In Focus 1 ISSUE 12 / MAR 2012 IN THIS ISSUE The New Atheism: Why? Greg Clarke Equip. The Global Atheist Convention and the Hard Questions Denise Cooper-Clarke Is Religion Dangerous? Greg Restall Can We Be Good without God? Ian Packer The New Atheists and the Arts Kristi Giselsson Book Review: > The Moral Landscape Gordon Preece Keeping the Rumour of God Alive 2 InEquip. Focus MARCH 2012 Editorial Published quarterlyquarte by Australian EvangelicalEvang Alliance Inc. Comedian Dane Cook tells a story of a young man standing next ABN 54 056 007 820 PO Box 175 to him who suddenly sneezed 44 Rutland Rd Box Hill Victoria 3128 somewhat violently. Taking the Tel 03 9890 0633 Fax 03 9890 0700 ‘high road’, as he calls it, he uttered EA’s Vision Email [email protected] the phrase, ‘God bless you’. The www.ea.org.au man looked at him and, in a condescending tone, said, ‘Uh, » Local churches and ministries Editor – Gordon Preece yeah. I’m an atheist’. Cook, bemused, wondered, ‘What am understanding and exercising Board Chair and Acting EA Director – I supposed to say when an atheist sneezes? ‘When you die, their God-given mission: global, David Wilson nothing happens’?’ national and local Equip is the offi cial journal of EA We have moved from a world in which a few centuries » Australia. Its purpose is to promote Christians thinking and living Alliance concerns, inform and ago, as Charles Taylor puts it in his magisterial A Secular as disciples of Jesus in every encourage readers about evangelical Age, “it was virtually impossible not to believe in God” to part of their lives initiatives at home and abroad and inspire thinking and action concerning one in which belief has become merely one option among » Australian society communication of the Gospel in many. And now there is a popular movement aggressively characterised by greater truth, Australia today. challenging whether we should allow such ‘options’ to justice, love, respect and a EA does not necessarily endorse all continue any longer in public in the light of ‘Reason’ and better life for the poor and views printed in Equip. Instead articles ‘Science’. Sure, atheism is not new and at times Christians are included to encourage discernment have made good use of atheist criticisms of religion and marginalised, especially the and debate on key issues for Australian particular god-concepts. (Even the early Christians were indigenous people of Australia Christians. accused of being atheistic.) But we now have ‘the New » Evangelicals working together Ministry Arms & Agencies Atheism’, a fascinating ‘media event’, fuelled undoubtedly locally, nationally, and globally by blogs and YouTube clips, and now with its second Global Atheist Conference happening in Melbourne, the Why join EA? ‘Celebration of Reason’. » to engage your faith and Ethos: EA Centre for A number of Christian organisations are working together life more Christianity and Society to respond to this conference, including EA’s Ethos Centre Director – Gordon Preece for Christianity & Society. This is not because Christians » to access excellent resources Tel 0401 653 328 are frightened or feel threatened in any respect by this and ministries pertinent to Email [email protected] new movement, but because we’re genuinely interested your Christian life in substantive conversations on issues of public interest, » to be part of a trusted particularly those surrounding ‘religion’. But let’s face Christian response to issues it: public discussion of ‘religion’, and the Christian faith of concern, such as standing Christian Management Australia in particular, is not especially healthy or well-informed. alongside our indigenous National Director – Gary Williams This issue of Equip is one small contribution to helping communities Tel 07 5533 2039 you engage with your friends and neighbours about Email [email protected] the upcoming conference and even the burgeoning » to be connected with Indigenous Ministry Network commenting of New Atheist fans on-line. quality people from other Co-ordinator – Jean Phillips denominations in the spheres of Email [email protected] Greg Clarke, formerly with the Centre for Public Christianity church, mission and business and now The Bible Society in Australia asks about the resurgence of public atheism in ‘The New Atheism – Why?’. » to add your voice with 200 EA Insurance Greg Restall, a philosopher at the University of Melbourne, million other like-minded For churches and parachurch ministries looks at a common criticism of Christians and others in evangelical Christians in Manager – Neil Bull ‘Is Religion Dangerous?’. Denise Cooper-Clarke of Ethos Email [email protected] Australia and worldwide Tel 03 9890 6851 looks at ‘The Global Atheist Convention and the Hard Questions’ and I refl ect a little on God and morality in ‘Can An evangelical is someone who We Be Good without God?’ Philosopher Kristi Giselsson passionately believes the central looks at the New Atheists and the Arts, focusing on the claims of the Bible and traditional underappreciated problem of beauty and meaning for Christian faith: such as that Jesus Missions Interlink National Director – Pam Thyer atheism; and fi nally Gordon Preece looks at New Atheist is both God and man; that he Tel 03 9890 0644 Sam Harris’s latest book, The Moral Landscape. announced the arrival of God’s Fax 03 9890 0700 It is our hope you fi nd these articles useful in your own kingdom, that he died for our sins; Email [email protected] thinking and refl ection and helpful for conversation with that he was raised from the dead. Religious Liberty Commission others. Please keep an eye on the Ethos website Evangelicals emphasise personal Co-ordinator – Ron Clough (www.ethos.org.au) for more news and resources on the commitment to Jesus Christ and a Tel 03 9842 1562 Fax 03 9890 0700 New Atheism over the coming months. desire to live out that faith together Email [email protected] and in the community in words Ian Packer Advertise in Equip Assistant Director and works of justice and love, Email [email protected] anticipating God’s promised future. for advertising rates Ethos – EA Centre for Christianity & Society In Focus 3 The New Atheism: Why? Greg Clarke oes it strike anyone else as against God’s existence that does circumscribing what the ‘Good Life’ strange that atheism is such work (called the argument from looks like sans God; unlike Dawkins, Dbig news? After all, most improbability); Darwin’s theory of Hitchens does appreciate some of people in most cultures at most times evolution really can explain the entire what religion has given to culture. in history have believed that there universe; religions are simply cultural Sam Harris is the youngest of these is a God, or at least gods. Atheism clusters of information (‘memes’) that writers, penning The End of Faith: has never been a majority position. evolve in the same way as genes, Religion, Terror and the Future of Furthermore, I rarely hear discussion and; morality has no basis in theism Reason and Letter to a Christian of atheism outside of university circles and the Bible in particular leads to Nation while an American graduate or their media equivalents (that is, late great immorality, oppression and student in neuroscience. We might night radio programmes for ‘thinkers’). unhappiness. Dawkins’s book has summarise his approach as a call to So why are there now at least four missionary aims: “If this book works replace religion with a common-sense bestselling books about atheism? as I intend, religious readers who kind of reason (which has no place open it will be atheists when they put Has atheism acquired the fascination for revealed truths) and the sort of it down” (p.5). that often accompanies ‘marginal’ love found in Eastern spirituality. He views? Or are there broader reasons Daniel C. Dennett, a cognitive considers theology to be “a branch for its current appeal? Before offering scientist, is responsible for a more of human ignorance”, while reason my 10 theses on the fl urry of interest specialised but no less aggressive is “nothing less than the guardian of in atheism, it will be worthwhile book, Breaking the Spell: Religion love”. In his most recent book The reviewing some of the key players in as a Natural Phenomenon. His Moral Landscape, he attempts to recent public discussions. argument is that evolutionary present a purely naturalistic account biology will eventually show us that of human morality. Most prominent is Professor Richard human religiosity arose because Dawkins, Chair for the Public Finally, there is Michel Onfray, a of a cognitive adaptation that saw Understanding of Science at the French intellectual whose fi rst book advantage in explaining things that University of Oxford. Dawkins is was about the eating habits of were mysterious to us by appeal to a well-known science writer and philosophers. His current book is The an ‘agent’ of some sort, leading us to academic biologist whose doctoral Atheist Manifesto: The Case against the belief in a God. Dennett admits research was on the pecking Christianity, Judaism and Islam. By far that this hypothesis has no scientifi c behaviour of chickens! He rose to the most philosophically expansive foundation, but seems to think that prominence following the publication of these books, Onfray nevertheless by naming it as a possibility he has of his book The Selfi sh Gene where offers a standard nihilistic critique debunked religion. he argued that we need to oppose of religion, one that would do our remorseless genes in order for The journalist Christopher Hitchens, Nietzsche and Bataille proud. the human race to fl ourish. His recent who died recently, added his personal Religion is allegedly pleasureless, book is The God Delusion, in which condemnation of religion in God is violent, controlling and repressive.