Atheism And The Case Against Christ

Hundreds of millions of people believe that Jesus came back from the dead. This cogent, forcefully argued book presents a decidedly unpopular view -namely, that the central tenet of Christianity, the resurrection of Jesus, is false. The author asks a number of probing questions: Is the evidence about Jesus as it has been relayed to us over the centuries of sufficient quantity and quality to justify belief in the resurrection? How can we accept the resurrection but reject magic at the Salem witch trials? What light does contemporary research about human rationality from the fields of behavioral economics, empirical psychology, cognitive science, and philosophy shed on the resurrection and religious belief? Can we use contemporary research about the reliability of people's beliefs in the supernatural, miracles, and the paranormal to shed light on the origins of Christianity and other religions? Does it make sense that the all-powerful creator of the universe would employ miracles to achieve his ends? Can a Christian believe by faith alone and yet reasonably deny the supernatural claims of other religions? Do the arguments against Christianity support atheism? By carefully answering each of these questions, this book undermines Christianity and theism at their foundations; it gives us a powerful model for better critical reasoning; and it builds a compelling case for atheism. Without stooping to condescension or arrogance, the author offers persuasive arguments that are accessible, thoughtful, and new.

Matthew S. McCormick is a professor of philosophy at California State University–Sacramento who specializes in atheism, philosophy of religion, epistemology, and critical reasoning. He has contributed to The Impossibility of God, edited by Michael Martin and Ricki Monnier, and to The End of Christianity, edited by John W. Loftus; and he has published widely in philosophy. Read his blog at www.provingthenegative.com.