God's Defenders: What They Believe and Why They Are Wrong

by S.T. Joshi

Committed atheist S. T. Joshi takes up this long-dormant "call to arms" in this highly acerbic critique of the religious point of view. With the aim of "combating religious mummery and obscurantism" he dissects the arguments offered by well-known apologists for various tenets of belief. Taking on both the famous intellectuals of the recent past as well as leading defenders of the supernatural today, he rigorously examines their claims and in every...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1591020808
• ISBN13: 9781591020806
• Release Date: June 2003
• Publisher: Prometheus Books
• Length: 330 Pages
• Weight: 1.34 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.4" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

At last, religion exposed for what it really is!

There has long been a curious notion abroad that it is somehow "tacky" to criticize anyone else's religious beliefs. Structuralist critic Jonathan Culler once wrote an essay taking issue with this notion, and S. T. Joshi now takes the initiative to attack the vagaries of religion with full vigor. Ascribing the explanation of religion's prevalence to the inability of most people to muster enough intelligence to break out of the metaphysical brainwashings they have undergone in childhood, Joshi follows an approach that allows him to examine the topic both in breadth and depth--he meticulously dissects the religious pronouncements of several leading proponents, people as varied as the astute T. S. Eliot and the absurdly comical Jerry Falwell. Joshi argues with great cogency that organized religion has no fair claim to have promoted ethical or moral uprightness and in fact has stood in opposition to these qualities throughout history. Joshi's logic is so incisive that the slippery claims of theism fall readily by the wayside, and I find it hard to imagine that any fair-minded and perceptive reader could work his or her way through this astonishing volume without finding the experience unsettling, but unsettling in a productive and mind-opening way. Joshi's book is an invigorating read, one that can be undertaken in a random-chapter-order fashion due to its structure as a collection of connected but essentially independent essays. Once in a rare while, a book that makes a whole lot of sense comes along, and this is one of those times. Read it. Remember it.

Militant; then again, the truth is the truth.

S. T. Joshi is in true militant form in his new book. In the introduction, Joshi avers that religion persists in the face of overwhelming contrary evidence for one simple reason: "People are stupid" (12). The rest of the book appears to be an extended commentary on that point, taking to task a whole slew of figures the popularity of whose ideas on religion presumably can only be accounted for by human stupidity. The range Joshi covers is sweeping: William James, G. K. Chesterton, T. S. Eliot, C. S. Lewis, William F. Buckley Jr., Stephen L. Carter, Jerry Falwell, Reynolds Price, Anne Dillard, Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, Neale Donald Walsch, and Guenter Lewy. It is by no means incidental that Joshi at one point goes off on a tangent about arguments for why it might be a good thing for humanity to die out entirely. Joshi's tone is about what you would expect: mostly entertaining if you agree with him, mostly offensive if you disagree, but over-the-top either way. However, as far as his analyses go, he always provides a fundamentally cogent critique of the ideas he is dealing with, which makes his book worthwhile even if you really wish he would please be just a little bit less combative.

Religion Doesn't Add Up

This book is really smart and hard-hitting, but also can be pretty funny as the author exposes the many ways in which religion just doesn't stack up. In this book S. T. Joshi, chiefly known as a literary critic and editor, tackles some contemporary religious "thinkers" and shows that these emperors have no clothes. It is true he heaps abuse upon his victims, but only after pointing out the ways in which they deserve such attacks.Joshi doesn't buy into the standard view that it isn't fair play to point out the problems with religion. He uses a logical approach and finds holes in religious doctrine. For instance, he talks about problems with William F. Buckley's Catholicism, T. S. Eliot's belief that religion must be the foundation of civilization, Elisabeth Kubler-Ross's belief in the afterlife, and Neale Donald Walsch's multi-volume "conversations with God." Along the way, the book brings other atheistic or secular thinkers into the discussion, drawing upon the likes of Bertrand Russell, H. L. Mencken, H. P. Lovecraft, and A. J. Ayer, all of whom had similar opinions to Joshi's.One contemporary example is about fundamentalism, and how today's fundamentalists seem to feel free to pick and chose those portions of the Bible they will adhere to, thus not truly being fundamental at all but somewhat self-serving and opportunistic. What is sad, the book finds, is where so many people allow religion to hold them back from realizing their full potential, whether artistic, intellectual, athletic, etc. If God gave man a brain, why doesn't he use it? After all, Jesus talked about being a Good Shepherd; not being a Good Sheep.So basically this book will be a hard pill for many to swallow, but the truth can hurt sometimes. It can only be hoped that other thinkers will come forward who have the courage and boldness to confront religious quacks as candidly as Joshi has done. His final conclusion, that "religion is of no value in modern society," seems about to sum up the reality of today. We 21st-century civilized folks just need to start growing up emotionally and get on with saving the world, because no One is going to do it for us.

Hard-hitting Critique of Religion

At last! A cogent, hard-hitting, but also smart and funny exposure of the many fallacies of religion. S. T. Joshi, best known as a literary critic and editor, takes on various contemporary religious "thinkers" and shows that these emperors have no clothes. He shows his victims no mercy, but only after systematically destroying their arguments.Joshi doesn't buy into the usual view that a religion is to be protected from criticism simply because it is a religion. If there is any truth to it, then an examination will bring it out; if, on the other hand, it is false, then it needs to be exposed for what it is.Joshi's treatment is not heavily philosophical. He rarely uses technical philosophical terms, but at the same time, he handles complex issues clearly and is up front about them. He points out the confusion in William F. Buckley's Catholicism; the fascism of T. S. Eliot's belief that religion must be the foundation of civilization; Elisabeth Kubler-Ross's unbelievable belief in an afterlife; and, especially, the nonsense in Neale Donald Walsch's multi-volume "conversations with God." Along the way, Joshi brings other atheistic or secular thinkers into the discussion, drawing on the likes of Bertrand Russell, H. L. Mencken, H. P. Lovecraft, and A. J. Ayer to prove his points.Several portions of Joshi's book seem pioneering, even revolutionary. In his discussion of Jerry Falwell, he shows that Falwell and his fellow "fundamentalists" ARE REALLY NOT FUNDAMENTALISTS AT ALL, in the sense of believing literally in every statement in the Bible. If they were, they would have to believe that the earth is flat, that the sun revolves around the earth, that wives are the property of their husbands, that slavery is an acceptable feature of human society, that homosexuals should be put to death, and numerous other things that no fundamentalist has ascribed to (publicly, at any rate). Then, in his discussion of religion and ethics, Joshi presents a novel justification for ethical subjectivism ("one man's meat is another man's poison") by claiming that nearly all ethical systems, religious and secular alike, are founded upon the presupposition that the human race must be preserved. But, as Joshi demonstrates, this presupposition is not a fact but merely a preference; Joshi goes on to show that it would be just as viable to base a system of ethics upon the presupposition that the human race should be extirpated. (I see that the Publishers' Weekly reviewer has totally misunderstood this point.)I can only hope that other thinkers have the courage and boldness to confront religious mummery as candidly as Joshi has done. His final conclusion, that "religion is of no value in modern society," seems to have a lot going for it.