Sam Harris’s book is a short and punchy critique of Christian fundamentalism in the United States. The focus on fundamentalist Christianity is ex3.5/5
Sam Harris’s book is a short and punchy critique of Christian fundamentalism in the United States. The focus on fundamentalist Christianity is explicitly stated, by Harris, to be the focus of the book. This is a positive because so many atheists never seem to realise, or at least acknowledge, that that is their focus. Christianity is, of course, a very broad “church� with an incredible variety of positions that might be characterised as a continuum from liberal to fundamentalist, or progressive to conservative. The book is only 91 pages long, but its shortness doesn’t mean that Harris hasn’t packed a lot into such a little book—he has.
Letter to a Christian Nation was written as a response to a previous book he wrote, The End of Faith (which I haven’t yet read). In Letter to a Christian Nation he specifically takes aim at the conservative end of the continuum and this demographic’s beliefs and practices, specifically in America. And he doesn’t pull any punches. His aim is to knock down the intellectual and moral claims of Christianity as understood by those who perhaps have the strongest committed form of the religion.
Harris writes in a very clear style that is to the point. He doesn’t use ornate language or beat around the bush. He gets right to the heart of the matter and tackles topics like morality in the Bible, the wisdom (or lack of wisdom) in religious texts, and the so-called conflicts between faith and science. (I say “so-called� because the assertion that there is a conflict is primarily one that exists in evangelical fundamentalism rather than in Christianity as a whole.) Harris is very good at making complex ideas easy to understand.
The structure of the book is very straightforward with a logical progression from topic to topic. This works quite well, on the whole. But the rapid-fire approach he takes might be a bit overwhelming for some readers.
Harris is good at using examples to illustrate his points. He’s obviously very well read. He draws from a wide range of sources, from scientific studies to religious texts, to back up his arguments. For example, he cites a Gallup poll conducted in 2005 that shows that 53% of Americans believe in creationism. He uses this as a springboard to discuss the debate over evolution and intelligent design that is prominent in the evangelical fundamentalist community. He also tackles other controversial topics like the problem of evil, why there are so many different religions around the world, and the possible dangers of religious fundamentalism. Harris’s arguments are thought-provoking and challenging and are sure to ruffle some feathers.
There are a couple of issues with the book. Harris can come across a bit harsh sometimes. This might put some readers off if they don’t agree with his perspective. Despite his explicit intention to focus on the fundamentalist sections of Christianity, he occasionally paints a broad picture by lumping all Christians together, which doesn't always reflect the diversity of belief across the varieties of Christianity I mentioned above.
Compared to other atheist critiques of Christianity, such as Richard Dawkins’s The God Delusion or Christopher Hitchens’s God Is Not Great, Harris’s book stands apart because of its brevity and directness. Given the size of the book, it is, of course, less comprehensive than some of these other works. But it makes up for that by being more accessible for readers who don’t want to tackle more weighty tomes.
I enjoyed reading Letter to a Christian Nation. It is a thought-provoking read that makes for good discussion. It's not perfect. But it is engaging. If you are interested in the ongoing debates about secularism and religion in America, then check this one out. But be prepared for some strong opinions and some challenging ideas....more
I don’t know about you, but trying to change your life or deal with challenging events can be difficult. And there are so many self-help guides on theI don’t know about you, but trying to change your life or deal with challenging events can be difficult. And there are so many self-help guides on the shelves of bookstores that it is often hard to know where to begin. And once you start reading them, you discover that there are a lot of ideas repeated, some of them with little evidence to support them, and they often seem to have ideals and expectations that are almost impossible to achieve.
Back in 1961, Albert Ellis published a book called A Guide to Rational Living that has stood the test of time, selling over a million copies and still selling today. Ellis called his therapy Rational Emotive Therapy (RET) which, at the time, was groundbreaking and challenged the common Freudian approach to psychotherapy.
The central idea of the book is that our emotions are the product of our thoughts, ideas, beliefs, and values rather than stuff coming out of our unconscious. If that was the case, we didn’t need to get upset or anxious or emotional about our circumstances or things happening to us if we changed our thinking about them. We can have control over our emotions and reactions to things. This idea is the foundational idea of the book. The book provides guidance on how to think more rationally about our emotions and encourages us to challenge our beliefs, values, ideas, etc and evaluate them to make sure they are reasonable. If our believe and values—the assumptions we make about things—are not realistic, true, or appropriate, then our emotions will cause us to experience some sort of emotional pain.
Ellis’s writing style is very straightforward, clear, and no-nonsense. I guess you could say it’s a no-bullshit approach. At one point he says that, ‘The best years of your life are the ones in which you decide your problems are your own. You don't blame them on your mother, the economy, or the president.� Tough words that, if appropriated into our lives, can be life-changing.
The book is well organised. It covers a range of topics such as reducing the need to constantly seek approval from others, dealing with anxiety, and getting rid of our fear of failure. As you read these chapters, Ellis articulates the principles of RET and how they apply in practice. This makes the book very practical.
Because Ellis’s language is very honest and straightforward, some readers might find him a bit too direct or harsh at times. RET is not about blaming us as individuals for our problems and issues. It has to be said that Ellis doesn’t quite navigate the fine line between blaming oneself and taking responsibility so a bit of caution is needed when reading the book.
Another issue is, because the book originated back in the early 60s, some of the language might be a bit outdated. The edition I was reading was published in 1997 so it still suffers from some of the language idiosyncrasies of the time. Even so, the principles are timeless and I have personally found them to be very helpful in understanding my own emotions and the need to think carefully about the assumptions, beliefs, and values that I hold that are the basis for them.
It’s interesting to note that many of the principes of RET are part of later psychotherapies such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Rational Emotive Behavioural Therapy (REBT). And the recent flurry of books on Stoic philosophy shows that many of the ancient ideas of Stoicism are the basis of more recent successful therapies.
A Guide to Rational Living is an excellent resource if you want to learn to have more control over your emotions and reactions. It’s been around a long time and is still selling which indicates the enduring nature of its principles. So if you are looking for a no-nonsense approach to improving yourself and living a better life, check it out....more
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