Some book recommendations

By Jon Morgan

Recently, I put together a short list of books that had helped me when struggling with doubts, and that I wished I had read earlier.  They were:

• Why I Believed: Reflections of a Former Missionary (available online here)
• Unbelievable (available online here)
• Why Evolution is True
• Sapiens

For more information about how these books helped me, plus some fiction and a couple of other recommendations, see my original blog post.

But it got me thinking: I knew about all of these books because of recommendations by others (some of them on this site). And I'm sure that there are other helpful books that I'm not aware of.  So I thought I'd throw it open to discussion.

Are there any books that you would particularly recommend here?  Books that helped with dealing with doubt or with constructing a new worldview?  Please comment below.

Left the Christadelphians? You’re not alone

By Phynnodderee

When I left the Christadelphian community, I felt completely alone. I felt like the only person who had ever taken this step. I also found myself in the horrible predicament of having to rebuild my worldview almost from scratch. The purpose of this article is to reach out to people in the same situation. It is aimed at those who have recently left the Christadelphians and who are feeling disorientated or isolated as a result. Basically, it’s the kind of supportive advice I wish I could have received when I was going through that phase.

This article is based on my personal experience, so it might resonate with you or it might not. At the very least, I hope it reassures you that you aren’t alone and other people have gone through the process of adjusting to a new life outside the Christadelphians, and have emerged stronger on the other side.

Book review: Atheism for Dummies by Dale McGowan

By Phynnodderee

I spotted this book at my local library recently while I was looking for something else entirely. I found it so interesting that I decided to share this review with you.

Who’s the author?
Dale McGowan, an American atheist and humanist, who is a former music professor and now writer. He writes, blogs and runs workshops on non-religious parenting. You can read his blog at www.parentingbeyondbelief.com/blog.

What’s it about?
Atheism for Dummies (2013) is an introduction to atheism: what it is, what it isn’t, why so many people don’t believe in gods, the history of atheist thought and how it has developed over the millennia (yes, millennia – atheism is very old), and how atheists think, see the world and relate to religious people.

Tell me more…

Is Prayer Answered?

By Pansapien

I have heard Christadelphians assert that our prayers are answered in one of three ways; 'Yes', 'No' or 'Not yet'. I think this is an interesting manoeuvre for two reasons. Firstly, because it means that there is no evidence that can possibly be used to falsify this assertion - as a 'truth proposition' it is impossible to verify. And secondly, because if prayer didn't work we would expect to see these exact same outcomes. If the natural course of events were to play out then these are the only three possible options available.

Read the full article here