Readings for Religious Recovery

Breaking the Spell: Religion as a Natural Phenomenon, by Daniel Dennett.
Don't Call Me Brother: A Ringmaster's Escape from the Pentecostal Church, by Austin Miles. Buffalo: Prometheus Books, 1989. Autobiography of former Pentecostal evangelist.
Jesus Doesn't Live Here Anymore, by Skipp Porteous. Buffalo: Prometheus Books, 1991. Autobiography of former minister turned freedom writer.
Jesus Land: A Memoir, by Julia Scheers.
Leaving the Fold: Testimonies of Former Fundamentalists, by Edward T. Babinski. 33 former Christian fundamentalists explain how and why they first embraced, and later abandoned, that belief system. Of these, eight have become atheists, eight (including Babinski) agnostics, one a wiccan, and one a Zen Buddhist; the remainder have remained Christian.
**Losing Faith in Faith: From Preacher to Athiest, by Dan Barker. Madison, WI: Freedom From Religion Foundation, Inc., 1992. A dramatic story of de-conversion from ordained fundamentalist evangelist to one of America's leading atheist spokespersons. This book is highly recommended for clear analysis and critique of fundamentalist tenets, including biblical contradictions and doctrinal problems.
Oranges are Not the Only Fruit, by Jeannette Winterson, 1985. “Raised by an oppressively evangelical mother, Jeanette grows up a good little Christian soldier, even going so far as to stitch samplers whose apocalyptic themes terrify her classmates. As she dryly notes, without self-pity or smugness, "This tendency towards the exotic has brought me many problems, just as it did for William Blake." Jeanette would have remained in the fold but for her unconventional desires; though she can reconcile her love of women with her love of God, the church cannot. It could have been a grim tale, but this is in fact a wry and tender telling of a young girl's triumphantly coming into her own.” Library Journal
Through the Narrow Gate: A Memoir of Spiritual Discovery, by Karen Armstrong. “Cloistered in a psychological as well as a physical sense,
Karen Armstrong, a woman of prodigious intellect and talent, a woman who has written seminal books on the subject of religion, goes inside her own personal experience as a cloistered nun in Through the Narrow Gate. It's not a particularly pretty picture, this story of her seven years immersed in a life full of bleakness, medical neglect, sexual frustration, and mindless negation of intellect…”
Mental Health and Religion, Recovery from Fundamentalism
Amazing Conversions: Why Some Turn to Faith & Others Abandon Religion by Bob Altemeyer and Bruce Hunsberger. Addresses the how and why of conversion to and away from religious faith.
Combatting Cult Mind Control, by Steve Hassan. Rochester, Vt.: Park St. Press, 1988. Excellent examination of manipulations in religious groups, written by a former Moonie. Readable and applicable in many ways to fundamentalism. Includes recovery suggestions.
"Coming out of the Cults,” by Margaret Singer. Psychology Today, January, 1979. Describes emotional problems of former cult members, many of which fit exfundamentalists.
"Counseling battered women from fundamentalist churches," by Vicky Whipple. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 13, 1987.
Cults: What Parents Should Know, by Joan Carol Ross and Michael D. Langone. Lyle Stuart Book. Bonita Springs, Fla.: American Family Foundation, 1988. A practical guide to help parents with children in destructive groups.
The Dangers of Growing Up in a Christian Home, by Donald E. Sloat. New York: Thomas Nelson, 1986. Good description of personality differences and religious faith, serious pitfalls in Christian families such as suppression of feelings, fear, self-denial, and perfectionism. This Christian author suggests families pay attention to emotional climate, but stops short of critiquing the religious sources of the problems.
*Deadly Doctrine: Health, Illness, and Christian God-Talk, by Wendell W. Watters. Buffalo: Prometheus Books, 1993. A psychiatrist argues that Christian teachings aggravate and create psychological problems, causing ill health, antisocial behavior, depression, and more. Compelling reading.
Healing Spiritual Abuse and Religious Addiction, by Matthew Linn, Sheila Fabricant Linn, and Dennis Linn. Discusses the realities of spiritual abuse and religious addiction, how they are defined, the reasons they exist and how people can move beyond vulnerable life patterns in order to enjoy a more life-giving relationship with God and with a healthy faith.
**Leaving the Fold: a Guide for Former Fundamentalists and Others Leaving Their Religion, by Marlene Winell, (sold as e-book on this website). From Library Journal: “Winell, daughter of a missionary and now a psychologist, had a genuine "born again" Christian experience and then much later went through another rebirth and found herself apart from that tradition. Although she criticizes fundamentalism for its rigidity, militancy, authority, and strong opposition to modern culture, she focuses on understanding and rebuilding, addressing herself not only to fundamentalists (Christian, Jewish, and Muslim) who feel the call but also to those who left and then realize, perhaps years later, that they need to think through the hold that religion still has on their lives. She then addresses issues of healing, reclaiming buried feelings, finding and loving oneself, and growing. Highly recommended for seminary and public libraries.”
Letters I Never Wrote, by Ruth E. Van Reken. Oakbrook, Ill.: Darwin Press, 1985. A collection of letters the author imagines writing to her parents and God during her upbringing as a missionary child in Africa and early adulthood. Demonstrates the emotional pain of such a life, but justifies it as lessons from God.
Religion and Mental Health, edited by John F. Schumaker. NY. Oxford University Press, 1992. A collection of essays from the mental health professions, dealing with the connections between religion and psychopathology.
"Religious issues in the psychotherapy of former fundamentalists," by James D. Moyers, 1990. Psychotherapy. 27, 42-45. Recommendations to therapists about understanding the fundamentalist background and its impact on mental health.
The Subtle Power of Spiritual Abuse: Recognizing and Escaping Spiritual Manipulation and False Spiritual Authority Within the Church, by David Johnson and Jeff VanVonderen. Asserts that churches are meant to be safe places where spiritual leaders help and equip the members for the work of service. There are some churches, however, where leaders use their spiritual authority to control and dominate others, attempting to meet their own needs for importance, power, intimacy or spiritual gratification. Through the subtle use of the right "spiritual" words, church members are manipulated or shamed into certain behaviors or performance that ensnares in legalism, guilt and begrudging service. This is spiritual abuse, and the results can be shattering. Authors VanVonderen and Johnson address these important themes and point the way toward freedom.
Toxic Faith: Understanding and Overcoming Religious Addiction, by Stephen Arterburn and Jack Felton. Nashville: Oliver-Nelson Books, 1991. Addresses many issues of religious addiction but does not really question the core problems of the religion itself.
Thought Reform and the Psychology of Totalism, by Robert J. Lifton. New York: Norton, 1961. This frequently cited book provides basic information on mind control.
**The True Believer: Thoughts on the Nature of Mass Movements, by Eric Hoffer. New York: Harper & Row, 1951. Classic time-tested work examining characteristics of fanatics of all kinds. Hoffer explains powerful motivations for abandoning oneself to a cause.
Understanding Religious Conversion, by Lewis R. Rambo. “Drawing on insights from psychology, sociology, anthropology, history, theology, and missiology, as well as on interviews with converts from disparate backgrounds, Lewis Rambo provides a critique and evaluation of religious conversion throughout the world. He considers various theories of conversion, examines the role of cultural and social factors in the conversion process, and describes how different religions and disciplines view conversion.”
When God Becomes a Drug: Breaking the Chains of Religious Addiction and Abuse, by Father Leo Booth. Los Angeles: J. P. Tarcher, 1992. Addresses religiosity as an addiction with patterns and symptoms similar to other addictions. Treatment recommendations include an "intervention" procedure, a family orientation, and guidelines for a twelve-step approach.
Why Some Therapies Don't Work: The Dangers of Transpersonal Psychology, by Albert Ellis. Buffalo: Prometheus Books, 1989. This critique of therapies with a spiritual framework tends to lump them all together, but many of the dangers outlined apply very well to "Christian" counseling.
Critiques of Fundamentalist Christianity & Rigid Religion
2000 Years of Disbelief: Famous People with the Courage to Doubt, Edited by James A. Haught. Prometheus Books, 1996. This book of quotes brings together the words of the “greats” of both East and West, from antiquity to the present. Included are a great number of skeptics and unbelievers among our major inventors, scientists, writers, social reformers, and other world changers, including Epicurus, Voltaire, Mark Twain, Betrand Russell, William Shakespeare, Albert Einstein, George Washington, and Abraham Lincoln.
*The Book Your Church Doesn't Want You to Read, Edited by Tim C. Leedom. Manoa Valley Publishing, PO Box 5009, Balboa Island, CA 92662, 1993. Enlightening anthology with over 60 writers-renowned theologians, historians, and researchers. Includes important information about church history, the origins of the Bible, and religious practice, aimed at providing a data base for the religiously illiterate. Essays by freethinkers include historical writings from Thomas Paine and Thomas Jefferson, among others. “Consider this book as a kind of consumer protection guide to religion, a big step forward toward religious literacy. Readers will explore myths, origins, fundamentalism, television ministries, the identical stories of Stellar/Pagan/Christian beliefs, unfounded doctrines, child abuse, the Year 200, and women's rights. It's entertaining and readable, with a sense of humor reflecting the absurdities of fundamental religion -- while being inoffensive. The approach is one of not hitting the reader over the head with ‘you're wrong’, but rather ‘consider this’. The Book Your Church Doesn't Want You To Read contains many interesting, unknown facts such as there being no mention of Jesus Christ is the Dead Sea Scrolls; the oldest story in the world (predating Christianity by millennia) being that of a virgin mother bearing a newborn baby; God finding out about the Trinity from the Catholic Church in 325 A. D. ; and Christmas being a pagan holiday with December 25th shared as a birthdate by many other crucified saviors. Contributors include Steve Allen, Dan Barker, Edd Doerr, Robert Eisenman, Annie Laurie Gaylor, Grace Halsell, Gerald Larue, Jordan Maxwell, and Arthur Melville.” –Midwest Book Review
Chapter and Verse: A Skeptic Revisits Christianity, by Nhke Bryan. New York: Random House, 1991.
Fundamentalism, by James Barr. London: SCM Press, 1977.
The End of Faith, by Sam Harris. In this controversial book, Sam Harris makes the case that faith is the most dangerous element of modern life.
*Fundamentalism: Hazards and Heartbreaks, by Rod L. Evans and Irwin M. Berent. La Salle, Ill.: Open Court Publishing, 1988. Excellent critique of the fundamentalist view of the Bible as infallible. Provides discussion of historical, scientific, and moral issues, with important information often ignored by believers.
God's Choice: The Total World of a Fundamentalist Christian School, by Alan Peshkin. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1986.
Is it God's Word, by Joseph Wheless. “An Exposition of the Fables and Mythology of the Bible and the Fallacies of Theology.”
Let There Be Light, by Philip Appleman. New York: HarperCollins, 1991. A book of profound and witty poems tackling religious issues, such as "And Then The Perfect Truth of Hatred."
*The Mind of the Bible-Believer, by Edmund D. Cohen. Buffalo: Prometheus Books, 1988. Fascinating in-depth examination of the psychological manipulations in biblically based Christianity. Tough reading, but worth it.
Some Mistakes of Moses, by Robert G. Ingersoll. From the author: “Christianity cannot live in peace with any other form of faith. If that religion be true, there is but one savior, one inspired book, and but one little narrow grass-grown path that leads to heaven. Such a religion is necessarily uncompromising, unreasoning, aggressive and insolent. Christianity has held all other creeds and forms in infinite contempt, divided the world into enemies and friends, and verified the awful declaration of its founder -- a declaration that wet with blood the sword he came to bring, and made the horizon of a thousand years lurid with the fagots' flames.” –Robert Green Ingersoll
Religious Right, Religious Wrong, by Lloyd J. Averill. New York: The Pilgrim Press, 1989. Good historical review of the rise of fundamentalism as part of conservative politics, usurping the name "Christian." Averill calls it faith turned in upon itself and consequently ungenerous and unlovely in its religion, flawed in its understanding of history, and dangerous in its politics. Positive qualities are also discussed.
Spiritual Warfare: The Politics of the Christian Right, by Sara Diamond. Boston: South End Press, 1989. Primer on the history, ideology, factions, and plans of the Christian Right, It makes clear that religious groups are being deployed by powerful interests to further their political agenda.
Steve Allen on the Bible, Religion, and Morality, by Steve Allen. “The famous author/comedian/songwriter here fires off a blunderbuss at uncritical biblical literalism. Finding the Bible as a whole riddled with historical, scientific, and moral error, he attacks the Old Testament for portraying God as vengeful and bloodthirsty and the New Testament for assigning most of humanity to eternal damnation in hell. He believes neither approach provides insight into God's true nature. Allen goes on to criticize the religious establishment, especially that of fundamentalism, for ignoring or vilifying the fruits of biblical historical-critical research. Though he claims to find much of the Bible ennobling, the majority of this work is so relentlessly belligerent that one is not surprised to find that he originally planned to publish it posthumously.” –Library Journal
The Transcendental Temptation: A Critique of Religion and the Paranormal, by Paul Kurtz. Buffalo: Prometheus Books, 1986. In-depth analysis of religion as primarily an escape from ordinary life. Examines evidence for Christian beliefs and scriptures.
Why I Am Not a Christian, and other essays on religion and related subjects, by Bertrand Russell. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1957.
Woe to the Women: The Bible Tells Me So, by Annie Laurie Gaylor. Madison, WI: Freedom From Religion Foundation, Inc., 1981. A concise, uniquely informative, easy-to-read book which will challenge your concept of the Bible as "a good book."
Adam, Eve, and the Serpent, by Elaine Pagels. New York: Vintage Books, 1988. Traces the history of attitudes toward women's sexuality.
The Bible Unearthed: Archaeology's New Vision of Ancient Israel and the Origin of Its Sacred Texts, by Neil Asher Silberman and Israel Finkelstein. “The Bible Unearthed is a balanced, thoughtful, bold reconsideration of the historical period that produced the Hebrew Bible. The headline news in this book is easy to pick out: there is no evidence for the existence of Abraham, or any of the Patriarchs; ditto for Moses and the Exodus; and the same goes for the whole period of Judges and the united monarchy of David and Solomon. In fact, the authors argue that it is impossible to say much of anything about ancient Israel until the seventh century B.C., around the time of the reign of King Josiah. In that period, ‘the narrative of the Bible was uniquely suited to further the religious reform and territorial ambitions of Judah.’ Yet the authors deny that their arguments should be construed as compromising the Bible's power.”
*The Chalice and the Blade, by Riane Eisler. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1988. Analysis of human cultural evolution, including ancient feminine power, the development of the patriarchy, and the urgent need for fundamental change to a partnership world today.
From Jesus to Christianity: How four generations of visionaries and storytellers created the New Testament and Christian faith, by L. Michael White. HarperCollins, 2004. A comprehensive historical introduction to the literature of earliest Christianity, with careful attention to the social and cultural world of the early Roman empire in which Christianity emerged.
Fundamentalism and American Culture: The Shaping of Twentieth-Century Evangelicalism: 1870-1925, by George M. Marsden. New York: Oxford University Press, 1980. Academic history of fundamentalism, with details about its relation to other religious trends and theologies.
The Gnostic Gospels, by Elaine Pagels. New York: Vintage Books, 1979. Enlightening work on the Gnostics, a group of first-century Christians who had different beliefs and were wiped out by the dominant group of more political Christians. The Gnostic faith was more personal and experiential.
Gospel Fictions, by Randel Helms. “This is a short, simple little book. Anyone who is familiar with the Christian Gospels knows that they vary from each other in various details. This book provides an explanation and in the process explains how they came to be written.”
Holy Horrors: An Illustrated History of Religious Murder and Madness, by James A. Haught. Buffalo: Prometheus Books, 1990. A chronicling of religious atrocities of all types.
Incredible Shrinking Son of Man: How Reliable Is the Gospel Tradition? by Robert M. Price. “This informative and gripping books shows us how the Gospel stories were put together in order to satisfy religious craving.” –Ulster Humanist, April-May 2004
The Jesus Puzzle. Did Christianity Begin with a Mythical Christ?: Challenging the Existence of an Historical Jesus, by Earl Doherty. "The most compelling argument ever published in support of the theory that Jesus never existed as an historical person." –Frank Zindler, editor, American Atheist Magazine, Autumn 2000
The New Testament : A Historical Introduction to the Early Christian Writings, by Bart D. Ehrman.
The Orthodox Corruption of Scripture: The Effect of Early Christological Controversies on the Text of the New Testament, by Bart D. Ehrman. “The victors not only write the history, they also reproduce the texts. In a study that explores the close relationship between the social history of early Christianity and the textual tradition of the emerging New Testament, Ehrman examines how early struggles between Christian ‘heresy’ and ‘orthodoxy’ affected the transmission of the documents over which, in part, the debates were waged. His thesis is that proto-orthodox scribes of the second and third centuries occasionally altered their sacred texts for polemical reasons--for example, to oppose adoptionists like the Ebionites, who claimed that Christ was a man but not God, or docetists like Marcion, who claimed that he was God but not a man, or Gnostics like the Ptolemaeans, who claimed that he was two beings, one divine and one human. Ehrman's thorough and incisive analysis makes a significant contribution to our understanding of the social and intellectual history of early Christianity and raises intriguing questions about the relationship of readers to their texts, especially in an age when scribes could transform the documents they reproduced to make them say what they were already thought to mean, effecting thereby the orthodox corruption of Scripture.”
The Oxford Illustrated History of Christianity, by John McManners. Oxford University Press, 1990. This richly illustrated book tells the story of Christianity from its origins to the present day. Written by a team scholars, all authorities in their fields, it spans 2000 years to give a comprehensive history of Christianity for the general reader.
Papal Sin: Structures of Deceit, by Garry Wills. “Wills puts Augustine to work against the "structures of deceit" he sees built into today's Roman Catholic papacy. Wills postulates that the papacy in every era has its own besetting sin. In the medieval period, it was political power; in the Renaissance, money; today, he argues, it is intellectual dishonesty. Because the papacy is incapable of admitting error on doctrinal matters, Wills believes, it forces apologists into mental gymnastics to defend doctrines such as an absolute ban on birth control.” –Publishers Weekly
What Is the Bible? by Carl Lofmark. Buffalo: Prometheus Books, 1992. Examines the basis of biblical scholarship, explains how the various books of the Bible were compiled and various editions were developed, critiques the Bible as a guide for living, its contradictions, and its mixtures of fact and fiction.
When God Was a Woman, by Merlin Stone. San Diego: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1976. Story of the ancient goddess religions and the impact on Judeo-Christian attitudes toward women.
Who Wrote the Gospels? by Randel McCraw Helms. “The names we associate with the gospel writers are all second century guesses. If this comes as a surprise, welcome to the cutting edge of modern biblical scholarship. According to Helms, the gospels were written to convert or confirm their highly colored arguments of powerful authors, not just transparent windows upon the historical Jesus. If we adjust our focus from the brilliant imaginative pictures to the imaginations that produced them, to the situations out of which they arose, we get to the point of this book - a study of the minds of the authors.”

Children and Religion
Maybe Right, Maybe Wrong: A Guide for Young Thinkers, by Dan Barker. Buffalo: Prometheus Books, 1992. A book for children on morality without religion.
Spare the Child: The Religious Roots of Punishment and the Psychological impact of Physical Abuse, by Philip Greven. New York: Random House, 1992
Teaching Your Children Values, by Linda and Richard Eyer. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1993. Excellent for parents to proactively teach values to children of various ages, with specific exercises for addressing topics such as honesty, courage, self-reliance, love, kindness, justice, and others.
*What Do You Really Want for Your Children? by Wayne W. Dyer- New York: Avon, 1985. A parenting book that addresses helping children become the people we'd like them to be, instead of simply controlling behavior.
When Children Ask About God, by Harold S. Kushner. New York: Schocken Books, 1976.
Other (nonfundamentalist) Views of Christianity and Spirituality
Christian Evolution: Moving Towards a Global Spirituality, by Ursula Burton and Janice Dolley. Wellingborough, Great Britain: Turnstone Press, 1984. Two laywomen-one a Catholic, the other an Anglican-explain their dilemma within the Church.
The Coming of the Cosmic Christ, by Matthew Fox. San Francisco: HarperCollins, 1988.
Contemporary American Theologies: A Critical Survey, by Deane William Ferm. New York: The Seabury Press, 1981. Provides readable description of other interpretations of Christianity.
Exploring the Road Less Traveled: A Study Guide for Small Groups, by Alice Howard and Walden Howard. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1985 This is one tool available for exploring spiritual values with others - having community without belonging to a church.
The Gospel According to Jesus: A New Translation and Guide to His Essential Teachings for Believers and Unbelievers, by Stephen Mitchell. New York: HarperCollins, 1991. Help for rethinking the words of Jesus. “We live in a civilization based on a twisted compromise of Jesus’ teachings, and this very credible account of what Jesus may have actually said is a small but potent antidote.” Michael Ventura, L.A. Weekly
The Heart of Christianity: Rediscovering a Life of Faith, by Marcus J. Borg. “Borg follows up two of his previous releases about the Bible and Jesus with a volume that could easily have played on those titles, because this highly readable book is essentially about looking at Christianity again for the first time. In that respect, it provides a valuable glimpse into the essence of Christianity for those who have left the faith because they no longer believe its doctrines and those who are trying to remain in the faith while questioning its doctrines. With those people in mind, Borg emphasizes the transformational aspect of Christianity by examining the ‘emerging paradigm’ that is gradually replacing the belief-centered paradigm of the last several hundred years. The new paradigm, Borg writes, is about loving God and loving what God loves, rather than rigidly adhering to a specific set of beliefs. In exploring this new way of ‘being Christian,’ Borg offers a middle ground for conservative and liberal Christians, though it's unlikely conservatives will conclude, as he does, that Jesus was not really the Son of God, nor are liberals likely to begin using the term ‘born again,’ as he advocates. Still, there's much here that both sides can agree on, possibly helping to bring them a step closer to the unity that has eluded them for centuries. As always, Borg writes with clarity and precision, which should also help the ongoing conversation.” –Publishers Weekly
**Honest to God, by John Robinson. Louisville, Ky.: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1963. Stunning little book explaining a modern theological approach to Christianity.
*Honest to Jesus: Jesus for a New Millennium, by Robert W. Funk. Hodder & Stoughton, 1996. Robert Funk is the founder of the Jesus Seminar, a group of more than two hundred internationally renowned Jesus scholars who meet regularly to assess the authenticity of the words and acts of Jesus as portrayed in the gospels. In this book, he embarks on a radical investigation into the transformation of Jesus the social rebel and iconoclast into Jesus the religious icon. He traces how the early Church turned the historical Jesus into Christ the cult figure. Like a detective, Funk reaches through the haze of translation, limited sources, and the overlay of Christian propaganda to recover the flesh-and-blood Jesus, reconstructing the religion of Jesus as distinguished from the religion about Jesus.
*Journey of Awakening: A Meditator's Handbook, by Ram Dass. New York: Bantam Books, 1978.
Living In Sin? A Bishop Rethinks Human Sexuality, by John Shelby Spong. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1988.
A New Kind of Christian: A Tale of Two Friends on a Spiritual Journey, by Brian D. McLaren. “McLaren, pastor and author of The Church on the Other Side, proposes that postmodernism is the road to take in order to move on from the current stalemate between conservative evangelical and liberal Christians. His books are part of his activist work to promote ‘innovation, entrepreneurial leadership and a desire to be on the leading edge of ministry.’ Here he has adopted the fictional tale of an earnest, very conservative pastor who has become so burned out in his church life that he is planning to quit the pastorate. Instead, he makes friends with his daughter's science teacher, who leads him to an enthusiastic embracing of postmodernism as applied to the Christian message. In this fictional conversation, McLaren describes this process as a journey of Holy Spirit-guided faith ‘through the winds and currents of change.’ His conservative pastor character comes to accept the Bible as a premodern text that presents its message in story and does not have to conform to our modern expectations. The book's attention-grabbing format is an effective mode of presenting McLaren's ideas.” –Library Journal
Original Blessing: A Primer in Creation Spirituality, by Matthew Fox. Bear & Company, 1983. “Fox describes people who embrace original blessing as loving and celebrating life. They reverence God’s creation, whether it be nature or other human beings. And although they are aware of sin in the world, they don’t sit around apologizing for their unworthiness.” Barry Eberling, National Catholic Reporter
The Power of Myth, by Joseph Campbell with Bill Moyers. New York: Anchor Books, 1988. “Among his many gifts, Joseph Campbell's most impressive was the unique ability to take a contemporary situation, such as the murder and funeral of President John F. Kennedy, and help us understand its impact in the context of ancient mythology. Herein lies the power of The Power of Myth, showing how humans are apt to create and live out the themes of mythology. Based on a six-part PBS television series hosted by Bill Moyers, this classic is especially compelling because of its engaging question-and-answer format, creating an easy, conversational approach to complicated and esoteric topics. For example, when discussing the mythology of heroes, Campbell and Moyers smoothly segue from the Sumerian sky goddess Inanna to Star Wars' mercenary-turned-hero, Han Solo. Most impressive is Campbell's encyclopedic knowledge of myths, demonstrated in his ability to recall the details and archetypes of almost any story, from any point and history, and translate it into a lesson for spiritual living in the here and now.” --Gail Hudson
The Psychological Dynamics of Religious Experience, by Andre Godin. Religious Education Press, 1985.
Reading the Bible Again For the First Time: Taking the Bible Seriously But Not Literally, by Marcus J. Borg. HarperCollins, 2001. “The title of this book comes from the author's experience of ‘unlearning’ his literal reading of the Bible from childhood in favor of a ‘historical-metaphorical’ reading derived from his 35 years of studying the Bible as an academic. Borg provides a highly readable and succinct introduction to biblical criticism, outlining the kinds of cultural, theological and historical lenses through which people read the Bible and explaining how those readings affect their relation to God. He offers a new understanding of scripture that respects both tradition and reality, with a profound concern for authentic faith and how it can be lived today.
Religions, Values, and Peak-Experiences, by Abraham H. Maslow. New York: Penguin Books, 1964.
Rescuing the Bible from Fundamentalism: A Bishop Rethinks the Meaning of Scripture, by John Shelby Spong. San Francisco: Harper San Francisco, 1991. “Is celibacy the only moral alternative to marriage? Should the widowed be allowed to form intimate relationships without remarrying? Should the church receive homosexuals into its community and support committed gay and lesbian relationships? Should congregations publicly and liturgically witness and affirm divorces? Should the church's moral standards continue to be set by patriarchal males? Should women be consecrated bishops? Bishop Spong proposes a pastoral response based on scripture and history to the changing realities of the modern world. He calls for a moral vision to empower the church with inclusive teaching about equal, loving, nonexploitative relationships.”
Resurrection, Myth or Reality? A bishop’s search for the origins of Christianity, by John Shelby Spong. HarperCollins, 1994. Through this radical interpretation of the New Testament, Spong offers a provocative and inspirational re-creation of what happened on that first Easter.
The Road Less Traveled: A New Psychology of Love, Traditional Values and Spiritual Growth, by Scott Peck. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1978.
The Sins of Scripture: Exposing the Bible's Texts of Hate to Reveal the God of Love, by John Shelby Spong. “In the Sins of Scripture, Bishop John Shelby Spong takes on a thematic exploration of the Bible, carefully analyzing those passages that inform some of our key debates, like the role of women in the church and in society, and homosexuality, to name just two. Beyond that he also looks at scriptures that have helped shape culture and history -- bringing to light the undercurrent of anti-Semitism he finds in the Gospels, for example. The journey is particularly compelling because Bishop Spong believes in and values the good the Bible has brought to many through the ages. His goal is not to define the Bible itself as something to be set aside, but instead to honor and value what he loves about it while still labeling what he dramatically calls "texts of terror" for what they are.”
The Shaking of the Foundations, by Paul Tillich. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1948.
A Spirituality Named Compassion, by Matthew Fox. San Francisco: HarperCollins, 1990.
**Stealing Jesus: How Fundamentalism Betrays Christianity, by Bruce Bawer, 1998. Bawer has put into eloquent and decisive language what many mainline Christians and non-Christians have quietly suspected but been unable to verbalize--namely that Fundamentalist Christianity is barely Christian at all. A Baptist theologian says he is "not interested in who Jesus was." Pat Robertson argues the Golden Rule as Jesus's justification that "individual self-interest is being a very real part of the human makeup, and something not necessarily bad or sinful." In page after page, Bawer reveals a so-called Fundamentalist movement that readily displays a blatant disregard for the most salient message of the Gospels: selfless love and service to all.
Toward An Expansive Christian Theology, by Vergilius Ferm. New York: Philosophical Library, 1964.
Toward a New Catholic Church: The Promise of Reform, by James Carroll. “Carroll, a former priest who was in the seminary during the landmark Second Vatican Council of the 1960s, proposes a ‘Vatican III,’ suggesting it could even be held in a place like Boston, the epicenter of the current (sexual abuse) scandal. He presents five areas of reform dealing with scripture, the ecclesiastical power structure, teachings about Jesus Christ, democracy and institutional repentance. Among other things, Carroll would like to see the church develop a more sophisticated relationship with its scriptures, loosen its power structures to permit more lay involvement, repeal papal infallibility and de-emphasize the traditional Christian teaching that Jesus is the only way to salvation so as to engender greater respect for other religions. . .” –Publishers Weekly
The Varieties of Religious Experience, by William James. New York: New American Library, 1958.
What the Bible Really Teaches: About crucifixion, resurrection, salvation, the second coming, and eternal life, by Keith Ward. Crossroad Publishing, 2004, 2005. Ward sets out what he thinks the Bible actually teaches--about itself and about its many doctrines and beliefs. On these matters, the fundamentalists seem to him--and to most Christians—to have it wrong. The fundamentalist interpretation of the Bible is a fairly new one, and one that most Christians don’t accept. Professor Ward clearly shows that fundamentalists do not have privileged access to what the Bible really means and illuminates many other interpretations more ancient and widespread than theirs.
Who Needs God, by Harold Kushner. New York: Summit Books, 1989.
The World Treasure of Modern Religious Thought, edited by Jaroslav Pelikan. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990. Fabulous collection of succinct writings from unbelievers and believers alike concerning spiritual topics and a variety of religions. Great stuff for expanding your thinking about these matters.
*The World's Religions: Our Great Wisdom Tradition, Revised and Updated Edition, by Huston Smith. San Francisco: Harper Collins, 1991. This revised masterpiece explores the essential elements and teachings of the world’s predominant faiths, emphasizing the inner experience—rather than external forms of religion. Excellent for expanding one’s understanding of commonalities and breaking through the idea that Christians somehow have a monopoly on God.
Alternative Ways of Thinking
The Born Again Skeptic's Guide to the Bible, by Ruth Hurmence Green. “The Bible examined from a freethought perspective. Combined with autobiographical ‘The Book of Ruth.’”
**Care of the Soul: A guide for cultivating depth and sacredness in everyday life, by Thomas Moore. HarperCollins, 1992. “This book just may help you give up the futile quest for salvation and get down to the possible task of taking care of your soul. A modest, and therefore marvelous, book about the life of the spirit.” Sam Keen
Conceptual Blockbusting: A Guide to Better Ideas, 3d ed., by James L. Adams. Reading, Mass.: Addison-Wesley, 1986. Great book about blocks to creative thinking, including the need to challenge old assumptions.
*The Dancing Wu Li Masters, by Gary Zukov. New York: Bantam Books, 1984. Fascinating facts from physical science with implications about the elusive nature of reality.
Immortality, by Paul Edwards. “Is there life after death or do we simply cease to exist? Few questions wreak havoc with our deepest held beliefs and strongest emotions more than this one. The answers given over the centuries reach to the very core of who we are and what it means to be human. Cutting through the emotionalism to reach the central issue, renowned scholar Paul Edwards has compiled Immortality, a superb group of philosophical selections featuring the work of both classical and contemporary authors who address not only the topic of immortality, but also two of the most fascinating and difficult philosophical problems -- the mind/body problem, and the nature of personal identity. Highlighted are discussion of soul and body, transmigration, materialism, epiphenomenalism, physical research and parapsychology, reincarnation, disembodied existence, and much more.” –Midwest Book Review
Philosophy of Humanism, by Corliss Lamont. New York: Continuum, 1990. A standard text in the ongoing debate that swirls around secular humanism, this book offers an enlightening argument for a philosophy that advocates happiness in this lifetime, and not in some mythical world to come.
The Prophet, by Kahlil Gibran. New York: Knopf, 1976.
The Pursuit of Pleasure, by Lionel Tiger. Transaction Publishers, 2000. Pleasure is biologically desirable and good for physical and mental health. Tiger explores this aspect of human nature by focusing on the origins and forms of pleasure. “He explores how sex, food, smell, warmth and other sensual pleasures have yielded advantages and are rooted in our physiological prehistory. . . His major point is that pleasure is positive, desirable, delicious, demanding and worth pursuing.” Washing Times.
Robert G. Ingersoll: A Life, by Frank Smith. Buffalo: Prometheus Books, 1993. Rich biography of a major freethinker of the nineteenth century.
Sacred Pleasure: Sex, myth, and the politics of the body—New paths to power and love, by Riane Eisler. Doubleday, 1996. Sacred Pleasure makes the links between sacralizing pain and justifying war, between child abuse and sado-masochism, between patriarchy and the war of the sexes, between the intimate and the political. Only by sacralizing pleasure can new links be forged to peace, equality, and empathy.” Gloria Steinem
Thinking Allowed: Conversations on the Leading Edge of Knowledge, by Jeffrey Mishlove. Tulsa: Council Oak Books, 1992.
World of Ideas: Conversations with Thoughtful Men and Women About American Life Today and the Ideas Shaping Our Future, by Bill Moyers. New York: Doubleday, 1989.
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, by Robert M. Pirsig. New YorkBantam Books, 1974.
Science
Abusing Science: The Case Against Creationism, by Philip Kitcher. “Abusing Science is a manual for intellectual self-defense, the most complete available for presenting the case against Creationist pseudo-science. It is also a lucid exposition of the nature and methods of genuine science. The book begins with a concise introduction to evolutionary theory for non-scientists and closes with a rebuttal of the charge that this theory undermines religious and moral values. It will astonish many readers that this case must still be made in the 1980s, but since it must, Philip Kitcher makes it irresistibly and forcefully.”
The Age of the Earth, by G. Brent Dalrymple. “Dalrymple presents the overwhelming evidence for the age of the Earth, Moon, and Solar system in such well documented and critical manner, that it leaves NO room for doubt about the validity of radiometric dating. Contrary to young earth creationist's childish ravings, he builds a case that leaves no avenues for any other conclusion. When creationists say you must have read the ‘relevant’ literature, they mean the writings of such people as Morris and Hovind. Unfortunately for them the relevant literature is all referenced in Dalrympl's book and he has done an outstanding job at simplifying it for both scientist and layperson. He gives sufficient references that anyone who wishes can pursue any topic on their own.”
The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark, by Carl Sagan and Ann Druyan. “Carl Sagan muses on the current state of scientific thought, which offers him marvelous opportunities to entertain us with his own childhood experiences, the newspaper morgues, UFO stories, and the assorted flotsam and jetsam of pseudoscience. Along the way he debunks alien abduction, faith-healing, and channeling; refutes the arguments that science destroys spirituality, and provides a ‘baloney detection kit’ for thinking through political, social, religious, and other issues.”
*Denying Evolution: Creationism, Scientism, and the Nature of Science, by Massimo Pigliucci. Sinauer Associates, 2002. “A must read for anyone interested in learning why approximately half of the North American population rejects biological evolution, the dangers engendered by such rejection, and what to do about it. . . It is multifaceted, fascinating, and essential. Everyone involved in science research, science education, and education policy (including politicians) should not only read the work, but encourage others to do likewise.” Brian Alters, Quarterly Review of Biology
Evolution and the Myth of Creationism: A Basic Guide to the Facts in the Evolution Debate, by Tim M. Berra. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1990. Enlightening and readable information to clarify what the theory of evolution is, and debunks creationism as a science.
Science and Earth History: The Evolution/Creation Controversy, by Arthur N. Strahle. “This book assesses the attempts of fundamentalist Christians to blend science and religion into a coherent view of the universe, called ‘creation science,’ through a literal reading of the book of Genesis. The author, an emeritus professor of geomorphology at Columbia University, examines evidence from astronomy to zoology, and shows that creation science does not meet the criteria of the scientific enterprise. He concludes that it is a belief system that constitutes a pseudoscience at best, a fraud at worst. His analysis is reasoned, balanced, and fair, but, in the end, devastating. Strongly recommended for public libraries. Robert Paul, Dickinson Coll., Carlisle, Penn.” –Library Journal
Science on Trial: The Case for Evolution, by Douglas J. Futuyma. “It's rare, but not unheard of, that I know by the 50th page of a book that I need to a) read this book again, and b) purchase a copy for my own library. Science on Trial is such a book. A remarkable book presenting arguments in favor of evolution as a counter to the rise of creationism. Written in 1983, Futuyma's arguments are perhaps even more relevant today, in light of recent developments in Kansas, Michigan, and other states. Futuyma's writing style is exceptionally clear and he presents science as it really operates and exposes the gaping factual and philosophical holes in the creationist movement. Obviously no book can ever change the mind of a committed, dogmatic creationist, but this book should be required reading for any school board candidate.”
Religion and Politics
The Call to Conversion: Why Faith is Always Personal but Never Private, by Jim Wallis. HarperCollins, 1981, 2005. The reprint of this classic guide to incorporating one's faith in the public arena offers a passionate and personal discourse as how to put one's faith into practice without falling victim to partisan politics. For Wallis, "conversion" is personal, yet it has corporate, societal, and even political implications.
God’s Politics: Why the Right Gets it Wrong and the Left Doesn’t Get It, by Jim Wallis. HarperCollins, 2005. “Since when did believing in God and having moral values make you pro-war, pro-rich, and pro-Republican? And since when did promoting and pursuing a progressive social agenda with a concern for economic security, health care, and educational opportunity mean you had to put faith in God aside?” –from the book. “Jim Wallis. . . refuses to allow the religious Right to have a monopoly on morality and spirituality; he also calls for the secular Left to speak to the crucial issues of personal meaning and individual values.” Cornel West
The Left Hand of God: Taking Back our Country from the Religious Right, by Michael Lerner, 2006. Rabbi Lerner provides an extensive survey of American history and ideology, rife with examples of dominant and controlling attributes favored by those on the right (the "right hand of God") who believe in a frightening world replete with evil and ruled by an avenging God. This contrasts with what he considers the loving, kind and generous tendencies of those at the "left hand of God," who instead believe in a compassionate and merciful deity. . . His vision of a country devoid of poverty, homelessness, unemployment and uninsured citizens comes with an actual blueprint, in which Americans rededicate themselves to traditional values of love, kindness, respect and responsibility. Publishers’ Weekly
Emotional Healing
Beyond Grief: A Guide for Recovering from the Death of a Loved One, by Carol Staudacher. Oakland, Calif.: New Harbinger Publications, 1987.
The Courage to Heal: A Guide for Women Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse, by Ellen Bass and Laura Davis. New York: Harper and Row, 1988. A classic for dealing with sexual abuse, but much of it also applies to other kinds of childhood abuse.
Creating Love: The Next Great Stage of Growth, by John Bradshaw. New York: Bantam Books, 1992. Explains the idea of mystified love, including family and God, and the need to demythologize in order to create genuine love.
The Depression Workbook: A Guide for Living With Depression and Manic Depression, by Mary Ellen Copeland. Oakland, Calif: New Harbinger Publications, 1992.
Gift from the Sea, by Anne Morrow Lindbergh. New York: Vintage Books, 1978. Beautiful classic about the necessity for solitude and reflection.
Grief Counseling and Grief Therapy, by J. William Worden. New York: Springer, 1982.
Growing Up Again: Parenting Ourselves, Parenting Our Children, by Jean Illsley Clarke and Connie Dawson. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1989. Great parenting book, both for inner children and actual children. Stresses dual sets of skills, for nurturance and for structure. Exercises and specific strategies for different ages and stages.
Healing the Child Within: Discovery and Recovery for Adult Children of Dysfunctional Families, by Charles L. Whitfield. Deerfield Beach, Fla.: Health Communications, 1987.
Homecoming. Reclaiming and Championing Your Inner Child, by John Bradshaw. New York: Bantam Books, 1990. Insightful primer on healing the inner child. Readable, with many good exercises which take you through stages of infancy and childhood.
I Can't Get Over It: A Handbook for Trauma Survivors, by Aphrodite Matsakis. Oakland, Calif.: New Harbinger Publications, 1992.
Life Without Fear: Anxiety and Its Cure, by Joseph Wolpe and David Wolpe. Oakland, Calif.: New Harbinger Publications, 1988.
Please Understand Me: Character and Temperament Types, by David Keirsey and Marilyn Bates. Del Mar, Calif.: Prometheus Nemesis Book Co., 1984. A personality test based on the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator and discussion of the implications of personality differences.
Rapid Relief from Emotional Distress, by Gary Emery and James Campbell. New York: Rawson Associates, 1986. Very readable and helpful book that emphasizes the freedom gained by accepting situations and then choosing actions.
Self-Esteem, 2nd ed., by Matthew McKay and Patrick Fanning. Oakland, Calif.: New Harbinger Publications, 1992. Very impressive treatment of self-esteem issues, including "disarming the critic," handling criticism, "mistakes," and "shoulds." Especially helpful description of our separate views of reality, using the metaphor of television screens in our heads. Also good stuff on judgment. Readable, with practical exercises.
Self-Esteem: A Family Affair, by Jean Illsley Clarke. New York: Harper & Row, 1978.
Thoughts and Feelings: The Art of Cognitive Stress Intervention, Matthew McKay, Martha Davis, and Patrick Fanning. Oakland, Calif.: New Harbinger Publications, 1981. Workbook-style self-help guide with great sections on combating distorted thinking and values clarification, among others.
Transforming Body Image: Learning to Love the Body You Have, by Marcia Germaine Hutchinson. N.Y.: The Crossing Press, 1985. Addresses physical self-acceptance with many good visualization exercises; focused on women.
When Anger Hurts: Quieting the Storm Within, by Matthew McKay, Peter Rogers, and Judith McKay. Oakland, Calif.: New Harbinger Publications, 1989. In-depth treatment of anger-its place and its cost, conceptualizing it as a choice, and teaching skills.
Responsibility, Choosing, and Creating
Escape from Freedom, by Erich Fromm. New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1941.
Existential Psychotherapy, by Irvin D. Yalom. New York: Basic Books, 1980. Academic but very readable text on the major issues and treatment strategies in an existential approach to therapy,
If You Meet the Buddha on the Road, Kill Him! The Pilgrimage of Psychotherapy Patients, by Sheldon B. Kopp. New York: Bantam Books, 1972.
"Personal Goals: The Key to Self-Direction in Adulthood," by Marlene Winell. In Humans as Self-Constructing Living Systems: Putting the Framework to Work, edited by M. Ford and D. Ford. Hillsdale, N.J.: Erlbaum, 1987. An explanation of the importance of personal goals and how they function hierarchically to govern behavior.
Self-Creation, by George Weinberg. New York: Avon, 1978. Well-stated little book that makes the point that you create your own reality by acting on your own ideas.
Wishcraft: How to Get What You Really Want, by Barbara Sher with Annie Gottlieb. New York: Ballentine, 1979. By far the best book about believing in yourself enough to go for what you really want, primarily in the career area. Inspiring reading with concrete exercises for self-understanding, goal setting, planning, and making real progress toward dreams.
Relationships
The Art of Loving, by Erich Fromm. New York: Harper & Row, 1956. A beautiful classic that explains the need for love of all kinds and a theory of love as an active skill that must be practiced.
Do I Have to Give Up Me to be Loved by You? by Jordan Paul and Margaret Paul. Minneapolis: Compcare Publishers, 1983. Excellent approach to resolving conflict in relationships, with a specific model for communicating focused on learning rather than self-protecting.
For Your Own Good: Hidden Cruelty in Child-Reading and the Roots Of Violence, by Alice Miller. New York: Farrar Strauss Giroux, 1983.
Making Peace with Your Parents, by Harold Bloomfield. New York: Ballentine Books, 1983.
Messages: The Communications Book, by Matthew McKay, Martha Davis, and Patrick Fanning. Oakland, Calif.: New Harbinger Publications, 1983. Good basic book on communication skills.
**Nonviolent Communication: A Language of Life: Create Your Life, Your Relationships, and Your World in Harmony with Your Values, by Arun Gandhi and Marshall B. Rosenberg, 2003. This very readable, straightforward book is a powerful antidote to all the bad habits of communication in our culture which cause conflict and pain. The insights are profound and the guidance out of the woods is remarkable. Exercises and anecdotes make the process clear.
Rebuilding When Your Relationship Ends, by Bruce Fisher. San Luis Obispo, Calif.: Impact, 1981. Step-by-step recovery from a relationship loss such as divorce. Many stages and issues parallel recovery from losing God or religion-such as denial, anger, grief, loneliness, selfconcept, trust, responsibility-culminating in a newfound freedom.
"Relationships," by Marilyn Ferguson. In Millennium: Glimpses into the 21st Century, edited by A. Villoldo and K. Dychtwalk. Los Angeles: J.P. Tarcher, 1981. Describes the conflict between "protection values" and "growth values" in relationships. Says we need to opt for growth and support each other in the search for meaning.
Starting Out Right: Essential Parenting Skills for Your Child's First Seven Years, by Doris Durrell. Oakland, Calif.: New Harbinger Publications, 1989.
Thou Shalt Not Be Aware: Society's Betrayal of the Child, by Alice Miller. New York: Farrar Strauss Giroux, 1984.
Personal Growth and Transformation
Creative Visualization, by Shakti Gawain. Mill Valley, Calif.: Whatever Publishing, 1986. Short, straightforward instructions for visualization.
Guideposts to Meaning: Discovering What Really Matters, by Joseph Fabry. Oakland, Calif.: New Harbinger Publications, 1988. Straightforward guidance for exploring values and making active choices for creating meaning in life.
Maps to Ecstasy, by Gabrielle Roth. San Rafael, Calif.: New World Library, 1989. Good stuff on the healing potential of movement, using dance rhythms to express emotions and get in touch with the body on a primitive level, goes on to art, writing, other processing. Roth also produces audio tapes with music to accompany the dance rhythms.
The New Three Minute Meditator, by David Harp. Oakland, Calif.: New Harbinger Publications, 1990. A blend of Eastern ideas and Western lifestyle considerations in which Harp concludes that much can be gained from even three minutes of meditating. Good strategies for those who think they don't have enough time or discipline.
Prisoners of Belief. Exposing and Changing Beliefs that Control Your Life, by Matthew McKay and Patrick Fanning. Oakland, Calif.: New Harbinger Publications, 1991. Provides procedures for revising core assumptions that cause pain. Includes cognitive work and visualization work with the inner child to replace core messages at various stages.
The Seasons of a Man's Life, by Daniel J. Levinson. New York: Knopf, 1978. Classic book on male adult development, tracing life stories and analyzing themes.
The Sky's the Limit, by Wayne Dyer. New York: Pocket Books, 1980. Good section on being present, a condition Dyer calls a muga state. He gives good reasons for "being a good animal" and "being a child," as ways to connect with life.
Transformations: Growth and Change in the Adult Years, by Roger Gould. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1978.
Transforming Childhood: A Process Book for Personal Growth, by Strephon Kaplan-Williams. Berkeley, Calif.: Journey Press, 1988.
Transitions: Making Sense of Life's Changes, by William Bridges. Reading, Mass.: Addison-Wesley, 1980. Good explanation of the positive potential of life transitions and the stages involved-endings, neutral zones, and new beginnings. Aspects apply well to the work involved with changing belief systems.
Visualization for Change, by Patrick Fanning. Oakland, Calif.: New Harbinger Publications, 1988. Basic understanding of visualization and guidelines for specific areas of personal change.
Fiction to expand your thinking:
Civilwarland in Bad Decline, by George Saunders.
Dog on the Cross, short stories by Aaron Gwyn.
Other Worlds, Other Gods, by Mayo Mohs. A sci fi anthology.
Pastoralia, by George Saunders.
Siddhartha, by Hermann Hesse. New York: New Directions Publishing, 1951. Classic tale about a young Indian man's search for meaning and his discovery of the simplicity of true spirituality. (Incidentally, Hess was raised as a fundamentalist.)
Stranger in a Strange Land, by Robert Heinlein, 1961. This classis scifi novel of the 60’s has jostled many a reader out of long-held cultural assumptions. The main character comes to earth from Mars and challenges ideas about religion, morality, and love. Some ideas are a bit dated by now but the book is still a great read and gets you questioning.

Christian Theology/ The Christian Life

Abraham on Trial by Carol Delaney
A feminist critique of Abraham’s near-sacrifice of Isaac in the Book of Genesis, wherein Delaney argues that this story and its message has helped to fuel and justify child abuse throughout the centuries, in both secular and religious contexts. She also notes that the story teaches that children quite literally belong to their fathers—that is, that Isaac belonged to Abraham—and that this message discounts and dismisses mother’s role, since, after all, Isaac also “belonged” to his mother, Sarah, who was neither told nor consulted about the sacrifice.

A New Christianity for a New World: Why Traditional Faith is Dying & How a New Faith is Being Born by John Shelby Spong
Spong continues to develop his argument that in order for Christianity to survive, it must abandon outmoded concepts, such as the belief that God is a supernatural being that works outside of creation, or doctrines such as the Trinity, the Incarnation, and Atonement. In what many have called his “most mature work,” his cited inspirations include Dietrich Bonhoeffer and John A.T. Robinson.

Jesus for the Non-Religious by John Shelby Spong
Spong declares that various primitive and outdated teachings on subjects like the Trinity and prayer for divine intervention must be rejected in light of new scientific discoveries and cultural progress. Our conception of Jesus, therefore, must transcend old-fashioned primitivism, tribalism, and superstition, and the greater meaning and significance of his teachings and actions must be uncovered.

Killing the Imposter God: Philip Pullman’s Spiritual Imagination in His Dark Materials by Donna Freitas
Freitas argues that in spite of being an atheist, Pullman is a theologian, who is in favor of killing a particular understanding of god that is archaic, small-minded, and vicious.

Living in Sin?: A Bishop Rethinks Human Sexuality by John Shelby Spong
Spong argues that traditional Christian perspectives on sex are patriarchal, rigid, and prejudicial, and encourages the reader to free the Bible from the chains of literalism, and consider other ways of approaching sex, relationships, and even various rites.

Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory: A Journey into the Evangelical Subculture in America by Randall Balmer
Here, Balmer journeys into a Dallas seminary, a bible camp in the Adirondack Mountains, and many other places, in order to explore the full history, depth and breadth of evangelical Christianity in America.

Rescuing the Bible from Fundamentalism: A Bishop Rethinks the Meaning of Scripture by John Shelby Spong
Spong states that his purpose here is to “rescue the Bible from the exclusive hands of those who demand that it be literal truth and second to open that sacred story to levels of insight and beauty that, in my experience, literalism has never produced.” Spong asserts that the church has “traffic(ked) in guilt” and has, thanks to literalism and fundamentalism, distorted the beauty of sexual love and marred it with guilt, and has confined the love of God to narrow human barriers, killing it. Thus, Christians must champion a new way of approaching their faith.

Resurrection : Myth or Reality? by John Shelby Spong
Here, Spong delves into the meaning and significance of Easter, and argues that in order to properly understand this event, one must delve into and comprehend the Jewish tradition of midrash.

The Christian Theology Reader by Alister E. McGrath
Contains more than 300 diverse readings from 2,000 years of Christian history.

The Myth of a Christian Nation: How the Quest for Political Power Is Destroying the Church by Gregory Boyd.
Boyd shocked his congregation at the Woodland Hills megachurch in Minnesota when he gave a series of six sermons entitled “The Cross and the Sword,” in which he urged Christians to steer clear of politics and jingoism, because use of “The Sword” results in the loss of” the Cross.” In this text, Boyd develops his argument that Christians who align themselves with political causes and parties end up doing harm to Christianity and to society.

Thy Kingdom Come: How the Religious Right Distorts the Faith and Threatens America: An Evangelical's Lament by Randall Balmer
A self-described “jilted lover” who feels that his faith has been “hijacked by right-wing zealots,” Balmer declares that one does not have to be pushy or conservative in order to be a true evangelical, and that many modern evangelicals have completely forgotten about the past of evangelicalism, which has often stood for the opposite of what a number of evangelicals stand for today. Balmer laments how the voices of liberal evangelicals have often been drowned out by zealously conservative fundamentalists, and asserts that evangelicalism is, in reality, shockingly diverse. He also offers his own views on a variety of current hot topics, from homosexuality to abortion.

Scandalous Gospel of Jesus by Peter J. Gomes
Harvard minister Gomes takes a close look at why so many Christians have made Jesus, rather than his message, the object of their worship, adoration, and attention. Gomes delves into what Jesus actually preached, and reveals that to truly uphold and live the Good News requires greater courage, stronger hope, and more profound, even offensive (at least to the status quo) acts of rebellion than many might believe.

The Sins of Scripture: Exposing the Bible’s Texts of Hate to Reveal the God of Love by John Shelby Spong
Here, Spong approaches the Biblical passages and themes, as well as the historical events, that exist at and influence the heart of many of today’s most prominent debates, such as homosexuality, anti-Semitism, and the role of women in society and the church. Though Spong deeply believes in the goodness of the Bible, he must nonetheless confront what he calls the “texts of terror”—the parts of the Bible that are hateful and backward—and, while putting them in their proper historical and cultural context, inspire believers to condemn and transcend their cruelty, tribalism, and hatred.

Why Christianity Must Change or Die by John Shelby Spong
Spong, an Episcopal bishop, refers to himself as a “believer in exile.” He believes that Christianity must be reformed, and that a number of false, outdated, and hateful teachings must be exorcised so that all believers in exile may return home.

Eschatology/The End Times (Non-Fiction Only)

Expecting Armageddon: Essential Readings in Failed Prophecy by Jon R. Stone
This anthology of cross-cultural and comparative texts provides a peek into the world of failed end time prophecies, and helps shed light on how and why these prophecies are formed, why people believe in them, and what occurs to movements after their end time predictions fail.

Marks of the Beast: The Left Behind Novels and the Struggle for Evangelical Identity by Glenn Shuck
Here, Shuck examines the background of dispensationalism, and the tension evangelicals feel as they are pulled between wanting to preserve their unique identity, and influencing the culture so that it can become a safe haven for them. Shuck also looks at the cultural and historical elements and highlights of the series, and demonstrates how the characters of the Left Behind series use the Beast’s tactics to fight the Beast. Ultimately, he concludes that the series is “not simply innocuous fiction.”

Pocket Guide To The Apocalypse: The Official Field Manual For The End Of The World by Jason Boyett
A light-hearted and engaging look at everything you ever wanted to know about Armageddon, from the various concepts and terms, to the failed prophecies of ages past.

Shattering the ‘Left Behind’ Delusion by John Noe.
Criticizes the theological and eschatological view of the popular fiction series, and LaHaye and Jenkins’ lack of doubt and modesty with regards to their own theories.

Skipping Towards Armageddon: The Politics and Propaganda of the Left Behind Novels and the LaHaye Empire by Michael Standaert
Standaert argues that the Left Behind series is in fact fundamentalist propaganda, as opposed to just being mere harmless fiction. Standaert shows how fundamentalists who hold this worldview are managing to influence our society through various means.

The Rapture Exposed: The Message of Hope in the Book of Revelation by Barbara Rossing.
Rossing dismisses the ‘Left Behind’-style interpretation of the Book of Revelation, and argues that Revelation’s Jesus is a lamb, not a lion, and that the text bears a message of renewal and hope, rather than one of destruction, torture, and fear.

Religions: Theories on Origins, Evolutions and Hidden Histories

A History of God: The 4,000-Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam by Karen Armstrong
Armstrong, a British journalist and ex-nun, charts the history, evolution, and development of the idea and understanding of God in the three monotheistic desert faiths.

Evolving God: A Provocative View on the Origins of Religion by Barbara J. King
King, an anthropology professor at William and Mary, uses primatology and the social sciences to delve into why and how humans are religious. She theorizes that religion is born out of the human desire—which began as a primate desire—for intimacy and belonging, and delves into the psychology of primates to support and deepen this thesis.

God’s Funeral: A Biography of Faith and Doubt in Western Civilization by A.N. Wilson
Wilson examines the decline in faith in intellectuals—and, to a lesser degree, the working class—between the years of 1837 and 1901. He examines the lives and philosophies of many prominent thinkers in order to chart and analyze the gradual decline of religious faith in Western Civilization.

Jesus by A. N. Wilson
Wilson strives to demythologize Jesus, and to reveal the “historical reality” of his life, by delving into loads of archeological evidence, biblical scholarship, and texts like the Dead Sea Scrolls. He decides that many truths about Jesus can indeed be found in the Gospels, because they frequently ignore or destroy various tidy theological interpretations and readings.

Lost Christianities: The Battles for Scripture and the Faiths We Never Knew by Bart D. Ehrman
What if different sects and minority texts had won the day--what type or sort of Christianity would most people practice? Here, Ehrman raises interesting questions and inspires “what if”ponderings, as he discusses the battle between different sects and factions and texts in Christianity.

Lost Scriptures: Books that Did Not Make It into the New Testament by Bart D. Ehrman
This companion text to Lost Christianities explores the myriad texts that, as the title suggests, did not make the final cut, so to speak. The various excerpts from these texts reveal a complex and diverse wave of competing theologies who ultimately lost the battle, and who have often ended up forgotten therefore.

Misquoting Jesus: The Story Behind Who Changed the Bible and Why by Bart D. Ehrman
A textual critique of the ways in which the Bible has evolved and changed over throughout time.

Suns of God: Krishna, Buddha and Christ Unveiled by Acharya S.
Archaya S. explores the various ancient sun-god symbols and myths that she argues came to influence the major world religions practiced today.

The Jesus Mysteries by Timothy Freke and Peter Gandy
Freke and Gandy postulate that Jewish Gnostics adapted the symbolism of the Osiris-Dionysus myths into the story of Jesus, in order to make that story more meaningful and potent. They claim that most people are unaware of this because the evidence was destroyed by the Catholic Church, and endeavor to prove their core point by examining a number of mystery religions, and comparing and contrasting their tales and texts to that of the Gospels.

The Laughing Jesus by Timothy Freke and Peter Gandy
Here, Freke and Gandy explore the questions and possibilities revealed in and by Gnosticism, and the surprising and enlightening answers that may be contained therein.

Who Wrote the Bible? by Richard Friedman
Friedman first argues that the texts of the three monotheistic desert faiths are neither historically accurate, nor written by God. He theorizes that these faiths were in fact influenced by a number of other religions and nations in a number of ways. Later, he deals with the matter of Gnosis—its nature, its purpose, and how one acquires it.

Cults/ Religious Abuse and Coercion/Mass Movements

A Place Called Waco: A Survivor's Story by David Thibodeau and Leon Whiteson
Thibodeau was one of only nine people—out of seventy-four—to survive the grisly and terrifying events that transpired at the Branch Davidian compound in Waco, Texas. Thibodeau tells of how he first came to Waco and met David Koresh, a fellow musician, and what life was like within the Branch Davidian cult. Of course, he also gives a detailed account of the cult’s tragic and fiery last stand against the federal agents.

Deadly Cults: The Crimes of True Believers by Robert L. Snow
Officer Snow tells the stories behind a number of cults—some well known, some more obscure—and their members, drawing material from newspaper articles, magazine excerpts, and selected accounts and quotations from affected and involved parties. He concludes with an analysis into the anatomy of cults, how they find new converts, and what an individual can do to keep from being ensnared.

God’s Brothel by Andrea Moore-Emmett
The harrowing true tales of women who escaped from polygamous Mormon cults.

Heaven's Harlots: My Fifteen Years in a Sex Cult by Miriam Williams
William tells the story of how she, as a young hippie, joined the cult known as the Children of God, and ultimately ended up married, pregnant, and forced to have promiscuous sex for the glory of God. The cult’s activities became increasingly dark, coercive, and evil. When the leader began to coerce the cult’s members into engaging in homosexual sex, group sex, and pedophilia, Williams knew she had to escape, in order to protect her children.

Inside Out: A Memoir of Entering and Breaking Out of a Minneapolis Political Cult by Alexandra Stein.
The compelling true tale of one woman’s involvement with a left-wing political cult, and her struggle to escape.

Join Me by Danny Wallace
Danny Wallace placed an ad in a small London newspaper that simply read: JOIN ME. When thousands of replies poured in from all over the world, and his “Joiners” began to refer to him as “The Leader,” Wallace realized that he had inadvertently created a cult. Now all he had to do was figure out what to do with it!

Leaving Islam: Apostates Speak Out by Ibn Warraq
Contains the personal testimonies of those who have left Islam, and why. The appendices contain summaries of and references to the Qu’ran and the Hadith.

Out of the Cocoon: A Young Woman's Courageous Flight from the Grip of a Religious Cult by Brenda Lee
Lee describes her upbringing and life among the Jehovah Witnesses, and how she eventually broke away.

Seductive Poison: A Jonestown Survivor's Story of Life and Death in the People's Temple by Deborah Layton
Layton tells of how she, a rebellious and idealistic youth, came to belong to Jim Jones’ “People’s Temple,” and what life was like in the cult. Though she escaped before roughly 900 members of the cult committed suicide, daily life within the cult was still strange and challenging.

Terror in the Mind of God: The Global Rise of Religious Violence (Comparative Studies in Religion and Society, 13) by Mark Juergensmeyer
Juergensmeyer documents the global rise of religious terrorism, and seeks to better understand the “odd attraction of religion and violence,” through the use of scholarly resources, media accounts, and personal interviews with convicted terrorists from a variety of faiths.

The Ayn Rand Cult by Jeff Walker
Walker argues that Ayn Rand’s Objectivist movement displayed all the signs of a full-blown destructive cult, and that Rand herself was a bully who hid behind a façade of perfect rationality.

The True Believer by Eric Hoffer
Hoffer explains that movements such as Fascism, Communism, and Nazism gain momentum by properly catering and speaking to the frustrations and fears of the people. Hoffer outlines how groups and movements go about doing this, and also describes the various types of people who eagerly join such movements.

When Religion Becomes Evil: Five Warning Signs by Charles Kimball
When a religion starts to make absolute truth claims, demands blind obedience, establishes an “ideal time,” declares that the end justifies any means, and/or calls for Holy War, it is on its way to becoming profoundly corrupt and dangerous, argues Kimball.

When God Becomes a Drug by Father Leo Booth
Anything can become addictive, and, in becoming as such, can become harmful to an individual. Here, Father Booth outlines the signs and symptoms of religious addiction, and provides a plan for breaking free.

World Religions

A Sourcebook of Chinese Philosophy by Wing Tsit Chan
A collection of diverse writings from a variety of classical Chinese thinkers in the philosophies of Taoism, Confucianism, and Mo-ism (not to be confused with Maoism).

The Satanic Scriptures by Peter H. Gilmore
Current Church of Satan High Priest Peter Gilmore discusses a diverse and devilish range of topics, including music, aesthetics, the Satanic Panic of the 1980s, 9/11, Columbine, political correctness and “pantywaistism,” and same-sex marriage. (See the “Atheism” section for The Satanic Bible by Anton LaVey.)

The World's Religions by Huston Smith
Contains in-depth descriptions and analyses of the world’s major faiths.

The Examined Life: Philosophy and Self-Help

Beyond Good and Evil by Friedrich Nietzsche
To move beyond good and evil is to transcend traditional, rigid, often-Christian-based morality that has so often lacked common sense and has kept humans from reaching their full potential, and appreciating the true and perilous complexity of life.

Civilization and its Discontents by Freud
Our civilization and our primal urges often clash with one another, because they demand different things of us, says Freud. The vicious tug-of-war between these two opposing forces has sparked a great deal of conflict and tension throughout history, both within and between cultures and individuals. Freud argues that humans are inherently aggressive, and that civilization attempts to disarm human aggression by instilling a sense of guilt.

Flow by Mihalyi Csikszentmihalyi
Have you ever “lost yourself” in an activity? Flow is a state of pure, un-self-conscious immersion in an activity, where time loses all meaning, and one feels as though one has connected with one’s true purpose or calling. Here, Csikzentmihalyi describes the state of flow, the research on it, and the types of activities many people engage in that

How to See Yourself as You Really Are by the Dalai Lama
Each of us can attain happiness and a sense of purpose, but first we must acquire a sense of self-understanding. Here, the Dalai Lama explains how to come to see the self through a much more honest, accurate, and compassionate lens.

Looking Out For Number One by Robert J. Ringer
Everyone looks out for “number one,”—themselves—whether they openly acknowledge it or not. Those who strive to always be altruistic (and noticed for being as such), or who expect life and other people to be fair, often end up burned-out, disenfranchised, and disappointed. So, says Ringer, it will pay more in the end to acknowledge the “hidden price tag” behind every action, relationship, and decision, to acknowledge one’s own selfishness and that of others, and then, from that wisdom, create a pro-active plan for being more successful and happy in life. Ringer makes it clear that he has not set out to justify being callous, cruel, pushy, or obnoxious to other people, but rather, to show how all humans work for their own self-interest, whether consciously or subconsciously, and that it pays to admit this. Ringer discusses a number of “hurdles” in matters such as love, friendship, and finance that must be cleared in order for one to reap success at the finish line

Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl
Between 1942 and 1945, celebrated psychologist and “logotherapist” Viktor Frankl struggled and labored in four different Nazi concentration camps, including Auschwitz. His pregnant wife, his parents, and his brother all perished in the camps. Yet, instead of succumbing to despair and hopelessness, Frankl was able to cultivate a sense of purpose in his life, and this, he believes, allowed him to survive. Frankl argues that our primary drive in life is to discover a sense of meaning and purpose, and that because we cannot avoid suffering, we must endeavor to find meaning in it.

Reflections on the Human Condition by Eric Hoffer
The celebrated longshoreman meditates on the nature and situation of humankind.




Self Matters by Dr. Philip C. McGraw.
The key to being both successful and happy, says McGraw, is to establish congruency between your ideal life and your real life, and to gain a greater understanding of your authentic self, true priorities, and actual values. Through a series of questionnaires and tests, the reader can begin to uncover what matters most to them, and make a plan for meeting important life goals.

The Art of Happiness by the Dalai Lama and Howard Cutler
How can one attain true happiness? The Dalai Lama and psychologist Howard Cutler address this fundamental question, and the issues it touches.

The Lucifer Effect by Philip Zimbardo
Zimbardo—known for his infamous “Prison Experiment” at Stanford (?)--sheds light on the forces that drive even the most average-seeming people to commit acts of astonishing and profound evil. (Also see “The Sciences” section for more.)

The Lucifer Principle by Howard Bloom
Bloom argues that memes, biology, and culture interact to inspire human beings to engage in incredible acts of villainy and shocking displays of herd conformity. (Also see “The Sciences” section for more.)

The Power of Myth by Joseph Campbell
Explores the common mythological and symbolic threads that flow through all human cultures, and how humans use myth and symbol to create meaning. (See “The Sciences” for books by Carl Jung.)

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey
Covey reveals the paradigm shifts, private victories, journeys towards autonomy, and processes of renewal that will have to occur even before one implements his seven steps for becoming happier, more productive, and more successful in life—steps which entail and involve becoming more proactive, using foresight, prioritizing tasks, choosing worthwhile recreational activities, collaborating with others well, and communicating effectively, among many other things.

When You and Your Mother Can't Be Friends: Resolving the Most Complicated Relationship of Your Life by Victoria Secunda
Secunda outlines different types of dysfunctional mothers, and gives adult daughters advice on how to move past the hurt, the guilt, and the fear from having had a negative relationship with one’s mother.

The Sciences

Just Six Numbers by Martin Rees
Describes the six delicate and beautiful mathematical properties that allow the universe to exist as it is.

Man and His Symbols by Carl Jung
An analysis of dreams, symbols, the animus and the anima, and the subconscious mind, by Jung and his colleagues.


The Human Zoo by Desmond Morris
An analysis into the animalistic and natural instincts and inclinations which guide even the most sophisticated and rational-seeming human behaviors.

The Universe in a Single Atom: The Convergence of Science and Spirituality by the Dalai Lama
Spirituality and science must dialogue and learn from one another, as each can potentially produce great woes and evil if their proponents get locked into a single way of seeing or being. The Dalai Lama examines a number of current scientific controversies and moral dilemmas, describes how the dialogue between religion and science can occur, and also reflects on how the Buddhist understanding of the cosmos does or does not match up with scientific theories.



Atheism/Skepticism/Critiques of Christianity and Faith

50 Reasons People Give For Believing in a God by Guy Harrison
Many atheistic and skeptical texts fail to speak or appeal to believers and religionists, because they are highly complex or scientific, or fail to speak to believers’ true values or beliefs. Harrison has interviewed a variety of individuals, and presents, in clear detail, the various rationales for believing in a deity, as well as the flaws of and problems of those rationales.

Answer to Job by Carl Jung
Jung analyzes the ethical and psychological themes and processes found in the story of Job, and even briefly explores the Book of Revelation. In particular, Jung takes a hard look at the character of Yhwh.

Atheism, Morality, and Meaning by Michael Martin
Here, Martin presents a case for atheistic moral realism, and discusses the moral, metaphysical, and meaning-oriented implications of both Christianity and naturalism.

Atheism: The Case Against God by George H. Smith
Smith asserts that theists’ arguments are rife with inconsistencies, vaguely-defined and unclear terms, and logical flaws, and so there is seemingly no airtight rational or logical ways of arguing in favor of god’s existence.

Atheist Manifesto: The Case Against Christianity, Judaism, and Islam by Michel Onfray
Describes how the three major monotheistic religions have committed countless atrocities, and have attempted throughout history to suppress knowledge and deny humans freedom and pleasure in various forms.

Breaking the Spell: Religion as a Natural Phenomenon by Daniel C. Dennett
Here, Dennett explores religion as a natural phenomenon. Religion survives—and continues to evolve—because it fills a fundamentally useful and positive niche, yet it also causes and has caused a great deal of harm as well. Dennett petitions religions to engage in rigorous self-analysis, so as to spare their adherents and the larger culture any further pain, suffering, and ignorance.

Everything You Know About God is Wrong by Richard Dawkins
A compendium of essays, stories, musings, and even comics by the likes of Richard Dawkins, Neil Gaiman, Mark Twain, and H.G Wells. Topics include (but are not limited to) Wicca, Christian sex manuals, “ex-gays,” Mel Gibson’s father, the Church of John Coltrane, weird theology, and why America is not a Christian nation.

God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything by Christopher Hitchens
Hitchens writes that religion is “violent, irrational, intolerant, allied to racism and tribalism and bigotry, invested in ignorance and hostile to free inquiry, contemptuous of women and coercive toward children.” Here, he lists off religion’s countless sins, atrocities, and flaws, and argues in favor of atheism.

God: The Failed Hypothesis, How Science Shows That God Does Not Exist by Victor J. Stenger
Stenger invokes findings and properties in the fields physics, archaeology, biology, astronomy, and philosophy, among others, to argue against the existence of the Judeo-Christian-Islamic deity.

How We Believe by Michael Shermer
Describes the science behind religious belief.

Letter to a Christian Nation by Sam Harris
Harris primarily zeroes in on the Christian Right in this critique of Christianity’s negative influence on culture and human beings.

Losing Faith in Faith: From Preacher to Atheist by Dan Barker
Dan Barker was an evangelical minister and a missionary who was deeply involved with his faith, until he increasingly realized that this faith could not be reconciled with his intellectual and scientific knowledge about the world. This is the story of his journey from Christianity to atheism.

Philosophers Without Gods by Louise M. Antony
Nineteen atheistic philosophers shed light on their beliefs—or lack thereof—and, dispel common stereotypes and misconceptions about atheists and atheism, showing that atheism can be a fulfilling and moral way of life.

Sense and Goodness Without God: A Defense of Metaphysical Naturalism by Richard Carrier
Explores ethics, free will, the meaning of life, and other such matters, showing that one doesn’t need to believe in a higher power in order to be happy and healthy.

The Anti-Christ by Nietzsche.
The Christian god is a capricious, insane, vicious, small-minded being, and here, Nietzsche rails against that being.

The Blind Watchmaker: Why the Evidence of Evolution Reveals a Universe Without Design by Richard Dawkins.
Here, Dawkins argues in favor of evolution, and explains how it can—better than religion or theology—help us to unlock the mysteries of the universe.

The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark by Carl Sagan
Here, Sagan eloquently shows how science can serve as a beacon and a source of hope in our world.

The Portable Atheist: Essential Readings for the Nonbeliever by Christopher Hitchens
Contains and cites the writings of Hobbes, Mill, Marx, and Spinoza, among countless others, in order to show, as Hitchens says, that “religion invents a problem where none exists.”

The Satanic Bible by Anton LaVey
In this text, the founder and original High Priest of the Church of Satan lays out the basic dogma and structure of Satanism. Satanism maintains that Satan—as well as Jehovah, and all other gods, goddesses, and all figures of myth and the supernatural—are archetypes, not literal beings. Humans create gods in their own image, rather than the other way around, and project their own qualities, desires, and beliefs onto these figures. Spiritual religions manipulate and control their followers by commanding them to appease these man-made gods and their earthly representatives, and to adhere to strict rules and moral standards that require them to reject life, the flesh, and the self, in the hope that one may someday enter a glorious afterlife, or experience awakening, on an unseen spiritual plane. Satan, as the symbolic adversary of the spirit and the enemy the gods of the “right hand path,” represents the flesh (as opposed to the spirit), life (in contrast to death), indulgence (as opposed to both abstinence and over-indulgence), and the celebration of the self. (See also The Satanic Scriptures by Peter H. Gilmore in the “World Religions” section.)

The Sinner’s Guide to the Evangelical Right by Robert Lanham
The author of The Hipster Handbook weighs in on fundamentalist Christianity, carefully detailing and deftly skewering all the latest lingo, most popular mega-churches, and biggest televangelists, preachers, and evangelical celebrities. Whether you’re a hip unbeliever or non-fundamentalist looking to brush up on your knowledge of all things evangelical, or a recovering fundamentalist looking for a good belly laugh, this book will not disappoint.

Unauthorized Version: Truth and Fiction in the Bible by Robin Lane Fox
A detailed analysis of the historical origins (and sometimes, the lack thereof) of the Bible. Fox attempts to uncover what the Bible’s various authors intended, and reveals along the way that the Bible is neither the Word of God, nor is it historically factual.

Why I Am Not a Christian and Other Essays on Religion and Related Subjects by Bertrand Russell
Russell lucidly and eloquently critiques religion, and explains why he believes that religions are both untrue and, more often than not, harmful.

Why I Became an Atheist: A Former Preacher Rejects Christianity by John Loftus
Loftus was a devout evangelical Christian, until personal problems and mounting doubts forced him to re-evaluate his beliefs. Here, he explains the experiences and the thinking process that led him to reject Christianity.

Why I Rejected Christianity: A Former Apologist Explains by John Loftus
Loftus outlines the three main things that caused him to lose faith—namely, a personal crisis, new information, and the lack of a caring, supportive Christian community.

The X-Rated Bible by Ben Edward Akerley
A delightful romp through the Bible’s naughtiest bits and most lurid tales.

Critiques of Miscellaneous Religions and Philosophies

Objectivism and the Corruption of Rationality: A Critique of Ayn Rand's Epistemology by Scott Ryan
Objectivism claims to be a philosophy of pure rationality. Even its name suggests that it is, indeed, a purely objective way of looking at the world. But is it? Here, Scott analyzes the ethics, metaphysics, and philosophy of Ayn Rand (and sometimes, even her political views and aesthetic sense), and places her views in a historical context. (See also The Ayn Rand Cult by Jeff Walker, in the “Cults” section.)

Critiques of Islam

Defending the West: A Critique of Edward Said's Orientalism by Ibn Warraq
In his celebrated and well-known critique, entitled Orientalism, Edward Said asserted that the Western perception and vision of the East was coloured by racist, colonialist, imperialist attitudes. Warraq, meanwhile argues that Said’s case against the West is deeply flawed, tainted by misinterpretations and misrepresentations of many scholarly works, faulty arguments, and a misrepresentation of the West and its history. Warraq also examines the harm Said’s thesis and arguments have done to society.

God's Terrorists: The Wahhabi Cult and the Hidden Roots of Modern Jihad by Charles Allen
Allen traces the history of Wahhabism, and the violence it has wrought throughout time.

Militant Islam Reaches America by Daniel Pipes
Islam itself is not an inherent threat to the West, argues Pipes, but militant Islam, however, is. Pipes describes and examines the threats posed to America by Islamic immigrants, champions racial profiling, and describes how secularist Islam is, in the end, the only viable form of Islam.


The Politically Incorrect Guide(tm) to Islam (and the Crusades) (Politically Incorrect Guides) by Robert Spencer
A no-holds-barred, all-teeth-bared analysis of Islam, particularly its various dark spots.

The Suicide of Reason: Radical Islam's Threat to the West by Lee Harris
Harris explains how modern liberal societies do not comprehend the nature or spirit of mass fanaticism, because their values are informed by and born of the Enlightenment. Defending oneself against attacks from such fanaticism is not just a simple matter of reasoning with the fanatics by promoting or arguing for tolerance, democracy, logic, or modernization, and so most of our usual tactics and assumptions are sure to lead us into a dead end—perhaps literally as well as figuratively. Harris delves into the logic and structure of fanatical movements, by tracing their history through the Crusades, to Nazism, up to radical Islam, and explains how we can best fight fanatical opponents without becoming mirror images of them.

Why I Am Not a Muslim by Ibn Warraq
Here, Warraq places Islam under a microscope, discussing its origins (including its various influences, and its pagan background), its brutal history, its oppression of other faiths, its less-than-pleasant doctrinal teachings, its repressive and overbearing presence in various nations throughout time, and the various character flaws of and bloody campaigns launched by Muhammad himself. The text also contains a whole chapter on why Muslims detest the West.

(See also Leaving Islam: Apostates Speak Out by Ibn Warraq in the “Cults” section.)

Miscellaneous and Not-Yet-Categoried

An Underground Education : The Unauthorized and Outrageous Supplement to Everything You Thought You Knew About Art, Sex, Business, Crime, Science, Medicine, and Other Fields of Human Knowledge by Richard Zacks
A collection of strange facts, odd anecdotes, and obscure trivia, about a number of diverse subjects.

Apocalypse Culture by Adam Parfrey
A curious compendium of interviews and essays by, for and about a wide range of unusual theories and unorthodox perspectives about the things that will ultimately destroy us all.

Clash of Civilizations by Samuel P. Huntington
We should not think of the world as consisting as a collection of states or countries, says Huntington, but rather, as a set of seven or eight “civilizations. In the future, the most intense conflicts will increasingly occur between these different civilizations, rather than between individual nation states.

Running from the Devil: A Memoir of a Boy Possessed by Steve Kissing
At the age of 11, Kissing suddenly began hallucinating and hearing garbled voices while at school one day, and then had a similar experience a few months later during Sunday Mass. Being Catholic, Kissing assumed that he was possessed by The Devil. In this funny and revealing memoir, Kissing recalls and reflects on these strange “possessions,” and reveals how, finally, at the age of 16, he discovered their true cause.

The Book of Jerry Falwell: Fundamentalist Language and Politics by Susan Friend Harding
Here, Harding studies and analyzes the rhetoric of Jerry Falwell, as revealed in his sermons, speeches, mail, and television broadcasts.

Fiction and Poetry

A Prayer For Owen Meany by John Irving
John Wheelright recounts his experinces with his childhood friend, Owen Meany, a dwarfish, eccentric boy who is steadfastly convinced that he is an instrument of God, and that all things happen for a reason. John, whose mother Owen accidentally killed, is not so sure. Through his many adventures with Owen Meany, John wrestles with matters of faith, fate, friendship, and social justice.

Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand
Dagny Taggart and her friends stand in defiance against an increasingly socialistic, altruistic society that resents them and their attempts to be autonomous and free.

Armageddon Summer by Jane Yolen and Bruce Coville
The parents of Jed and Marina are among the many Believers, a church headed by the Reverend Raymond Beelson. One day, Reverend Beelson declares that 144 Believers must gather atop Mount Weepcut and wait for the End. The Believers will of course be saved, but the rest of the world will burn. Jed is skeptical of all this, but is keeping a watchful, if cynical, eye on his deeply devout father. Marina, meanwhile, wishes to be devout so that she can stay close to her brothers and mother, but worries and wonders about the ultimate fate of her unbelieving father, who was left behind. The day of reckoning arrives, and an End of sorts occurs, but not in the way any of the Believers expected.

Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman
A collection of poems that celebrate life, the universe and nature; mourn war and suffering, applaud human beauty and ingenuity, and marvel at the wonder of the universe.

Paradise Lost by John Milton
The epic poem about the rebellion of Lucifer against God.

The Complete Poetry and Prose of William Blake
Blake is notable for his unique perspective and unusual spin on Christian theology, wherein the usual characters—Jesus, God, Satan, angels—take on new and different life, and play intriguing roles in the apparent battles between light and dark, reason and emotion, delusion and sanity.