Customer Reviews

Letter to an Atheist

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

One need merely read the introduction of this book to realize that the entire thing is a carefully constructed straw-man argument. After four or five empty paragraphs spent characterizing himself as reasonable and Sam Harris as emotional, himself as honest and Harris as dishonest, et cetera, Leahy defines his three main complaints as:

1. Sam's book is rife with inaccuracies.
2. Sam wants to curtail the rights of Christian citizens relative to non-Christian citizens.
3. The Christians Sam describes and is speaking to are not "true Christians".

Leahy makes a few attempts to justify number 1, but his meager refutations are usually uncited nit-pickings, and do not come anywhere near the level promised by the word "rife".
Item 2 is an outright lie, and the bulk of the straw-man argument.
Item 3 is an all-too-typical piece of literary tap-dancing known in high-school debate classes nationwide as the "all true Scotsmen fallacy", and he wastes a good portion of his time essentially reassuring readers that the Christians he speaks for are entirely unlike the Christians Sam is addressing in his book. Which, if he had bothered to read Sam's own introduction, he would have seen is completely unnecessary. OF COURSE Sam is not speaking to gentle, moderate Christians when he lambastes them for petitioning to teach Intelligent Design in science class. Though he does admonish them for allowing others to conveniently do so in their name and supposedly for the sake of their faith.

Long story short, I don't know why I bothered reading this.

Really didn't expect much from this book. Typical nonsense spewing from the mouth of an Ignorant person. I find it almost hysterical that Christians continue to buy into the propaganda fed to them. I read this book only out a deal I made with a Christian friend of mine. He would read The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins and I would read this. He is now no longer a Christian, bordering on Agnosticism and Deism. I don't suggest that anyone read this nonsense.

Leahy offers a very logical and well researched book which attempts to expose the inconsistencies, contradictions and fallacies of Sam Harris and the other pugnacious public atheists. He does a very adequate job on the surface, but doesn't refute many of the underlying a priori assumptions which modern atheists take for granted.

Leahy supplies quotes that reveal many of Harris' goals are to remove the rights of religious people. He demonstrates that Harris, not only has positions which are contrary to the USA's Bill of Rights, but that he seeks to undermine some important rights of people of faith.

The author recounts history when it is favorable to the Christian position, but I would have preferred that he defeated the irrational pre-commitments that under gird an atheist's view of history and ethics. This book does provide evidence and arguments which make atheism improbable and illogical. I enjoyed reading it, nevertheless I would have received more intellectual ammunition if he argued that only Christianity furnishes the rational and moral pre-necessities that make proof and evidence possible.
Letter to an Atheist Nation: Presupositional Apologetics Responds To: Letter to a Christian

Can you really fault me for honestly and sincerely not having any desire to believe in a god or religion?

Yes I read the book.

Mr. Leahy clearly presents over a dozen and a half factual errors in Harris's book; this seems to really anger the reviewers who feel free to castigate Mr. Leahy without actually pointing out where Mr. Harris is correct when Mr. Leahy says he is mistaken.

IN fact, no one has refuted Mr. Leahy, they have just spewed insults and ad hominems.

This was a good response to Sam Harris overall. However, the author went into the history a little more than I would have liked. In some areas he went into real depth, while other areas were treated somewhat superficially. This especially was true for his section of 20 errors in Letter to a Christian Nation. It seemed like he threw some in without much explanation just so he could reach twenty.

The book could have used a bit more editing, too. But it still is a worthwhile read alongside Metcalf and Wilson. Read the three books as a set and you have a solid refutation of Sam Harris.

I was torn over whether to give this book 4 or 3 stars. I would have given 4 if it wasn't for the fact that there aren't many reviews of it yet, and the editing needed work.

I don't understand why Leahy chose such dated material to refute Harris. He uses older revelations from God (Old & New Testament) to refute arguments for Atheism. Seems to me that he should be arguing based upon the newer revelations such as the Quran, or more recently, the Book of Mormon. C'mon Leahy, do your research!

Mr. Leahy sets the record straight in his book, Letter to an Atheist. His careful research and candid writing style shed light on the previously unchallenged, bold (and sometimes arrogant) claims made by Sam Harris in Letter to a Christian Nation. Leahy offers a set of lenses through which the serious reader should view these claims. He presents a thoughtful counterpoint on issues of slavery, science & evolution, politics, and Islam. A straightforward, insightful and well-written work. I would highly recommend it.

Jeffrey Wright, PhD

Thank you Mike for stating what many people of faith only consider. It takes a heart of conviction to move forward in the face of adversity and you have done a fantastic job. You have been blessed with a talent and we look forward to future writings.

This book is a must have for anyone responding to those propogating a world without God. You will be enlightened and your faith will be bolstered. In a busy world where time is fleeting you will find this Letter to be a valuable investment of this time.

The story is very simple and it is very easy to follow. We all know what it means.