How to Be an (A)theist: Why Many Skeptics Aren't Skeptical Enough (Foreword by J. P. Moreland: Why Many Skeptics Aren't Skeptical Enough)

Description

Atheists talk a lot about the importance of skepticism. But the truth is, they're not nearly skeptical enough. While atheists champion the importance of a critical stance toward religion, they often fail to take that same stance toward their own beliefs. This double standard results in grandiose claims about the certainty of their unbelief—which is logically inconsistent at best and intellectually dishonest at worst. Turning atheists’ skepticism around on their own naturalist worldview, philosopher Mitch Stokes critically examines two things that such skeptics hold dear—science and morality—and reveals deep inconsistencies among their most cherished beliefs, inconsistencies that threaten to undo atheism itself.  Content: Introduction: Skepticism and contemporary atheism -- Sense and reason. Hume exhumed The believing primate -- Science. Science: ruining everything since 1543? Science and the Humean condition Photoshopped science Real science is hard Arguing with success The current crisis Physics-based metaphysics God: the failed hypothesis? -- Morality. If God is dead, is everything permissible? Some brush clearing Moral mammals: the evolution of ethics An all-natural morality? Can science determine human values? Morality is personal Can God ground morality? Living with moral nihilism What's the point of it all?