“Faithiest resonated with me in many ways-not only because, like Chris, I am a gay former-Christian atheist who still thinks of my religious neighbors as fellow truth-seekers-but also because I deeply appreciated the book's nuanced approach to contentious issues. This is an important contribution to current debates, one which should be read not only for its valuable content but also for its exemplary tone: warm, engaging, optimistic, and humble.” ThinkingWayShouldStillsImportantBookChristianReligiousIssuesGayApproachFellowsAtheistCurrentsHumbleValuableWarmNeighborDebateOptimisticFormerToneContributionEngagingAppreciatedSeekersChristian AtheistExemplaryContentiousImportant ContributionsTruth Seekers Author:John Corvino
“Of all the differences between the Old World and the New, this is perhaps the most salient. Half the wars of Europe, half the internal troubles that have vexed European States... have arisen from theological differences or from the rival claims of Church and State. This whole vast chapter of debate and strife has remained virtually unopened in the United States. There is no Established Church. All religious bodies are equal before the law, and unrecognized by the law, except as voluntary associations of private citizens.” WorldWarStatesWholeBodyLawDifferencesChurchReligiousUnitedHalfUnited StatesTroubleAtheismCitizensEqualEuropeClaimsPositive AtheismDebateInternalsAssociationChaptersStrifeRivalsChurch And StateTheologicalOld World Author:James Bryce
“The atheist, agnostic, or secularist ... should insist on the need to engage in a meaningful debate on the entire issue of the truth or falsity (or probability or improbability) of religious tenets, without being subject to accusations of impiety, immorality, impoliteness, or any of the other smokescreens used by the pious to deflect attention from the central issues at hand.” NeedsShouldHandsUsedReligiousAttentionIssuesAtheismSubjectsAtheistPositive AtheismDebateMeaningfulAgnosticProbabilityPiousAccusationImmoralityFalsityImprobability Author:S. T. Joshi
“Why did the consensus of Christian churches not only accept these astonishing views but establish them as the only true form of Christian doctrine? . . . these religious debates - questions of the nature of God, or of Christ - simultaneously bear social and political implications that are crucial to the development of Christianity as an institutional religion. In simplest terms, ideas which bear implications contrary to that development come to be labeled as 'heresy'; ideas which implicitly support it become 'orthodox.'” IdeasChristianFormPoliticalReligionSocialTermChristChurchReligiousViewsAcceptingChristianitySupportDevelopmentBearsContraryDebateDoctrineOrthodoxCrucialSimplestConsensusAstonishingImplicationsHeresyChristian ChurchChristian Doctrine Author:Elaine Pagels
“For God to be kept out of the classroom or out of America's public debate by nervous school administrators or overcautious politicians serves no one's interests. That restriction prevents people from drawing on this country's rich and diverse religious heritage for guidance, and it degrades the nation's moral discourse by placing a whole realm of theological reasoning out of bounds. The price of that sort of quarantine, at a time of moral dislocation, is - and has been - far too high.” PeopleHas BeensCountryWholeSchoolChristianAmericaNationsInterestReligiousMoralRichPoliticianBoundsDrawingDebateNervousGuidanceRealmsReasoningHeritageClassroomDiverseDiscourseRestrictionTheologicalDegradeAdministratorsQuarantineDislocation Author:Nancy Gibbs
“When a minister or a clergyman takes seriously unfashionable Christian doctrines which condemn sex outside marriage, homosexuality, abortion, and feminism, and injects his views into the political debate, he is immediately denounced as a 'reactionary.'” ChristianPoliticalSexReligiousViewsFeminismDebateDoctrineMinistersAbortionHomosexualityReactionariesClergymenPolitical DebatesChristian Doctrine Book:Faith & Freedom: The Christian Roots of American Liberty Source: Faith & Freedom: The Christian Roots of American Liberty
“The criticism usually goes only to the religious right. 'Bigots,' 'intolerant,' 'hateful' - those labels get slapped on quickly and usually when we are winning debates and scoring points against liberals.” ChristianWinningReligiousCriticismDebateLabelsHatefulBigotsScoring Points Author:Kay Coles James
“When a person's religious beliefs cause him to deny the evidence of science, or for whom public policy morphs into a battle with the devil, shouldn't that be a subject for discussion and debate?” PersonsBeliefCausesReligiousSubjectsPolicyBattleDevilEvidenceDenyDebateDiscussionReligious BeliefPublic Policy Author:Lawrence M. Krauss