Metal Reviews

I just read the first sentence and he already fails. The God Delusion is NOT theology. Do people even read the prefaces?? Jesus. Dawkins on Theology would be like the textile study of the Emperor's Clothes.

With you? I might invite you over to dinner and allow you to observe the harmony that leading an Islamic life brings one, but I would not bring it up directly. I would comport myself as a Muslim is expected to and hope that if you did not revert, you would at least observe and consider points of view contrary to your own.

The truth is that every living thing is God, "God" here not being Yahweh but that essential spark which distinguishes the living from the dead, that other that I mentioned before which science cannot explain and which makes us capable of reacting to beautiful art or landscapes or whatever. I'm an atheist, but like Einstein see no problem when God is changed from Bearded Sky Man to this other. That is perfectly logical to me, even if the dogma of organised religion isn't.

DM, the major of London recently caused a fuss when he suggested that non-Muslims should try fasting for a day with Muslims to try and understand them better. Are you down with that? Will edit this with the article if I have time, should be easy to find though.

I try to do that anyway.
What are your thoughts on the Day of Ashura?

Having attempted to read the God Delusion and being overwhelmed by the sheer pointlessness of it after 10 minutes, I can't say this with any authority at all- but isn't at least a large part of it an attack on theology? Clearly it's not theology itself, but it's surely about it... hence the analogy works?

It's kind of unlikely that someone like Eagleton would make such a basic mistake as the one you're accusing him of... however having not read the book thoroughly myself, I don't really know either way.

Sounds like a good idea, actually.

the Day of Ashura is an optional fast. I don't really know much of anything about it; my opinion is that people shouldn't kill each other during it.

He definitely spends some time in pointing out the pointlessness of theology, but that's not the main point of the book. TGD is more of a "call to arms" for atheists to be vociferous about their position. Dawkins, being a scientist, is obviously more concerned with the implications that religion has for knowledge seeking and rationalism, rather than solving philosophical quandaries. Leave that to Dennett.
I didn't read the entire Eagleton article, it's too long for now. I did skim through it and saw a few criticisms that are bollocks, though. Like the idea that Dawkins honestly believes that all faith is fundamentalist and blinding. Again, the preface to TGD addresses this point. Dawkins says that while of course most believers simply wish to live and let live, there is a) a quite loud and influential portion of believers who do not wish to do so, and who must be countered, and b) there is a more pervasive and general negative aspect to religious faith, which he summed up (quite eloquently, IMHO ) during an interview once: "I am against faith because it teaches us to be content with what we do not know".

I hated fasting in my Jewish days - my stomach problems mean that not having anything to digest for long periods of time = excess stomach acid, which leads to vomit and pain and misery. How stringent is Islam when it comes to fasting? I know Orthodox Judaism doesn't give a fuck about your health problems and eating on Yom Kippur means the shortening of your life, but is Islam nicer about it?

I'll fast with you if you come out and join me for a bacon batty.

RE: Day of Ashura, what about the people who slice open their children's heads in order for them to share in the suffering? I must say some of the reports I've read have sickened me. Is this legal in Muslim countries?

Personally, of course, I (generally) agree with Dawkins on the question of God vs. Science and on the whole question of the merits of faith. However, I also agree with a lot of what Eagleton says about the social/political effects of religion. It is a big mistake to simply shrug and put a lot of problems down to deluded believers, when there are much deeper forces at work.

No doubt everyone will be astonished to hear that I come closest to Marx's position when it comes to the social role of religion; "the heart of a heartless world..." etc.

The issue does become more complex when turned to the social scale. Have you read Dan Dennett's "Breaking The Spell - Religion as a natural phenomenon"? Quite fascinating, frankly. I personally feel that religion offers unique inspiration for violence, but when it comes to creating social fabric and benefits it's easily replaceable.

Never read Dan Dennett at all... sounds interesting though.

You fast for less time in Islam- from Fajr (morning prayer) to Maghrib (sundown prayer), generally only around twelve to thirteen hours.

The schools of Islamic Fiqh differ on this, but they are all of the opinion that if you cannot fast due to health problems, then do not fast. If you do not fast, then it is required that you donate a certain amount of food to the poor or spend some time doing good works if you cannot afford to donate the food, and if you can do neither, then pray and ask Allah for forgiveness.

Frigid- that's a Shi'a custom.

I didn't ask you whose custom it is, I asked you what you thought about it, specifically in more pervasive Islamic terms. And is it legal?

My incredibly uneducated opinion is that it constitutes innovation like many other Shi'a customs and should not be celebrated in the manner it is celebrated.

Is it legal? Probably in Iraq and Iran, dunno about elsewhere?

Not as interesting as you'd think. I'm seconding you on the Marx.

INFINITE WIN

As regards DM, it's not surprising that he would say that you cannot outrun Allah in the end, as religion is fuelled primarily by fear, that if you don't believe in that particular religion, you are going to burn in hell, or whatever plane of damnation that religion believes in. Utter farce. Also, are you saying that everyone who reads the Koran will automatically have the same experience you did? And if not, does that mean that something must be wrong with them, that they are 'already dead' in a spiritual sense? Agonising. The arrogance of believers never ceases to amaze.

Also, it's incredible that in an ever expanding universe that the religious people believe was created by god/allah/whatever, this being would only care about this one tiny planet among all the galaxies, or more specifically, the moral choices made by one of the species on that planet.

this is the sort of post Frigid would make if he lost about 30 IQ points.

That is to say, it serves no purpose to open up any sort of dialogue and is plagued by misreadings of my posts.