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Books > Humanities > Religion & beliefs > Alternative belief systems > Syncretist & eclectic religions & belief systems > General
"The Heathen's Guide to Christmas: A Field Manual for the War on
Christmas" brings you the real 'reason for the season'. From the
Virgin Birth to boughs of Holly; Christmas lights to Santa's evil
origins, 'The Heathen's Guide to Christmas presents the actual,
historical origins of this supposed Christian holiday, all in a
hilarious and convenient reference format that makes ruining
Christmas as easy as mincemeat pie. This is the book you want
in-hand when family and friends try to get you into the 'Christmas
Spirit'.
The remarkable discussions in this volume took place between Rudolf
Steiner and workers at the Goetheanum, Switzerland. The varied
subject-matter was chosen by his audience at Rudolf Steiner's
instigation. Steiner took their questions and usually gave
immediate answers. The astonishing nature of these responses -
their insight, knowledge and spiritual depth - is testimony to his
outstanding ability as a spiritual initiate and profound thinker.
Accessible, entertaining and stimulating, the records of these
sessions will be a delight to anybody with an open mind. In this
particular collection, Rudolf Steiner deals with topics ranging
from limestone to Lucifer! He discusses, among other things,
technology; the living earth; natural healing powers; colour and
sickness; rainbows; whooping cough and pleurisy; seances; sleep and
sleeplessness; dreams; reincarnation; life after death; the
physical, ether and astral bodies and the 'I'; the two Jesus
children; Ahriman and Lucifer; the death, resurrection and
ascension of Christ; Dante and Copernicus.
As soon as man becomes conscious of his existence, as soon as he
was able to reason, he was bound to ask himself the questions:
"From whence did I come? And "Whither do I go?" It was very natural
that he should wonder how he came to be here on earth and what
would become of him after death. He saw his fellow man fall asleep,
never to awaken. He saw others killed, life extinguished. It was
his efforts to solve these problems that caused primitive man to
create beliefs in life after death and in the power of super-human
beings. When we look back over the experiences of the race, the
history of mankind, we find that man has found three different ways
of explaining his activities. In other words, there have been but
three conceptions of history, three basic explanations by man of
his doings on this planet. It is true that more than three names
have been given to these conceptions of history, but they will all
fall within the following: First, in order of time, is the
Theological Conception of History; Second, is the Idealist
Conception of History, and, third, is the Materialist Conception of
History.
If suddenly you find yourself traveling down a long tunnel towards
a soothing, ethereal light and you see Grandma waving to you from a
distant garden with harp music in the background, relax. You're not
dead. When you die, you'll know it. Death isn't going to sleep.
Death is waking up. It is actually like being startled awake. There
is no afterlife. There is merely life. What comes after the biology
is magic.
What is Atheism? Atheism is the rejection of religion outright. It
posits that there are no deities, and that the existence of all
things can be explained rationally and without the presence of a
higher power. This independently written book aims to examine the
history of atheism and its philosophical development throughout the
years, its rise in popularity throughout the 20th and 21st
centuries, its central tenets of belief, the reason behind a person
becoming and atheist, as well as atheism's future. It also contains
survey data, provides popular quotes about atheism, lists a large
variety of famous atheists, and depicts today's commonly used
atheist symbols. Contents: What is Atheism? The History and
Development of Atheism Atheism Today & Tomorrow Atheism Vs.
Agnosticism What is Behind the Selection of Atheism as a Religion?
Types of Atheism Reasons for Atheism The Current State of Atheism
Atheist Symbols, Quotes and Famous People
A Secular Humanist's tour de force, Don Libey's second novel offers
Christian believers rare insight into the true fallacy of God's
Church and a Life in the Lord. Set in Small Town, America, it is
the story of how people of blind faith plant their seed, nurture
their beliefs, and harvest their rewards with their unquestioning
reliance on the mythical divine and revealed Word of God and the
moral rectitude and disaster of Christian teaching. For those for
whom "Jesus is enough" this is a story that reveals the "old-timey
Gospel" as essentially hypocrisy and a simple life with God on your
heart as the primary ingredient for the church to make money and
keep its "believers" enslaved.
Infinity and God have been close bedfellows over the recent
millennia of human thought. But this is James A. Lindsay's point.
These two ideas are thought, mere concepts. Lindsay shows in a
concise and readable manner that infinity is an abstraction, and
shows that, in all likelihood, so is God, particularly if he has
infinite properties. This book is about math. It is about God. It
is about stressing the importance of not confusing these two ideas
with reality. Never the twain shall meet. "A short and engaging
read on the meeting of two huge ideas, infinity and God, that
leaves us seeing both as abstract ideas that may have nothing to do
with reality. Honest and accessible, Dot, Dot, Dot is a great
little book to stretch your thinking." - Peter Boghossian, author
of A Manual for Creating Atheists "Timely, important and very
readable, this book pulls the rug from under theists' feet." -
Jonathan MS Pearce, The Little Book of Unholy Questions "Read this
to avoid making any more cardinal sins and learn how much math is
an amazing human endeavor." - Aaron Adair, PhD, The Star of
Bethlehem: A Skeptical View
Beginning in 1689, Jean Meslier worked for around forty years as
the priest of the small town of Etripigny, France. When he died,
his parishioners were astonished to find his last testament to
them: a refutation of every religious doctrine he had advocated in
life. This is the testament, with preface by Voltaire, who exhorted
his own daughter to read it again and again. The Godless Heritage
Series is a project dedicated to bringing hard-to-find works of
atheist and secularist history back into print in an accessible
way. Our goal is to bring back works that allow us to rediscover
the lives of atheists, agnostics, and secularists from across
cultures and through the ages.
The Age of Reason, The Complete Edition is one of the most powerful
thought provoking books ever written about God and religion. It
smashes through the ancient walls of superstition and fear of the
"revealed" religions with the unstoppable battering ram of our
innate God-given reason Thomas Paine was often attacked for having
written this enlightening book, but his arguments and profound
observations found within have never been defeated. This edition
contains the seldom seen third part to The Age of Reason and,
unlike any other editions, also includes all of Paine's known
essays and correspondence regarding God, Deism, the Bible and
theology.
Some events defy statistics and common sense, like winning the
lottery four times in a row. For believers it's just God doing His
thing. Atheists and agnostics don't have it that easy. What are
these astounding synchronicities and highly improbable lucky
breaks? Are they just coincidences or is there something else at
work here? Drawing on science, mathematics, psychology, and
philosophy, this book places the miraculous into a rational
framework, and suggest strategies for harnessing its power in your
decision-making and worldview. That's just half the story. The
other half is the author's own improbable life, starting as a
Jewish infant hidden in the basement of a Gestapo headquarters,
later becoming an Israeli soldier in the Six-Day War, a concert
pianist, a stand-up comedian, and a yogi in an ashram, all before
he turned 50. It is a rip-roaring hilarious tale that will make
your head spin. It will also give you a blueprint for turning your
own life into a journey of awe and amazement. About the author
Peter Elyakim Taussig is a Czech-Israeli-Canadian-American
composer, author, filmmaker, concert pianist, nature photographer,
and inventor. He is neither award-winning nor internationally
acclaimed. He resides in Lenox Massachusetts and Santa Barbara
California. Further self-aggrandizing information is available on
his web site at: www.petertaussig.com
Discussions about belief and non-belief usually end up, time and
time again, in the concept of religion, but in this book the author
has started from the premise that we need to separate the concept
of God, from the notion of human institutions and organized
religion. The real issue, he argues, is that the concept of God is
poorly explored by believers, and greatly explored by
non-believers, when in reality should be the opposite. As religious
people grow up in religious environments, at some point God becomes
just a word without a definition, and people lose perspective of
what they really mean when they say: I do believe in God. So, in
this book he takes on straight on the concept of God, the nature of
faith, the connection between God and religion, how worshipping has
evolved and the actual possibility of morality in the absence of
believe. As in his first book he has made every attempt to express
his ideas in a simple, straight-forward manner, without being
condescending to the believers and inviting them to learn about
atheism and humanism without a push to stop believing. His only
true objective is to promote reason and tolerance, and both
believers and non-believers alike will find his work enticing, and
thought-provoking. This book is the second (and last) in the
"Inside a Non-Believer's" Mind series. On the first part (my
Journey from Christianity to Freethinking), the author shared his
ideas about the reasons to become a humanist and freethinker.
Jabez from the book of Chronicles was a blessed man but was
selfish. This book will encourage us to go beyond Jabez. Dr. T
Charles Brantley is married to Jackie Brantley for over 27 years
with three children. He has also earned a double Doctorate and
Masters Degrees from Newburgh Seminary. In addition, he has
authored 12 national published books. He is also senior pastor of
Restoration Springs Interdenominational Church in Waterbury,
Connecticut. (www.rest.org)
Rudolf Steiner discovered that, in addition to "ordinary" space,
negative space, or "counterspace," also exists, leading to a more
holistic worldview. Steiner suggested that it was important to
understand counterspace as a necessary supplement to the
conventional approach. The author relates the phenomena of our
world to both space and counterspace, which leads to a new
scientific understanding. If counterspace actually exists, then the
resulting interplay between counterspace and "ordinary" space must
be significant. This concept is applied to gravity, liquids, gases,
heat, light, chemistry, and life. Each aspect involves a separate
investigation, whereas the various threads begin to interweave and
become a unified whole. A new concept of time, and indications for
a new approach to relativity and quantum physics begin to emerge.
Note: Science between Space and Counterspace contains advanced
mathematical and scientific proofs that the nonspecialist, general
reader might find difficult.
This work, "Christianity and Black Oppression: Duppy Know Who Fe
Frighten" asks: How is it that blacks have been Christianized for
more than four hundred years, and in some cases more than five
hundred years, and yet blacks are stereotyped as morally and
mentally inferior? At the very first encounter between Europeans
and Africans, Africans were perceived as "pagan," "heathen," and
"devil worshippers." The tool that would transform Africans, it was
postulated, would be the Christian religion. In spite of over four
centuries of Christianity, the perception of blacks as morally and
mentally inferior has not changed. Blacks, it would appear, carry a
stigma that is genetic and can be transmitted. "Christianity and
Black Oppression: Duppy Know Who Fe Frighten" also addresses the
issue as to why there has not been a radical change in the
perception of blacks in spite of centuries of blacks' investment of
an inordinate amount of time, energy and money in the Christian
religion. Green argues that Blacks were forced to surrender their
African world view and adopt a European Christian world view. Black
history and culture are marginalized, and at times demonized,
within Christianity, and this is transferred to other areas of the
lives of blacks. Indeed in this work, a comparison is made between
the Dalits of India who are ostracized within the Hindu religion
and blacks who share the commonality of oppression that is based on
a stigma that is supposedly genetic and therefore can be
transmitted. In the light of the fact that Christianity is
considered to be an egalitarian religion with a God who is
benevolent and who intervenes in peoples' lives, and the reality of
black oppression, the question then arises as to whether blacks are
subjected to "divine racism."
Atheism's leading lights have long been intellectuals raised in the
secular and academic worlds: Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, and the
late Christopher Hitchens. By contrast, Jerry DeWitt was born and
bred into the church and was in fact a Pentecostal preacher before
arriving at atheism through an extraordinary dialogue with faith
that spanned more than a quarter of a century. "Hope After Faith"
is his account of that journey.
DeWitt was a pastor in the town of DeRidder, Louisiana, and was a
fixture of the community. In private, however, he'd begun to
question his faith. Late one night in May 2011, a member of his
flock called seeking prayer for her brother who had been in a
serious accident. As DeWitt searched for the right words to console
her, speech failed him, and he found that the faith which once had
formed the cornerstone of his life had finally crumbled to dust.
When it became public knowledge that DeWitt was now an atheist, he
found himself shunned by much of DeRidder's highly religious
community, losing nearly everything he'd known.
DeWitt's struggle for identity and meaning mirrors the one
currently facing millions of people around the world. With both
agnosticism and atheism entering the mainstream--one in five
Americans now claim no religious affiliation, according to a recent
study--the moment has arrived for a new atheist voice, one that is
respectful of faith and religious traditions yet warmly embraces a
life free of religion, finding not skepticism and cold doubt but
rather profound meaning and hope. "Hope After Faith" is the story
of one man's evolution toward a committed and considered atheism,
one driven by humanism, a profound moral dimension, and a happiness
and self-confidence obtained through living free of fear.
A concise compilation of logical and reasonable responses to
Christian apologetic claims. This book will be of use to anyone who
debates with Christians. It offers "old hands" a reminder of some
of the arguments they may have forgotten, and maybe provides some
new ones. It offers newcomers to the debate the common sense and
rationality that is atheism and very good advice on how to keep
control of theists who attempt to veer off the point or steer their
rudders toward safer waters.
Five track athletes from New York went to Jamaica to learn the
secrets to Jamaican sprinting. In their quest for immediate
success, they ventured into the sacred hills of Jamaica. The
harrowing experience almost killed them. Defeat and disappointment
at the local track meet led them to become spies. The clues that
they found convinced them that they could crack the secret codes
that Jamaican's use to communicate and hide the secrets to
sprinting. After a near death experience, a trip to the hospital
and trickery from the number one con man in Jamaica, they returned
to New York to compete in the County Championships.
The Complete Heretics' Guide to Western Religion Book One: The
Mormons The next time that squeaky clean pair of LDS elders comes
knocking on your door, they're in for a surprise Find out the
secrets the Mormon Church would rather you didn't know (and for
which they paid plenty of money to keep hushed up - unsuccessfully
) In this first book of The Complete Heretic's Guide to World
Religion series, historian and award-winning atheist author Dave
Fitzgerald takes us behind the Salt Lake Curtain for a glimpse at
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and answers your
questions: Where did this multi-billion dollar tax-exempt
corporation come from? Did Joseph Smith really sleep with all those
women? Are the Mormons going to take over the whole world, and if
so, is there any way to stop them? But that's not all Learn about
the bizarre, oxymoronic world of Mormon Archeology and discover
their strange beliefs, not just all the crazy stuff you already
know, but all the truly twisted things you never even suspected -
including the astounding shocking skeletons rattling around in the
closet of the Mormon church hierarchy. Don't miss out on this fun,
informative and painstakingly researched historical romp by the
highly praised and award-winning author of Nailed: Ten Christian
Myths That Show Jesus Never Existed At All. So when the
missionaries show up on your doorstep, you'll have plenty to
discuss with them... Later days, Saints The Complete Heretic's
Guide to Western Religion. Because Religion isn't just wrong. It's
hilarious.
The remarkable discussions in this book took place between Rudolf
Steiner and workers at the Goetheanum in Switzerland. The varied
subject matter was chosen by the audience at Steiner's instigation.
Steiner took questions and generally offered immediate answers. The
astonishing nature of his responses -- their insight, knowledge,
and spiritual depth -- testifies to his outstanding ability as a
spiritual initiate and profound thinker. Accessible, entertaining
and stimulating, the records of these sessions will be a delight to
any open-minded reader.
Here Steiner covers topics ranging from elephants to Einstein.
Among other things, he discusses ants, bees, shells, skeletons,
animal and plant poisons, bodily secretions, protein and fats,
potatoes, the human eye, water, animal migration, clothing, opium
and alcohol, and thinking.
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