Western secular culture’s dependence on Christianity
Are our western secular values more dependent on Christianity than we think? Historical writer Tom Holland argues the case.
Tag: society
12. It works (mostly!)
This page in brief …. In the previous eleven posts in this series, we have seen that many different aspects of life (the universe, human life, the history of Jesus and human experience) all seem to make more sense if there is a creator God, than if there is not. In this final post, we […]
Do we need God for life to have real meaning?
I’ve been reading a little about meaning in life. Psychologists tell us we need to have meaning and purpose in life for our psychological wellbeing. With a sense of meaning, we are more likely to be happy, have a positive sense of our own identity and be more resilient under stress But what gives our […]
Atheists and christians – does it have to be war?
I have several times blogged on how christians and atheists relate to each other on the internet, because I think courtesy is better than rudeness, and attitudes on both sides can be improved. So I was interested in christian author Benjamin Corey’s thoughts on this.
Hugh Mackay on why people stop going to church
I am currently reading Hugh Mackay’s book, Beyond Belief, which addresses the question of how people find meaning in life with or without religion. Hugh is probably Australia’s leading social researcher and commentator, regularly appearing on talk shows and in newspaper article. He is neither a christian nor an atheist, probably best described as having […]
Christianity – the good and the bad?
The good and harm done by christianity is a topic of much discussion and argument, and I have written on it many times (e.g. Does religion poison everything? and Do religious believers have better health and wellbeing, like, really?). Keith Parsons is a US philosopher and atheist who writes about the philosophy of religion, and […]
Finding true happiness & satisfaction
Previously I wrote about recent research on Ways we can try to find happiness, but in the end they don’t seem to work. So psychologists have found that pleasure seeking and materialism may provide short term pleasure but they don’t make for a happy or satisfied life. So what does?
Does religious belief make you more moral: a case study in misusing data?
Initial note This is unfortunately a sometimes negative post, and slightly longer than usual. I’m sorry about that. I have tried to be fair and positive, but I think it was important to address this issue. Both christians and non-believers seem to want to prove that their belief makes for a better society and the […]
Ways we can try to find happiness, but in the end they don’t seem to work
I’ve long been interested in the science of what makes people happy, and what doesn’t, and have written about it often on this blog and website. It’s a subject of important research, and new studies and reports are appearing all the time. Here’s the results of some significant studies that have been reported in the […]
Do atheists beget atheists?
I find statistics on religion to be interesting, and helpful in understanding what is going on in the world. In previous posts I have outlined: The major religions (Christianity, Islam, Hinduism and Buddhism) are growing in numbers worldwide, but (Religion statistics), but only Islam and Pentecostal Christianity are growing in percentage terms. Almost half of […]