Description

It is possible to present a critique on the theistic worldview because the values it espouses conflict with our own values, as it is elegantly shown in this book on moral and political philosophy from an explicitly atheist point of view: An Atheist’s Values by Richard Robinson (1964). Robinson (1902-1996) studied philosophy at Oxford and Marburg, taught philosophy at Cornell University for nearly 20 years and then back at Oriel College for more than 20 years. He wrote on classical philosophy (in particular Plato and Aristotle) and logic (1931, 1962). Robinson states that we hear people talk about “Christian values.” What he tries to do with An Atheist’s Values is offer a counterpoint. He makes a distinction between “personal goods” and “political goods.” As the personal goods he describes beauty, truth, reason, love, conscientiousness, and religion. His treatment of religion is, as one may expect, very critical. Religion is more of an evil than a good because it is gravely inimical to truth and reason. Faith is a vice. There is no God or afterlife and religion provides no good reason for behaving morally. But Robinson also gives an introduction to political philosophy with his treatment of the “political goods”: the state, equality, freedom, tolerance, peace and justice, and democracy. An Atheist’s Values is in many ways a brilliant book, but I fear the title of the book is somewhat misleading. Many people will be scared off because they expect a long diatribe against religious faith, Christianity in particular. This is not the case. What Robinson shows is that it is perfectly possible to write about ethics and politics from a purely secular perspective. In other words, a secular life stance is perfectly suited for moral and political reflection.