God and the Folly of Faith
The Incompatibility of Science and Religion
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Narrated by:
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David Smalley
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Dan Barker
About this listen
A thorough and hard-hitting critique that is a must-hear for anyone interested in the interaction between religion and science.
It has become the prevalent view among sociologists, historians, and some theistic scientists that religion and science have never been in serious conflict. Some even claim that Christianity was responsible for the development of science. In a sweeping historical survey that begins with ancient Greek science and proceeds through the Renaissance and Enlightenment to contemporary advances in physics and cosmology, Stenger makes a convincing case that not only is this conclusion false, but Christianity actually held back the progress of science for 1,000 years. It is significant, he notes, that the scientific revolution of the 17th century occurred only after the revolts against established ecclesiastic authorities in the Renaissance and Reformation opened up new avenues of thought.
The author goes on to detail how religion and science are fundamentally incompatible in several areas: the origin of the universe and its physical parameters, the origin of complexity, holism versus reductionism, the nature of mind and consciousness, and the source of morality. In the end, Stenger is most troubled by the negative influence that organized religion often exerts on politics and society. He points out antiscientific attitudes embedded in popular religion that are being used to suppress scientific results on issues of global importance, such as overpopulation and environmental degradation. When religion fosters disrespect for science, it threatens the generations of humanity that will follow ours.
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Columnist and publisher Michael Shermer, once an evangelical Christian and a creationist, argues that Intelligent Design proponents invoke a combination of ad science, political antipathy, and flawed theology in their new brand of creationism. He refutes their pseudoscientific arguments and then demonstrates why conservatives and people of faith can and should embrace evolution. Why Darwin Matters is an incisive examination of what is at stake in the debate over evolution.
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TOTAL MISREPRENTATION: WHERE IS THE EVIDENCE?
- By Theo Tsourdalakis on 09-04-11
By: Michael Shermer
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The Logical Leap
- Induction in Physics
- By: David Harriman
- Narrated by: Erik Singer
- Length: 10 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
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Beginning with a detailed discussion of the role of mathematics and experimentation in validating generalizations in physics-looking closely at the reasoning of scientists such as Galileo, Kepler, Newton, Lavoisier, and Maxwell-Harriman skillfully argues that the inductive method used in philosophy is in principle indistinguishable from the method used in physics.
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Quite refreshing
- By Eric on 10-12-10
By: David Harriman
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The Upright Thinkers
- The Human Journey From Living in Trees to Understanding the Cosmos
- By: Leonard Mlodinow
- Narrated by: Leonard Mlodinow
- Length: 12 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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In this fascinating and illuminating work, Leonard Mlodinow guides us through the critical eras and events in the development of science, all of which, he demonstrates, were propelled forward by humankind's collective struggle to know. From the birth of reasoning and culture to the formation of the studies of physics, chemistry, biology, and modern-day quantum physics, we come to see that much of our progress can be attributed to simple questions - why? how? - bravely asked.
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10/10 Got What I Wanted.
- By Austin on 09-22-15
By: Leonard Mlodinow
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Hidden Dimensions
- The Unification of Physics and Consciousness
- By: B. Alan Wallace
- Narrated by: Stow Lovejoy
- Length: 6 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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Bridging the gap between the world of science and the realm of the spiritual, Wallace, a pioneer of modern consciousness research, offers a practical and revolutionary method for exploring the mind that combines the keenest insights of contemporary physics and philosophers with the time-honored meditative traditions of Buddhism.
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Great companion piece to Anathem by Stephenson
- By Kal on 02-20-09
By: B. Alan Wallace
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Knocking on Heaven's Door
- How Physics and Scientific Thinking Illuminate the Universe and the Modern World
- By: Lisa Randall
- Narrated by: Carrington MacDuffie
- Length: 14 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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The latest developments in physics have the potential to radically revise our understanding of the world: its makeup, its evolution, and the fundamental forces that drive its operation. Knocking on Heaven's Door is an exhilarating and accessible overview of these developments and an impassioned argument for the significance of science. There could be no better guide than Lisa Randall.
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Too Political
- By Allan on 12-14-11
By: Lisa Randall
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The Structure of Scientific Revolutions
- By: Thomas S. Kuhn
- Narrated by: Dennis Holland
- Length: 10 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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A good book may have the power to change the way we see the world, but a great book actually becomes part of our daily consciousness, pervading our thinking to the point that we take it for granted, and we forget how provocative and challenging its ideas once were - and still are. The Structure of Scientific Revolutions is that kind of book.
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The problem is not with the book
- By Marcus on 08-09-09
By: Thomas S. Kuhn
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Where the Conflict Really Lies
- Science, Religion, & Naturalism
- By: Alvin Plantinga
- Narrated by: Michael Butler Murray
- Length: 12 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
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This audiobook is a long-awaited major statement by a pre-eminent analytic philosopher, Alvin Plantinga, on one of our biggest debates - the compatibility of science and religion. The last twenty years has seen a cottage industry of books on this divide, but with little consensus emerging. Plantinga, as a top philosopher but also a proponent of the rationality of religious belief, has a unique contribution to make. His theme in this short book is that the conflict between science and theistic religion is actually superficial, and that at a deeper level they are in concord.
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The reader makes or breaks an audiobook.
- By Alec on 02-16-15
By: Alvin Plantinga
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The Varieties of Scientific Experience
- A Personal View of the Search for God
- By: Carl Sagan, Ann Druyan - editor
- Narrated by: Adrienne C. Moore, Ann Druyan
- Length: 7 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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The late great astronomer and astrophysicist describes his personal search to understand the nature of the sacred in the vastness of the cosmos. Exhibiting a breadth of intellect nothing short of astounding, Sagan presents his views on a wide range of topics, including the likelihood of intelligent life on other planets, creationism and so-called intelligent design.
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Sagan's lectures about the possibility of God
- By David T. on 11-13-17
By: Carl Sagan, and others
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The Trouble with Physics
- The Rise of String Theory, The Fall of a Science, and What Comes Next
- By: Lee Smolin
- Narrated by: Walter Dixon
- Length: 14 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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In this illuminating book, the renowned theoretical physicist Lee Smolin argues that fundamental physics - the search for the laws of nature - is losing its way. Ambitious ideas about extra dimensions, exotic particles, multiple universes, and strings have captured the publics imagination -- and the imagination of experts.
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Strings snipped
- By J B Tipton on 06-06-10
By: Lee Smolin
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When Einstein Walked with Gödel
- Excursions to the Edge of Thought
- By: Jim Holt
- Narrated by: David Stifel
- Length: 15 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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Does time exist? What is infinity? Why do mirrors reverse left and right but not up and down? In this scintillating collection, Holt explores the human mind, the cosmos, and the thinkers who’ve tried to encompass the latter with the former. With his trademark clarity and humor, Holt probes the mysteries of quantum mechanics, the quest for the foundations of mathematics, and the nature of logic and truth. Along the way, he offers intimate biographical sketches of celebrated and neglected thinkers, from the physicist Emmy Noether to the computing pioneer Alan Turing and the discoverer of fractals, Benoit Mandelbrot.
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A good overview of scientific theory
- By MJ Walters on 09-11-18
By: Jim Holt
What listeners say about God and the Folly of Faith
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Jan D. Leslie
- 12-08-17
tempered, and rational
Most of the book is a straight forward presentation of the facts. Doesn't have the overt confrontational tone that so many science and religious books have. found it refreshing.
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- mathew thompson
- 12-05-19
Seeing is believing.
You'll learn a little biology, chemistry, and physics. But mostly you'll learn how science is superior to religion.
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- j
- 03-08-18
EPIC
One of if not the best books I’ve gotten thru audible about how much religion has harmed humanity and held back humans from being more civilized and scientifically advanced.
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- Daniel Melgar
- 01-23-23
Religion and Science and Politics are incompatible
Stenger has written an intelligent and thoughtful book but he allows his personal political agenda to seep into his analysis especially the last several chapters and he goes from scientist to global warming alarmist in a sentence or two. Otherwise this book is well worth reading for it primary thesis that science and religion are as different as reality is from make believe.
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- Aldous Huxley
- 08-04-21
An excellent book
Thank you, Dr. Stenger, for writing this book. It does a great job of articulating the perils of magical (faith-based) thinking and should be in the library of anyone who cares about the future and survival of civilization.
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- S. Tupper
- 08-13-16
Smalley Guts Another One
Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?
The text itself is very good. On a par with Krauss's A Universe from Nothing, Weinberg's The First Three Minutes, and Shermer's Why Darwin Matters and it covers some of the same material in a way that enhances your understanding of the integrated field.
How could the performance have been better?
David Smalley, who mangled Stenger's "God: The Failed Hypothesis," is back and he manages to goof up this volume as well. He makes it obvious that Pitchstone just wanted to get an audio version out and didn't care enough about it to either (a) research even the most basic pronunciations for names and concepts or (b) get a narrator who was familiar enough with the material to get it right on his or her own. The performance takes all of the pleasure out of Stenger's fine work. A hack job that didn't have to be a hack job.
Any additional comments?
Stenger's books are important. They're praised by the Four Horsemen and others as accessible ways to get up to speed on the scientific arguments in this field. The release of audiobook versions of Stenger's works were anxiously awaited. And these performances by Smalley and his director and/or producer bring the whole thing down with a thud.If you just want a convenient way to consume this book and you're okay with the narrator and producer giving the book short shrift (e.g., you have to be familiar with the book for a college course or you're just surveying the literature in the most general way) then this is a passable intoning of most of the English words and you'll be able to say that you've read (listened to) it.But if you care in the least bit about Stenger's work or if you are the least bit familiar with the science and the scientists, this performance will be too distractingly bad to enjoy or even tolerate.There is probably the will and the business case to produce one audio version of each of Stenger's books. Pitchstone picked up this baton - excluding any other that might have carried it - and promptly and distressingly fumbled it. I'm disappointed, and, if you are at all widely read in science and its history, you'll be disappointed, too. Go read the hardcopy.
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12 people found this helpful