Away With All Gods! Unchaining the Mind and Radically Changing the World...

[redwinter]

Here is a recent book published by Bob Avakian, Chairman of the Revolutionary Communist Party, USA , who argues that not only is religion wrong, it is harmful to human beings and will hold us back from acheiving emancipation from oppression in the real world. Have you read this yet? What do you think? I am going to post a summary and the table of contents so people who haven't read it can get a sense of what it's about. I read it and thought it was amazing and thought-provoking...

Away With All Gods!
Unchaining the Mind and Radically Changing the World
by Bob Avakian


About the Book

Is believing in gods actually harmful? How has Christianity for centuries served as an ideology of conquest and subjugation? Why is the "Bible Belt" in the U.S. also the "lynching belt"? Why is there a rise of religious fundamentalism throughout the world? In the intensifying conflict between U.S. imperialism and Islamic fundamentalism, is the only choice to take one side or the other? Why is patriarchy and the oppression of women foundational to so many religions? Can people be good without god? These are just some of the questions explored in this provocative work by Bob Avakian.

Bringing a unique revolutionary communist voice to the current discourse about god, atheism and morality, Avakian demystifies religious belief and examines how, even in its most progressive interpretations, religion stands in the way of the emancipation of humanity. A thread deeply woven throughout Away With All Gods! is the need to fully rupture with all forms of superstition, and to take up instead a truly scientific approach to understanding and transforming reality.

Whether you believe in god, or are an agnostic or an atheist, Bob Avakian will challenge you with his powerful critique of long-established traditions and his liberating vision of a radically different world.

"What most distinguishes Avakian's Away With All Gods from other much publicized books of this kind, such as those by Dawkins, Harris, and Hitchens, is the direct connection Avakian makes between combating religious fundamentalism and promoting a radical political agenda. Avakian is also to be commended not only for combining his religious freethinking with an endorsement of the modern Enlightenment tradition, but also for providing a sober warning against 'the smug arrogance of the enlightened.' Anyone who has read any of the other books mentioned above should also take the time to read this one."
—Allen Wood, author of Karl Marx and Kantian Ethics

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Part One: WHERE DID GOD COME FROM...AND WHO SAYS WE NEED GOD?

* "God Works in Mysterious Ways"
* A Cruel and Truly Monstrous God
* The Bible, Taken Literally, Is a Horror
* Christian Fundamentalists, Christian Fascists
* Seeing Jesus in a True Light
* What About the Ten Commandments?
* No New Testament Without the Old
* Fundamentalist and "Salad Bar" Christianity
* Religion and Oppressive Ruling Classes
* Evolution, the Scientific Method—and Religious Obscurantism
* If Gods Do Not Exist, Why Do People Believe in Them?
* Why Do People Believe in Different Gods?


Part Two: CHRISTIANITY, JUDAISM, AND ISLAM—
ROOTED IN THE PAST, STANDING IN THE WAY OF THE FUTURE


* The Historical Development and Role of Christianity: Doctrines and Power Politics
* Christianity As a New Religion: The Pivotal Role and Influence of Paul
* Demystifying Jesus and Christianity
* Islam Is No Better (and No Worse) Than Christianity
* Religious Fundamentalism, Imperialism, and the "War on Terror"
* Why Is Religious Fundamentalism Growing in Today's World?
* Rejecting the "Smug Arrogance of the Enlightened"
* The Growth of Religion and Religious Fundamentalism: A Peculiar Expression of a Fundamental Contradiction


Part Three: RELIGION—A HEAVY, HEAVY CHAIN

* Religion, Patriarchy, Male Supremacy and Sexual Repression
* The Bible Belt Is the Lynching Belt: Slavery, White Supremacy and Religion in America
* Christian Fascism and Genocide
* Religion, Fundamentalism, and the Slave Mentality


Part Four: GOD DOES NOT EXIST—WE NEED LIBERATION WITHOUT GODS

* The "Left Hand of God"—And the Right Way to Go About Winning Liberation
* The Myth of the Truthfulness and Positive Role of Religious Myth
* Reason Has Not "Failed Us"—Reason Is Absolutely Necessary—
Though, In Itself, It Is Not Enough
* Religious "Faith"—Let's Call It What It Is: Irrational
* God Does Not Exist—And There Is No Good Reason to Believe In God
* Religion as an Opiate of the People—And an Obstacle to Emancipation
* There Is No Such Thing As Unchanging, and Unchangeable,
Human Nature
* Liberation Without Gods

[Tapey]

I'm tending to agree with him here. There was a time when we may of needed religion but I don't think we need it anymore.
Here is a famous saying
evil men will do evil things
good men will do good things
But for good men to do evil things, that takes religion.
Of course It is not 100% accurate, but my feeling is it does more to hinder than to help.

[RoryD]

Good saying Tapey, i fully agree with it. I do agree too that religion does more harm than good.

[Moonwalker]

Originally Posted by RoryD

Good saying Tapey, i fully agree with it. I do agree too that religion does more harm than good.

I do not want to delve to deep into this....but yes , I do agree that religion does a lot of harm
I am a Darwinist....completely agnostic

But having said that , I do believe that religion does create sanity for those who believe in it