Reactions to Richard Dawkins' latest and popular work "The God Delusion" have been varied. To those intimidated by Dawkins' contempt for religion, it may be heartening to know that even his allies recognize weaknesses arising from his scorn.
One such fellow traveler on the road to atheism or agnosticism has a particularly interesting review. Andrew Brown in Prospect highlights some of Dawkins' weakest arguments, including his historically disingenuous claim that atheists are not violent in the name of atheism. Brown makes quick work of this one.
Dawkins is right to criticize many aspects of religious fanaticism, but wrong to blame them on religion per se. Mankind has an alarming propensity for fanaticism no matter the subject. Dawkins' own inability to see the potential for fanaticism among atheists is itself fanatical.
No comments:
Post a Comment