Case Against Religion: A Psychotherapists View and the Case Against Religiosity (Paperback)

by Albert Ellis (Author) "Before we can talk sensibly about religion-or almost anything else!-we should give some kind of definition of what we are talking about..." (more)
Key Phrases: secular religionists, devout religionists, New York

Product Details

• Paperback: 57 pages
• Publisher: American Atheist Press (April 1980)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0910309183
• ISBN-13: 978-0910309189
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 0.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #360,833 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Are religionists insane, psychotic, or just 'nuts'? YES!, June 1, 1998

By	[e-mail] (Austin, TX) - See all my reviews

Renowned psychiatrist Albert Ellis argues that there is little real difference between the mental states of people in insane asylums and deeply religious people.

Mentally ill people often use religious imagery; Religious leaders are often mentally ill; psychosis is a break from reality; religion is a break from reality; psychotics and religionists generally believe in all-powerful, non-material spirtits or entities which they can interact with through ritualized behaviors, chants, drugs, prayers, etc.

The claims of religionists, goddists, and spiritualists have no more basis in fact than the claims of the mentally ill, states Dr. Ellis.

Parental promotion of religion is guaranteed to have deleterious effects on children, argues Dr. Ellis. In fact, many of his patients were driven to their insanity by deeply religious upbringings.

The root ideas of religion grow out of fear and ignorance, and to be 'succesful', religionists need to destroy the self-sufficiency of a nation; reducing people to childish dependency and superstitious fear through belief in magical ideas. It is an ominous prospect, given the recent upsurge in religiosity among Americans.

While this book is the text of speeched delivered to atheist conventions, thre are other, more scholarly and detailed books by Dr. Ellis which explain his ideas, and provide readers with the supporting evidence for his claims.

People interested in details, or just gaining some insight and understanding the basis for Dr. Ellis' claims, might want to check out his book ''Reason and Emotion in Psychotherapy'', or Dr. Gregory Bateson's book, "Steps to an Ecology of mind".

-Brian Lynch

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Informative, August 3, 2008

By	Kaleena Laubach (Tampa, FL USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book helped me to step out of my box and away from the dogmatic views that I grew up with and see religion from a different perspective. I will say that I realized that my belief system is a very individual personal relationship with Jesus and not a traditional Christian or Religious following.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars rebuttal, February 22, 2008

By	[e-mail] "dtedford" (Fayetteville, AR) - See all my reviews

As one that is deeply enmeshed in a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, I find many points of agreement,and points of void re conclusions, with Ellis conjecture about'religious beliefs'. I totally agree that it is those things we believe, that can and do effectively create the reality we perceive, and eventually receive, but to preclude that subordination to the concept of a superior, divine, entity is antithetical to the therapeutic process(?),I do not follow that didactic train of thought. Believing a divine plan and purpose exists, per scripture, and believing one is able to tap into a supernatural power, that is beyond human understanding, shall we say is a spiritual concept, which Ellis may or may not have a perceptual clue about, it seems, his belief system ended in self (unfortunately) and not the divine.