Reddit reviews Doubt: A History: The Great Doubters and Their Legacy of Innovation from Socrates and Jesus to Thomas Jefferson and Emily Dickinson

" Of course, while the rising rates of professed secularity in the Arab-Muslim world are new, the roots of such secularism run deep. Very deep. Many centuries deep. Despite the fact that many people erroneously associate Islam with nothing but religious fundamentalism, the historical fact is that skepticism, rationalism, and humanism have been long-entrenched within Arabic-Muslim history. "

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If there was no punishment for apostasy, secularism would have taken over the Arab world by now.

4 and 16 sound like pretty sceptical authors, which might come as a surprise to those who don't know that the Arab world has (had?) a sceptical/freethinking tradition. I read about it in the fine book Doubt by Jennifer Michael Hecht.

There are certain strands of Hinduism that are atheistic, Samkhya for example doesn't focus on the existence of deities, rather on the interplay between matter and consciousness. Buddhism too is a non-theistic religion. In both these cases however the nonexistence of gods is not a defining principle and, especially in Buddhism, the inclusion of other regional and cultural gods was accepted and included alongside the core teachings of the religion.

In Greece there are many philosophies that saw the gods as metaphors, allegories, or nominally existent, but not ontologically. The Sophists and the Epicureans were two branches that fall into this category.

In any case, there were no primarily atheistic societies in ancient history that it was a cultural or political practice to deny the existence of God/gods. Obviously there were individuals who dissented with the prevailing cultural religion but these are the exceptions that prove the rule.

For more information on the history of atheism I'd recommend Jennifer Michael Hecht's Doubt: A History

To me it’s a dead ringer for Jennifer Michael Hecht’s Doubt: A History

https://www.amazon.com/Doubt-Doubters-Innovation-Jefferson-Dickinson/dp/0060097957

Well, first we must distinguish formal religion from informal animism and the like. It's not clear that humans with their hyperactive agency detection do default to atheism.

Second, I was referring to formal arguments for atheism such as Epicurus and Siddhartha Gautama.

So, doubt as a formalized argument was really not much of a factor at the time of the founding of the Jewish religion. Therefore, belief was also not such a big deal. It was more just expected. Obedience was the focus.

If you're really curious enough to read a full length book on the subject, I recommend Doubt: A History : the Great Doubters and Their Legacy of Innovation from Socrates and Jesus to Thomas Jefferson and Emily Dickinson by Jennifer Michael Hecht

1. tropic of cancer by Henry miller. Read it as a junior in high school on my own, while assigned the usual ghastly curriculum of warmed over crap. I didn't know an "old" book could be so lively, vibrant, and also really filthy
   
2. Doubt: a history. This one made me better at my job. https://www.amazon.com/Doubt-Doubters-Innovation-Jefferson-Dickinson/dp/0060097957

I would recommend staying away from the polemics. Authors like Dawkins, Hitchens, Harris all have books worth reading, but not really if you want a primer on atheistic alternatives in the areas of worldview, ethics, etc. I will say that Dawkins's earlier works on science would be good, but God Delusion is not an exposition of an atheistic worldview, but rather an attack on religion, and a messy, at times ignorant and oversimplified one at that (I bet I'll get crucified for saying that). As one religious studies student to another, it is a book that gets awfully frustrating every time you realize that he has a horrible grasp of the relevant data.

Books that would be really great to read:

George H. Smith's Atheism: The Case Against God is an approachable critique of some of the more popular arguments for God's existence.

Julian Baggini's Atheism: A Brief Insight is a really good and thorough survey of the explanation, arguments, history, and ethics of atheism.

Greg Epstein's Good Without God: What a Billion Nonreligious People Do Believe really gets into where someone goes once he/she has already concluded that God doesn't exist. He looks at how one builds a nonreligious life of meaning. Epstein is definitely in the "friendly atheist" category. As the Humanist Chaplain at Harvard (strange, oxymoronic titles aside) he has done a great deal of work with the Pluralism Project in their School of Divinity. He has even worked with inter-religious groups like the InterFaith Youth Core.

A long, but very much worth the time and highly recommended book is Jennifer Michael Hecht's Doubt: A History: The Great Doubters and Their Legacy of Innovation from Socrates and Jesus to Thomas Jefferson and Emily Dickinson. In it, she goes very thoroughly through the long history of religious skepticism. She looks at the lives and questions of philosophers, scientists, poets, politicians, even some religious figures who have gone through the "dark night of the soul." This is a book that I think every atheist should read to learn that religious folks aren't the only ones with a long and storied tradition. It is a good grounding in history for secularists.

Maybe Jennifer Michael Hecht.

May I suggest you read the book "Doubt" by Jennifer Michael Hecht. It is fascinating, and covers "doubters" from Socrates to Jesus to Thomas Jefferson. It can help you a great deal.
http://www.amazon.com/Doubt-Doubters-Innovation-Jefferson-Dickinson/dp/0060097957
PS - You can get it at your local library free too.

One of the greatest parts of this book is the "quiz" she provides in the beginning - the results already give you an idea of where you are on the religious belief spectrum.

Note: The quiz gave me a result of "Non-materialistic agnostic"

Second this! Of course use responsibly and in moderation. Tolerance can build up pretty quickly - even though weed is way less dangerous than alcohol, mcdonalds, much of advertising, and porn (all IMO), it's still good to be respectful of the plant and yourself, and not go overboard.

Try to expose yourself to meaningful, thought provoking things while high - don't just watch Airplane! and order a Pizza (although these are, of course, exceedingly enjoyable activities while high as well). Read a book on philosophy (Doubt: A History), physics (The Lightness of Being), or some great poetry, watch an awesome documentary (Baraka), go for a hike somewhere beautiful, take a long shower with the lights off and have some time alone with your thoughts, that kind of thing.

I'd also recommend a good nootropic stack to reduce the short term memory loss and paranoia that can come with cannabis - piracetam, bacopa, ashwaghanda, fishoii, and a COX-2 inhibitor like ibuprofin, naproxin, etc. There's a good longecity thread on this.

Also keep a notebook handy.

Doubt: A History by Hecht

Decent springboard. http://www.amazon.com/Doubt-Doubters-Innovation-Jefferson-Dickinson/dp/0060097957

Doubt: A History: The Great Doubters and Their Legacy of Innovation from Socrates and Jesus to Thomas Jefferson and Emily Dickinson https://www.amazon.com/dp/0060097957/ref=cm_sw_r_awd_7HJevb1Q8JJFF

I posted a link to this book earlier today, but I'll recommend it here, too:Doubt: A history

It's a great intellectual history and if one of your concerns as you move away from the familiarity of faith is that you are alone, this book should assuage that. It's a truly vibrant and storied intellectual tradition. (And this is an inspiring book)

http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13602000701737079

Doubt: A History: The Great Doubters and Their Legacy of Innovation from Socrates and Jesus to Thomas Jefferson and Emily Dickinson

Defenders of Reason in Islam: Mu'tazililism from Medieval School to Modern Symbol

The Closing of the Muslim Mind: How Intellectual Suicide Created the Modern Islamist Crisis

Islam's Predicament with Modernity: Religious Reform and Cultural Change

Islam without Extremes: A Muslim Case for Liberty

Islam and Democracy: Fear of the Modern World

ps. I don't mind lending you at least some of the books above (via Amazon Kindle) if you're truly interested in learning about this period.

I think you'd like reading Doubt: A History, by Jennifer Michael Hecht. It belongs on every bookshelf in every home.

Doubt doesn't have to be a faith-killer. Doubt is actually a pretty common theme among religious texts, amd can serve as a strengthener. Don't be afraid of inquiry and heavy thinking about this stuff. If you're interested in the subject itself.

So, that's from this book? http://www.amazon.com/Doubt-Doubters-Innovation-Jefferson-Dickinson/dp/0060097957

Did you just read it?