15AR20-38

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AR 20:38 - Academic study: "greed is embedded in our social DNA"

In this issue:

Apologia Report 20:38 (1,267)

November 13, 2015

ATHEISM - and we thought Dawkins' attitude was caustic

HUMAN NATURE - might "The Con" be a check for naive sentimental assumptions?

OSTEEN, JOEL - his Lakewood Church under the academic microscope

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ATHEISM

Sometimes there just seems to be no end to the escalation of religious conflict. Just when we think we've seen the limit of how far antagonistic atheists are willing to go with their aggressive efforts in print, along comes Fighting God: An Atheist Manifesto for a Religious World, by David Silverman [1] -- Kirkus (Sep '15, #1) summarizes it as "An evangelical manifesto to recruit 'closeted atheists' to become firebrand activists. Silverman is the president of American Atheists, the same post once held by the late Madalyn Murray O'Hair, who long took pride in being called the most hated woman in America and whom Silverman tries to emulate. Thus, his brand of militant atheism is not one of gentle persuasion, nor does it employ the more intellectually nuanced arguments made by the likes of Sam Harris. For Silverman, there is no continuum of belief, no gradations, no alternative such as 'agnostic' or 'humanist' or 'freethinker.' Either you believe in a 'literal god,' which he calls a 'living, thinking, supernatural being,' or you don't. This means that all agnostics, most Buddhists, and likely many Christian ministers and parishioners alike are, in fact, atheists. And that some are charlatans, others fools, though, like the Christian who claims to hate the sin but love the sinner, the author maintains that what he describes as a war is against religion (all of them), not the religious (whom he mainly pities). 'I have read, thought and studied enough to satisfy myself that there is no god, all gods are imaginary, and actively believing in a god is silly,' he writes. For the author, the ultimate arbiter is human rationality, which he holds supreme. Some might argue that it is reductive to restrict a divine spirit that inspires faith and awe to a god that is living and/or thinking. Some might claim that plenty of value transcends logic - the meaning of a poem, the power of an abstract painting, perhaps the creative impulse itself. To Silverman, however, anything that lies outside the realm of human logic is unprovable and therefore false. Some issues worth raising - such as the relationship between church and state and particularly the tax-exempt status of religious institutions - are undermined by assertions such as, 'atheism is perfect' and 'the Ten Commandments are not benevolent but barbaric.' Silverman's unrelentingly combative tone will likely only appeal to the choir."

Also consider "The Errors of the Militant Atheist" by Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry <www.goo.gl/RA9Ajw>

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HUMAN NATURE

Once again, the oft-sentimental hope that "humans are basically good at heart," takes a hit. Here come The Con Men: Hustling in New York City, by Terry Williams and Trevor B. Milton [2]. Summarized: "Two sociology professors' survey of New York con artists and how these reviled but crafty opportunists manage to make a living in the city's informal economy. New York City is full of haves and have-nots. But as Williams (New School for Social Research) and Milton (Queensborough Community Coll., CUNY) point out, this description is incomplete because it does not consider one invisible but ever present community: the con artists who take to have. In this book, the authors observe how people locked out of the 'masterful' con game of the American dream create, and master, new games designed to temporarily beat the larger con. They base their account, which they call a 'collage ethnography,' on direct interactions with nine New York con artists whom they interviewed and followed over the course of several years. What emerges from this collaboration is an intriguing study of the many different types of schemes - for example, dice and numbers games, slum-jewelry and designer kn ockoff cons, and tenant hustles - in which these men and women engage. Beyond describing how these cons work, Williams and Milton examine the con artist community and the enterprising individuals who inhabit it. They also argue that opportunism is an art that requires mastery of many complex rules. Indeed, con games are really a form of 'street theater' that manages to 'seduce' unsuspecting citizens into participating in an unfolding drama. What makes the book especially fascinating is the way the authors demonstrate how con games are not restricted by class - or any other social marker. Such behavior also takes place among 'respectable' middle-class professionals such as law enforcement officials and, perhaps less surprisingly, wealthy New York business executives. Bold and illuminating, the book is a reminder that no matter how poor or rich people may be, greed - and therefore the capacity to cheat others for our own gain - 'is embedded in our social DNA.' A thoroughly researched academic study accessible to general readers." Kirkus, Sep '15, #2.

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OSTEEN, JOEL

Salvation With a Smile: Joel Osteen, Lakewood Church, and American Christianity, by Phillip Luke Sinitiere [3] -- in his brief review for Library Journal (Oct '15, #1), Graham Christian ("formerly with Andover-Harvard Theological Lib., Cambridge, MA") explains that: "Sinitiere (history, Coll. of Biblical Studies) has written a remarkable and trenchant study of Joel Osteen, senior pastor of Lakewood Church in Houston, the largest Protestant church in the United States, welcoming approximately 40,000 worshipers each week. Following in the footsteps of his late father John Osteen, founder of Lakewood and an advocate of neo-Pentecostalism, or crossing denominational boundaries, Joel is an exponent of the 'prosperity Gospel,' a creed that associates enthusiastic faith with joy and success in the present day, almost to the exclusion of any mention of pastoral standbys such as sin or judgment. Sinitiere sketches Osteen's life and career, emphasizing his early experience as a television producer as well as the implications of being son to a prominent preacher. Osteen's sunny message has attracted much controversy, not least from other conservative Christians, but his megasuccess, Sinitiere brilliantly shows, says a great deal about the state of religion in America. VERDICT A fascinating, illuminating, and at times disturbing account from a shrewd observer."

Publishers Weekly (Sep '15, #2) adds: "Sinitiere ... explores the people, place, personality, Pentecostalism, and prosperity of ... an exemplar of evangelical Christianity and present-day American religion [and] depicts the church as distinctively positioned to benefit from currents in contemporary Christianity through its harnessing of multiple media platforms and the powers of positive confession and thinking in place of grander expressions of Lakewood's historical 'charismatic core' - divine healing, speaking in tongues, prophecy - under Joel's father, John Osteen. Although Sinitiere does not talk to Osteen himself, he is able to deduce much from his sermons, conversations with Lakewood members, and the greater critique of Christianity's 'crisis of authority.' Readers interested in American Christianity, especially those who have seen Joel on television, read his books, or been blown away from the bombastic experience that is worshipping at Lakewood Church, will enjoy this work."

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SOURCES: Monographs

1 - Fighting God: An Atheist Manifesto for a Religious World, by David Silverman (T-Dunne, 2015, hardcover, 304 pages <www.goo.gl/kCY46M>

2 - The Con Men: Hustling in New York City, by Terry Williams and Trevor B. Milton (Columbia Univ Prs, 2015, hardcover, 288 pages <www.goo.gl/0MhMuB>

3 - Salvation With a Smile: Joel Osteen, Lakewood Church, and American Christianity, by Phillip Luke Sinitiere (NYU Prs, 2015, hardcover, 336 pages) <www.goo.gl/e7uuGL>

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