"Churches must learn humility as well as teach it." -George Bernard ShawAtheism was all the rage a few years ago, when several books received a measure of notoriety. The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins and God Is Not Great by the late Christopher Hitchens are examples. Ironically, neither author claimed to be an atheist.
Apparently, agnosticism is the all-purpose hedge for rationalists. Religious beliefs are impossible to quantify, but by the same token, the tenets of faith are also impossible to disprove. Empiricists, with few exceptions, are loath to assess the qualitative or civic virtue of religion. On the other hand, these same critics are quick to catalogue depredations committed in the name of faith. For many on the progressive side of the political spectrum, religion is little more than a historical anachronism.
Now comes Harvard's Niall Ferguson with a more utilitarian view of religion. In a nutshell, the author of Civilization; the West and the Rest (a PBS series also) says "not so fast" to those who dismiss or denigrate religion. For Ferguson, the earthly value of religion is a function of reconciliation or reform. Islam never saw reform, and Europe merely nationalized the Protestant and Catholic variants of Christianity. In contrast, America left faith to personal, not public conscience -- and prospered in unprecedented ways.
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