The God Delusion (Part 1)

'Why should I care' was the general attitude I shared with my friends and peers when it came to religion. "It is pointless" usually put a stop to any theological discussion that cropped up. I believed that God would mind his business and just leave me alone. And then I read "The God Delusion" (TGD) by Richard Dawkins (RD). As the book has been reviewed by many erudite scholars with a greater knowledge on the subject matter, I dare not presume to write one of my own. The following rather are my observations, proverbial lit bulbs to think of a lesser example and the effect the book had on me.

First of all, I am of the opinion that instead of placing our trust in a priest or a theological scholar or RD himself, we should use the power of independent thought to find out the existence or non-existence of God. RD has printed his opinions and we may use TGD as a tool to seek out the truth ourselves. For example, as RD has pointed out, this higher power that is God had supposedly created the multitude of galaxies, this complex planet and all living things without as much as a 'how do you do'. Should we believe in the proof of evolution or should we take the "leap to faith" and dispute logical reasoning and evidence? Why does RD (according to creationists), 'scathingly attack' religion? If people were allowed to think, ask questions and reason without the fire and brimstones, would he have ever written TGD?

RD has talked about one of the classical creationist arguments: 'everything is complex. It could not have happened by chance, hence it is a miracle'. Evolution is not taken into account at all. One blogger (from what little I've read) accuses RD as a fundamentalist. A fundamentalist believes in a set of beliefs under all circumstances whereas a rationalist such as RD would examine the circumstantial evidence and convert, if it was proven that God did exist. There cannot possibly be a fundamental rationalist; only fundamental (and some completely mental) religious groups. If a group of people need a reason to hate another group, religion more than provides an excuse and riots ensue (see Exhibit A: Mumbai Riots).

Go to: Part 2 | Part 3

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