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DISBELIEF 101 by S.C. Hitchcock

DISBELIEF 101

A Young Person’s Guide to Atheism

by S.C. Hitchcock & illustrated by Leslie White

Pub Date: May 1st, 2009
ISBN: 978-1-884365-47-8
Publisher: See Sharp Press

Hitchcock’s abrasive and condescending approach to showing “the absurdity of all religions and their shared notion of a god or gods” is unlikely to convince readers who do not already share his views. While writing in the vein of such recent bestselling proponents as Christopher Hitchens, this author lacks their intellectual finesse. The text is most effective in revealing the anti-intellectualism, contradictions, inconsistencies and hypocrisies inherent in the dogma and sacred texts of major world religions, citing examples from the Old and New Testaments and the Koran to advance his arguments. He undermines his credible assertion that the indoctrination of children is an important tool of religion, however, by outrageously equating it with child abuse. While conceding that “not…all religions are equally harmful,” he insists that religion “does irreparable harm to almost everything” and that “church organizations are parasitic” and “add nothing to a community.” The indelible role of religious faith in motivating such humanitarians as Gandhi, Martin Luther King and Mother Teresa negates these arguments. This belligerent tract is unlikely to win over converts and will disappoint readers seeking information about atheism. (Nonfiction. YA)