The Necessity of Atheism

The author presents a systematic critique of religious belief, tracing the evolution of faith, analyzing sacred texts and prophetic claims, and testing theological assertions against science, medicine, and the natural sciences. He surveys religion's social consequences for morality, war, slavery, labor, and the condition of women, and examines philosophical arguments used to justify theism. Arguing that religious doctrines are historically contingent, obstructive to secular progress, and increasingly irrelevant, he promotes freethought and concludes that adopting atheism is the rational posture for modern intellectual and social life.