• Saturday, February 18, 2012
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Stanley Fish on Atheism

How are the prominent atheists Sam Harris and Richard Dawkins similar to people who believe in God? Stanley Fish parses the argument on his New York Times blog, Think Again (subscription required). One similarity is the vocabulary they use to explain that science one day will be able to explain ethical and moral behavior -- “belief,” “undoubtedly,” “there will come a time” -- and the reasoning they engage in. Harris and Dawkins exemplify the definition of faith found in Hebrews 11, “the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” But isn't reason what separates scientific faith from religious faith? Not so, says Fish: Any form of thought is an extricable mix of both faith and reason. Nearly 300 readers offer their two cents each.