Is Christianity Dying?: Ninety-Nine Reflections on Religion, Science and Morality

"Are all religions losing adherents? On the surface, you might think everything is fine for Christian churches in America. Christianity is losing ground, but the trend is slow, just a percent here and there. But it turns out there is some very bad news hiding in the numbers..."Christianity is getting a lot bad press lately, and it's largely self inflicted. The headlines are filled with stories of pedophile priests, homophobia, Koran burning and sex scandals.But there is a much more perplexing question for American Christians: why is the Christian faith losing its grip on America? Why are more and more young people abandoning their beliefs ... forever? Why are atheists so emboldened that they've purchased giant "Good without God?" billboards all across America? Why have evangelical Christians taken such a dramatic right turn that mainstream Christians are embarrassed and alienated? Why is the separation of church and state more important than it's ever been in American history?Craig A. James, author of the popular The Religion Virus explores these and many other fascinating questions about modern religion, science, morality and society in this collection of thought-provoking essays.Each of the eight chapters explores one aspect of Christianity's decline in America. Bad Religion: slavery and stoning; biased news reports; how religion spreads diseases; bigotry in God's name; why faith makes Alcoholics Anonymous fail. The Decline of Christianity: a collection of the author's most popular articles about the slow but inexorable decline of Christianity (and all religion) in America. Morality: why secular morality is more moral and defensible than religious morality. Politics: keeping America secular and why it matters; creationism versus science in our schools; sex and drugs. Atheism: society's bigotry; the author's controversial "Atheists, get out of the damned closet!" blog; a challenge to religious scholars to debate honestly. Faith and Beliefs: Laurel's Wager (Pascal was wrong); homeopathy; miracles that aren't; little girls' dangerous pink Ouija boards. Science and Evolution: why Darwin is right; stem cell research; why comets make creationism look silly; immortality; science versus Mormonism. The Bible: God gets a bad grade; maybe ol' Satan wrote the Bible; biblical inerrancy; homosexuality.