The End of Faith? Chapter One

As promised, here is my review/critique of The End of Faith. The first chapter is an attempt to show the reader just how horrible people of faith are. Filled with horrific stories of incredible ugliness and cruelty, Harris depicts in great detail just what is wrong with people of faith. We blind, maim, and kill people who believe differently than we believe. Are there Christians who have not lived their lives as Jesus would have them live their lives? Of course! I am not about to try to skirt the issue and claim that "these people probably weren't true Christians" and/or "True Christians would never behave that way." That would be not only naïve but false. Christians have committed terrible atrocities throughout the centuries, but so have other people of faith and people of no faith. There is not one single people group on the planet that is exempt from stupidity, ignorance and bad judgement, including "free thinkers", skeptics, or just plain old atheists. This is no way justifies their actions, but it does point out that no one is exempt either. There is a very arrogant and superior tone Harris takes in this opening chapter. In particular, on page 45 where he states,

"The Bible, it seems certain, was the work of sand-strewn men and women who thought the earth was flat and for whom a wheelbarrow would have been a breathtaking example of emerging technology."

It is clear from this description that Harris has no idea what he is talking about. There is no evidence that Hebrews (or anyone else for that matter) of that time believed the earth was flat.They also possessed, and were not awe struck by, more sophisticated pieces of equipment than a wheelbarrow. Mr. Harris, did you actually pay careful attention when you read the Bible, if you read it al all? The Israelites made weapons for war, built elaborate temples, and great fortresses around their cities. There was a special on The History Channel a few months ago from their 'Cities of the Underworld' series that chronicled how the ancient Israelis constructed these elaborate underground tunnels for defensive purposes as well as a way to get water into the city without the need to go outside the city walls. It also showed how they created this huge, elaborate underground pigeon coupe. They also worked as slave labor for the Egyptians who clearly had more sophisticated technology than a wheelbarrow. Mr. Harris may counter he was only using hyperbole to make a point, but such an ignorant and condescending comment cannot, and should not, be taken seriously.

The rest of the chapter is more hand-wringing and worry over the fate of our civilization if something isn't done about those people of faith. While I do not want to underestimate his concern about the possibility of future events like 9/11 and other atrocities, I am convinced he is wrong about the solution. The best way I can sum up chapter one is to make this observation. Mr. Harris appears to be trying to solve the problem of evil. That age old bug-a-boo of Philosophy of Religion. The solution to the problem of evil is not to eradicate faith, but sin. Now I'm sure this would fry his circuits and claims of irrationality would be hurled my way. But as far as Christians are concerned, sin is the problem of evil and the solution is faith in Christ. Now faith in Christ will not completely eradicate evil, but if Christians would trust in Him rather than themselves during times of fear, remorse, anger, or jealousy, there would be a whole lot less of the evils that Harris outlines in chapter one. I will be dealing with the rest of the book in future posts. Stay tuned! It should be fun!