<b>An eye-opening, myth-busting tour of the Old and New Testaments, the true origins of their stories, and the faith that’s required to believe them.</b><br />  <br /> The Bible is accepted across the globe as the holy word of God. But today we know that it’s made up of fanciful legends set down by power-seeking priests eager to inspire awe and fear in their flocks. And as <i>Deceptions and Myths of the Bible</i> illustrates, these tales of scriptural tyranny aren’t even original—but rather retold and revised mythologies.<br />  <br /> The story of Adam and Eve was derived from a Babylonian account. Noah’s dilemma is the exaggerated accumulation of over four hundred years of flood accounts from various ancient civilizations. Even the names of Noah’s sons are hand-me-downs, as was the tale of Isaac’s sacrifice, Solomon’s judgment, and Samson’s pillar act. Moses? Fashioned from the Syrian story of Mises. As for the laws of the Bible, they were patterned after the Babylonian Code of Hammurabi. Revealed here, too, are the 137 similarities between the story of Jesus and the story of the Egyptian god Horus, and nearly twice as many parallels between the story of Christ and the Hindu god Krishna, and many more faith-shaking revelations.<br />  <br /> For any reader interested in theology, this is an essential read. For atheists, it’s an irrefutable argument of support; for agnostics, evidence to tip the scale. For the devout, it offers an enlightening, history-based awareness of the derivation of your religion.

<p><strong>Without God, how can we have hope or make sense of such a broken world?</strong></p><p>Skeptics believe we don’t need God to understand reality, and that science and reason hold the keys to building a better world. Faith is blind, and there is no credible evidence for God’s existence—especially the God of the Bible. Therefore, science and religious belief are deeply incompatible, and God is no longer relevant to our modern world.</p><p>But if there is no God, how can our lives have any meaning? How can we make sense of good and evil, truth, justice, beauty, rationality, or even science itself? By engaging with popular atheists and skeptics, both new and old, as well as many of Christianity’s most brilliant writers, pastor and author Zachary Broom demonstrates how not only is there powerful evidence for God’s existence, but without Him, everything begins to unravel.</p><p>Instead of setting out to “prove” God’s existence, Without God carefully and seriously engages skeptic’s doubts and common arguments against God, making use of philosophy, science, literature, and real-life conversations, as well as the author's own struggles and doubts.</p><p>Whether you believe in God or not, you will be challenged to wrestle carefully with life’s most important questions in a way that will lead you to a greater respect for the beliefs of others. </p>

<b><i>NEW YORK TIMES</i> BESTSELLER • The bestselling author of <i>Zealot</i> and host of <i>Believer </i>explores humanity’s quest to make sense of the divine in this concise and fascinating history of our understanding of God.</b><br /><b> </b><br /> In <i>Zealot,</i> Reza Aslan replaced the staid, well-worn portrayal of Jesus of Nazareth with a startling new image of the man in all his contradictions. In his new book, Aslan takes on a subject even more immense: God, writ large.<br />  <br />In layered prose and with thoughtful, accessible scholarship, Aslan narrates the history of religion as a remarkably cohesive attempt to understand the divine by giving it human traits and emotions. According to Aslan, this innate desire to humanize God is hardwired in our brains, making it a central feature of nearly every religious tradition. As Aslan writes, “Whether we are aware of it or not, and regardless of whether we’re believers or not, what the vast majority of us think about when we think about God is a divine version of ourselves.”<br />  <br /> But this projection is not without consequences. We bestow upon God not just all that is good in human nature—our compassion, our thirst for justice—but all that is bad in it: our greed, our bigotry, our penchant for violence. All these qualities inform our religions, cultures, and governments.<br />  <br /> More than just a history of our understanding of God, this book is an attempt to get to the root of this humanizing impulse in order to develop a more universal spirituality. Whether you believe in one God, many gods, or no god at all, <i>God: A Human History</i> will challenge the way you think about the divine and its role in our everyday lives.<br /><br /><b>Praise for God</b><br /><br />“Timely, riveting, enlightening and necessary.”<b>—</b><i><b><i>HuffPost</i></b><br /><br /> </i>“Tantalizing . . . Driven by [Reza] Aslan’s grace and curiosity, God . . . helps us pan out from our troubled times, while asking us to consider a more expansive view of the divine in contemporary life.”<b><i><b><i>—The Seattle Times</i></b><br /><br /> </i></b>“A fascinating exploration of the interaction of our humanity and God.”<b><i><b>—<i>Pittsburgh Post-Gazette</i></b><br /><br /> </i></b>“[Aslan’s] slim, yet ambitious book [is] the story of how humans have created God with a capital G, and it’s thoroughly mind-blowing.”<b><i><b><i>—Los Angeles Review of Books</i></b><br /><br /> </i></b>“Aslan is a born storyteller, and there is much to enjoy in this intelligent survey.”<b><i><b>—<i>San Francisco Chronicle</i></b></i></b>

<p>I’ve shared the details of my spiritual journey in <i>Goodbye Jesus: An Evangelical Preacher’s Journey Beyond Faith</i>. My aim in this book is raise four challenging questions that need to be addressed by every Christian believer and then to offer one incredibly simple answer—an answer that challenges the veracity of the Christian faith but can also be the gateway to a rewarding new life that is based on truth and does not require the suspension of common sense.</p><p>Objectively examining your closely held belief system is not a walk in the park. And facing up to the idea that you might be under a spell that makes it hard for you to think objectively is daunting, especially when you rely on the spell’s results to make you feel that everything is okay and when you’ve been warned that tampering with the spell is the worst thing you could ever do.</p><p>Choose courage. If what you believe is true, it can stand the test of any question that I or anyone else might raise. I encourage you to open your mind, face the facts, and decide that you will follow the truth wherever it leads.</p><p>I spent most of my life in a search for truth about faith, God, and religion. Maybe I can save you some time as you make your own decisions. </p><p> Tim Sledge</p>

<p>From the new afterword by the author:<br /><br />Humanity has had a long fascination with blood sacrifice. In fact, it has been by no means uncommon for a child to be born into this world only to be patiently and lovingly reared by religious maniacs, who believe that the best way to keep the sun on its course or to ensure a rich harvest is to lead him by tender hand into a field or to a mountaintop and bury, butcher, or burn him alive as offering to an invisible God. The notion that Jesus Christ died for our sins and that his death constitutes a successful propitiation of a “loving” God is a direct and undisguised inheritance of the superstitious bloodletting that has plagued bewildered people throughout history. . .</p>

Do you want to get sober without adopting the belief in God that is often pushed in AA, NA, and other 12-step meetings? Do you want a practical, no-nonsense, psychology-based approach to sobriety that is rooted in down-to-earth principles and actions? Staying Sober Without God is a guide that will help you do just that.<br /><br />Staying Sober Without God provides an overview of alcoholism, drug addiction, and behavioral addictions along with a new version of the 12 steps referred to as The Practical 12 Steps. These steps, written by a recovering addict and licensed psychotherapist, are adapted from the original 12 steps. They contain the original wisdom of the 12 steps without any reference to God or the supernatural.<br /><br />Staying Sober Without God also provides guidance in areas that the original 12 steps don't fully address such as physical health, seeking outside help, and effective communication. The end result is a robust, well-rounded guide to a balanced recovery lifestyle that can help you stay forever free from your compulsive behaviors if you choose to be.<br /><br />Finally, there is a path to recovery for the rest of us.

<b>From bestselling author and provocateur Christopher Hitchens, the classic guide to the art of principled dissent and disagreement</b><br />In<i> Letters to a Young Contrarian</i>, bestselling author and world-class provocateur Christopher Hitchens inspires the radicals, gadflies, mavericks, rebels, and angry young (wo)men of tomorrow. Exploring the entire range of "contrary positions"--from noble dissident to gratuitous nag--Hitchens introduces the next generation to the minds and the misfits who influenced him, invoking such mentors as Emile Zola, Rosa Parks, and George Orwell. As is his trademark, Hitchens pointedly pitches himself in contrast to stagnant attitudes across the ideological spectrum. No other writer has matched Hitchens's understanding of the importance of disagreement--to personal integrity, to informed discussion, to true progress, to democracy itself.<br />

<b>Christopher Hitchens's personally curated <i>New York Times</i> bestselling anthology of the most influential and important writings on atheism, including original pieces by Salman Rushdie and Ian McEwan</b><br />From the #1 <i>New York Times</i> best-selling author of <i>God Is Not Great</i>, a provocative and entertaining guided tour of atheist and agnostic thought through the ages--with never-before-published pieces by Salman Rushdie, Ian McEwan, and Ayaan Hirsi Ali.Christopher Hitchens continues to make the case for a splendidly godless universe in this first-ever gathering of the influential voices--past and present--that have shaped his side of the current (and raging) God/no-god debate. With Hitchens as your erudite and witty guide, you'll be led through a wealth of philosophy, literature, and scientific inquiry, including generous portions of the words of Lucretius, Benedict de Spinoza, Charles Darwin, Karl Marx, Mark Twain, George Eliot, Bertrand Russell, Emma Goldman, H. L. Mencken, Albert Einstein, Daniel Dennett, Sam Harris, Richard Dawkins, and many others well-known and lesser known. And they're all set in context and commented upon as only Christopher Hitchens--"political and literary journalist extraordinaire" (<i>Los Angeles Times</i>)--can. Atheist? Believer? Uncertain? No matter: <i>The Portable Atheist</i> will speak to you and engage you every step of the way.

<h4>Special 99 cent pricing for a limited time!<br /><br />Do you spend hours on your device, only to look up and wonder where the heck the time went? Do you have trouble focusing on your goals or to-do list? Do you value your time but aren’t sure if you’re using it wisely?<br /><br />In a world of constant distraction, you NEED the most efficient solutions possible to maximize your focus and get your mind right. <br /><br /><i>Fearless Focus</i> cuts through the information overload and attention stealers to ask: what exactly are you focused on? <br /><br /><i>Fearless Focus</i> provides simple yet effective solutions that will help you:<br />- Effortlessly improve your self-awareness <br />- Conquer your mindset and habits<br />- Focus intensely towards your goals <br />- Better understand how the brain works<br />- Become conscious of your technological distractions <br />- Reclaim your brain from the stimuli fighting for your attention <br />- Believe in yourself and live with intention<br /><br />Enjoy this quick read that will shift your thinking and brighten your outlook in an instant. Scroll up and click <i>Buy Now!</i></h4>

For skeptics looking for appealing ways to approach their believing friends or believers who are not afraid to consider a skeptical challenge, this book makes for very stimulating reading. Many books that challenge religious belief from a skeptical point of view take a combative tone that is almost guaranteed to alienate believers or they present complex philosophical or scientific arguments that fail to reach the average reader.This is undoubtably an ineffective way of encouraging people to develop critical thinking about religion. This is a unique approach to skepticism regarding that presents fifty commonly heard reasons people often give for believing in a God and then he raises legitimate questions regarding these reasons, showing in each case that there is much room for doubt.Whether you're a believer, a complete skeptic, or somewhere in between, you'll find this review of traditional and more recent arguments for the existence of God refreshing, approachable, and enlightening. From religion as the foundation of morality to the authority of sacred books, the compelling religious testimony of influential people, near-death experiences, arguments from Intelligent Design, and much more, Harrison respectfully describes each rationale for belief and then politely shows the deficiencies that any good skeptic would point out. As a journalist who has traveled widely and interviewed many highly accomplished people, quite a number of whom are believers, the author appreciates the variety of belief and the ways in which people seek to make religion compatible with scientific thought. Nonetheless, he shows that, despite the prevalence of belief in gods or religious belief in intelligent people, in the end there are no unassailable reasons for believing in a god.