The Last Superstition

If there is one book I wish everybody would read, it is Edward Feser's The Last Superstition: A Refutation of the New Atheism. It is about much more than the annoying zit on the face of modernity known as the "new atheism." It is actually a history of Western philosophy that explains how some a movement as intellecually vacuous as the "new atheism" could become so popular in our society.

This book shows how it is that most of what are usually known as "the problems of philosophy" are actually the result of modern philosophers' rejection of the classical synthesis of philosophy that developed from the early church fathers through Augustine to Aquinas. It shows that the problem of atheism is a result of nihilistic tendencies built into the founding assumptions of modern philosophy and how classical philosophy had already provided answers to these problems.

If you read this book, you will not be able to take modern and postmodern philosophy seriously again as superior to ancient and medieval philosophy. Which, of course, is a good reason to avoid books like this one if you do not wish to be convinced of the truth of Christianity. As C. S. Lewis said, a young atheist cannot be too careful in his choice of reading material. But if you don't fear the truth and you have an open mind, read this book.

A terrific, short precis of the book has been published in the Montreal Review here.

Robert Reilly and the Closing of the Muslim Mind

Robert Reilly gets it. He understands that the civilizational crisis facing us today is rooted in theology. Here is a link to a terrific lecture he gave recently at the Heritage Foundation on his book: The Closing of the Muslim Mind.

Here is a synopsis of his lecture:

People today are shocked and frightened by the behavior coming out the Islamic world – not only because it is violent, but also because it is seemingly inexplicable. While many explanations have been offered as to “what went wrong” in the Muslim world, no one has decisively answered why it went wrong. In The Closing of the Muslim Mind, Robert R. Reilly locates the roots of contemporary troubles in a pivotal struggle that occurred within the Muslim world nearly a millennium ago. It was a battle over the role of reason – and the side of irrationality won. The theology that resulted, Reilly posits, produced a fertile field for Islamism, and now constitutes the chief obstacle to finding common ground with the Islamic world. In the view of former National Security Advisor John Poindexter, this book is “meticulously researched … must-read for today’s national security leaders.”

The lecture is well-worth the hour or so it takes to listen to. Reilly gives chapter and verse citations for some of the claims I lightly skated over in my last post.