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Sam Harris has a new book coming out on September 9, called Waking Up. He claims we can do away with all religion now, and he is going to wake us up to what we should be doing instead of believing in God. But please read the quote in the graphic above, and understand that Harris is NOT interested in giving you a choice or being tolerant if you do want to continue to believe in God or practice a religion. If you would prefer to have a chance to hear evidence about whether, perhaps, Harris is proposing a replacement religion, rather than the end of religion, we suggest you take a look at our book, Antidisestablishmentarian. We quote Harris and hundreds of other Secular Humanists who consider belief a form of insanity, and want to take away your freedom to practice your faith. Below is an excerpt from Chapter Twelve. Complete sources for quotations can be found in the book.
12. What Is True Science?
Pilate saith unto him [Jesus],What is truth?
John 18:38 KJV
Secularists like Charles Watts and Richard Dawkins affirm a single belief, though they vary in their methods of stating it. They believe that there is no evidence for the truth of any “revealed faith” and that only secularist science should be permitted to exist. People who call a religion “revealed” mean that somehow these people were told what to believe by a non-material means and that there is no outside evidence that the written record, their holy scriptures, are true or authoritative. Sam Harris, author of The End of Faith, said, “We have names for people who have many beliefs for which there is no rational justification. When their beliefs are extremely common we call them ‘religious’; otherwise, they are likely to be called ‘mad’, ‘psychotic’ or ‘delusional’…”1 That’s why they call it revealed faith, because secularists have changed the meaning of the word faith into blindly accepting something without evidence.
Every ancient polytheistic belief system has stories of outrageous behavior by its gods. Buddhism and similar “wisdom” religions have no gods per se but they rely upon “enlightenment” received in an otherworldly state of solitary meditation. Islam was delivered to Mohammed in the form of the Koran. The Latter Day Saints received their revelatory scriptures on golden plates from the angel Moroni. Andy Rooney once said about “revealed faiths” that “Those to whom his word was revealed were always alone in some remote place, like Moses. There wasn’t usually anyone else around when Mohammed got the word, either. Mormon Joseph Smith and Christian Scientist, Mary Baker Eddy, had exclusive audiences with God. We have to trust them as reporters – and you know how reporters are. They’ll do anything for a story.”2 Secularists delight in saying that all religions are equally unreliable, their revelations received in secret. But in the case of Moses, he received a relatively brief commission alone in the desert at the burning bush. The children of Israel did not say they were forced to swallow a tall tale of Moses’ secret revelation. They said, “The LORD our God hath shown us his glory and his greatness, and we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire.” Most of the written laws of God were delivered in full view of the entire nation of Israel on Mt. Sinai. “We have seen this day that God doth talk with man, and he liveth. Now therefore why should we die?” (Deuteronomy 5:24, 25, KJV) The people, 603,550 fighting men plus women, children and the aged, (Numbers 1:46) were so convinced that God was really there in the thunder and lightning, and that the laws came directly from Him, that they begged Moses to go up on the mountain as their representative, convinced that as frail sinners they could die in the holy presence of God. Every Israelite could see the cloud and pillar of fire in the middle of the camp every day. All of them saw the plagues in Egypt, participated in the Red Sea crossing, watched Pharaoh’s army drown in the Red Sea, heard God speak to Moses at the tabernacle and saw the destruction of those who rebelled. None of these events took place in secret locations or for a chosen few.
In many cases prophets in the rest of the Old Testament spoke openly to the people as God gave them a revelation. “And Elijah said unto all the people, Come near unto me. And all the people came near unto him. And he repaired the altar of the LORD that was broken down. And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, unto whom the word of the LORD came.” (I Kings 18:30, 31, KJV) John the Baptist was in the desert but crowds of people flocked to him.
He didn’t collect them after he got some secret revelation.
“Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about Jordan, And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins.” (Matthew 3:5,6, KJV) John the Baptist gives testimony that the miraculous circumstances at Jesus’ baptism occurred in full view of all the people present with him at the event. “And John bare record, saying,’ I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him.’ …’Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost.’ And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God.” (John 1:32-34, KJV).
The teachings and attesting miracles (attesting means proof that He was who He said He was) of Jesus Christ in the New Testament were usually in open places before hundreds or thousands of people. “And Jesus, when he came out, saw much people, and was moved with compassion toward them, because they were as sheep not having a shepherd: and he began to teach them many things. … And they that did eat of the loaves were about five thousand men.” (Mark 6:34, 42-44 KJV)
This lie (teaching in secret) was one of the false charges leveled against Jesus at his mockery of a trial. Though Jesus said very little at these so-called trials, he did answer this one charge. “Jesus answered him, ‘I spake openly to the world; I ever taught in the synagogue, and in the temple, whither the Jews always resort; and in secret have I said nothing. Why askest thou me? ask them which heard me, what I have said unto them: behold, they know what I said.’” (John 18:20,21, KJV)
1 Sam Harris, The End of Faith, W.W. Norton & Company New York, NY, 2004.
2 Andy Rooney, Sincerely, Andy Rooney, Essay Productions, Public Affairs, by the Perseus Group, New York, NY, 1999.
http://authl.it/1gv?d Amazon world link for the plain ebook and print editions
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/89123 Smashwords plain ebook versions
http://authl.it/1hn?d Illustrated ebook version
https://gumroad.com/l/xZwz Gumroad epub, mobi, and pdf versions of the illustrated version.
Just as a side note, when you go to Amazon, you will find two reviews,which, when you read them, you should consider that neither of these people, however well-intentioned, has actually read the book. Also please read the Smashwords review. But in the end, if you want to know for sure, you are just going to have to find out for yourself what it really says.
