New Releases by Sam Harris

In this dialogue between a famous atheist and a former radical, Sam Harris and Maajid Nawaz invite you to join an urgently needed conversation: Is Islam a religion of peace or war? Is it amenable to reform? Why do so many Muslims seem drawn to extremism? The authors demonstrate how two people with very different views can find common ground.

"Les sacrifices ont toujours été objets de fascination chez l''être humain. D''ailleurs, il n''était pas rare de voir un enfant naître dans ce monde pour y être élevé avec patience et tendresse par des fanatiques religieux, dans le seul but de le mener ensuite par la main vers un champ ou au sommet d''une montagne et là, de l''enterrer, l''exécuter ou le brûler vif en offrande à un dieu invisible. tout ça parce que ces religieux étaient convaincus de cette manière infaillible d''assurer que le soleil continue à se lever ou que les récoltes soient abondantes. [...] L''idée que le Christ soit mort pour nos péchés et qu''un Dieu "d''amour" exige un tel acte d''expiation pour accorder son pardon est l''héritage direct et flagrant des superstitions sanglantes qui ont tourmenté des peuples innocents à travers l''histoire..." -- [4e de couv.].

Pleidooi voor een atheïstische praktijk van mindfulness en meditatie.

A guide to meditation as a rational spiritual practice informed by neuroscience and psychology considers how to learn from the examples of religious sages and saints from a secular and philosophical perspective without formally committing to religion.

The performer and first winner of Star Search presents a collection of essays about friendship, the celebrity life, and getting sober, exploring such subjects as growing up gay in America''s Bible belt and attending Liza Minnelli''s wedding.

As it was in Anna Karenina, Madame Bovary, and Othello, so it is in life. Most forms of private vice and public evil are kindled and sustained by lies. Acts of adultery and other personal betrayals, financial fraud, government corruption—even murder and genocide—generally require an additional moral defect: a willingness to lie. In Lying, best-selling author and neuroscientist Sam Harris argues that we can radically simplify our lives and improve society by merely telling the truth in situations where others often lie. He focuses on "white" lies—those lies we tell for the purpose of sparing people discomfort—for these are the lies that most often tempt us. And they tend to be the only lies that good people tell while imagining that they are being good in the process.

Sam Harris é um dos líderes do movimento que prega o abandono da religião em nome da ciência: o Novo Ateísmo, também defendido com veemência por Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennett e Christopher Hitchens. Em A paisagem moral, o autor pretende demolir de vez a benevolência com que muita gente - cientistas inclusive - aborda a religião, como se a ciência não tivesse o que opinar no plano moral. Segundo ele, a neurociência pode sim contribuir na busca pela maximização do bem-estar disseminado que define, em sua visão, o pensamento moral. O universo de decisões que podem ser tomadas é representado no livro por uma paisagem "cujos picos correspondem ao apogeu do bem-estar possível e cujos vales representam o mais profundo sofrimento". A ciência - em especial no que diz respeito ao funcionamento do cérebro - já pode em parte ajudar a determinar o relevo dessa paisagem e, à medida que o conhecimento avança, essa influência deverá se tornar cada vez mais concreta. Em capítulos que tratam de verdades morais, do bem e do mal, de crenças, de religião e do futuro da felicidade, Harris descreve resultados de estudos em neurociência que não só definem essa ideia de moral, mas também lançam luz sobre os equívocos e a irrelevância da religião; a seu ver, esta seria antes uma fonte de fanatismo e intolerância - uma argumentação mordaz que tem tudo para arrebatar seguidores e promover debates acalorados.

Brev till en kristen nation av Sam Harris väckte stor uppmärksamhet i USA när den först publicerades och har även uppmärksammats i den europeiska debatten kring religionens roll i samhället. Boken är utformad som ett brev till den troende, där Harris ifrågasätter och analyserar den nya religiositeten som breder ut sig i skolorna i USA där intelligent design och kreationism ställs mot naturvetenskapens rön. Han kallar det för en ”moralisk och intellektuell krissituation” i denna korta men slagkraftiga pamflett. Boken har legat högt på de amerikanska bästsäljarlistorna.

From the New York Times bestselling author of The End of Faith, a thought-provoking, "brilliant and witty" (Oliver Sacks) look at the notion of free will—and the implications that it is an illusion. A belief in free will touches nearly everything that human beings value. It is difficult to think about law, politics, religion, public policy, intimate relationships, morality—as well as feelings of remorse or personal achievement—without first imagining that every person is the true source of his or her thoughts and actions. And yet the facts tell us that free will is an illusion. In this enlightening book, Sam Harris argues that this truth about the human mind does not undermine morality or diminish the importance of social and political freedom, but it can and should change the way we think about some of the most important questions in life.

Essay tegen het liegen, omdat eerlijkheid altijd productiever is.

Filosofische verhandeling over de mogelijkheid om op wetenschappelijke manier ethiek te bedrijven.

Sam Harris dismantles the most common justification for religious faith--that a moral system cannot be based on science.

O livro de Sam Harris ataca os alicerces das religiões dogmáticas, numa contundente denúncia do perigo representado pelo relativismo cultural e pela tolerância aos fundamentalismos. Dos atentados suicidas dos terroristas islâmicos à influência de organizações religiosas sobre o governo norte-americano, nenhuma manifestação de irracionalidade relacionada à fé é poupada. O autor elenca os horrores da Inquisição, do antissemitismo e das ''guerras santas'' para iluminar as estruturas arcaicas do discurso religioso, apontando no componente dogmático da crença o principal responsável pelo explosivo ''choque de civilizações'' que hoje ameaça a existência da humanidade.

From the new afterword by the author: 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. . .

“Gagasan bahwa Yesus Kristus mati untuk menebus dosa kita dan kematiannya merupakan pengorbanan yang sukses untuk Tuhan yang ‘penuh kasih’ adalah warisan perselisihan berbau takhayul… yang menghantui orang-orang bingung sepanjang sejarah….” Buku The End of Faith (2004) menggegerkan dunia Kristen. Protes pun menyeruak. Ribuan umat Kristiani melayangkan surat kepada penulisnya, Sam Harris. Mereka mencela dan mengecam Harris karena "menentang" ajaran Kristen. Surat Terbuka untuk Bangsa Kristen adalah respons atas surat-surat tersebut. Di dalamnya, Harris menangkis protes yang ditujukan kepadanya. Mengupas topik-topik mutakhir terutama menyangkut relasi agama dan kekerasan, dia menyangkal dengan telak keyakinan kaum fundamentalis Kristen. Buku kecil ini menyodorkan informasi sekaligus kritik pedas ihwal dominasi Kristen konservatif di banyak lini kehidupan publik di Amerika Serikat. Lebih dari itu, karya ini mengabarkan bahwa fundamentalisme agama tak melulu monopoli Islam. Bacalah “surat” ini, dan Anda akan paham alasan teologis di balik invasi AS ke Irak, atau Afghanistan.