New issue of Free Inquiry … plus a bit about faitheism

There’s a new issue of Free Inquiry available. As always, you need to subscribe to the magazine to get all the content, and only a selection (to whet your appetite) is available online.  Among the pieces that you won’t be able to read without getting hold of a hard copy is my (quite long) discussion of faitheism cum review of Chris Stedman’s controversial new book, Faitheist. Short version: I have a fair bit to say about the book, pro and con; there is much to enjoy and admire about the book; but I end by arguing that we should not be faitheists. I.e., we should not be atheists who view religion as a good thing, beyond satire, not a fair target for robust criticism, etc.

Obviously I’m biased, but I think this is an important subject. The publication of books such as Stedman’s ensures that it won’t go away. If nothing else, Stedman manages to do a reasonable job of reclaiming a word that has been used to satirise a particular approach to religion. Good for him, though he and I will go on disagreeing.

I do hope that my discussion of Faitheist gets a bit of attention. I’m fearful that the book will simply polarise people – that it will be liked by people who are already inclined to be faitheists and disliked by those atheists (like me) who actually dislike religion. I hope we can say a bit more about the book and the issues that it raises than just revealing, by our rhetoric, which camp we belong to. If any of y’all have read the new Free Inquiry, or at least my contribution, think of this post as providing an opportunity for discussion of Faitheist and faitheism.

Finally, Free Inquiry deserves your support – and not just because I have a regular column there. It publishes much worthwhile material and remains a flagship of the broad secular movement.