago, when we say should to, or should not, we are speaking of morality. Morality is the realm of religion, as chance does not dictate morality.
While Wilson does not come out and saying it, the atheists brute fact is really a matter of faith. A brute fact is something that exists and it exists just because it is there. There is no metaphysical explanation for it. And that is where the problems lies, Harris is using tools from Christianity to attack Christianity, which upon examination, all his posturing looks rather foolish once you see it for what it is.
