The Good Fight Sam Harris on Whether Religion Really Does Make Everything Worse
8 snips
Oct 29, 2022 AI Snips
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Episode notes
Books Reveal Human Origins
- Sam Harris argues the epistemological case for atheism by comparing belief in Abrahamic scriptures to belief in other mythological books.
- He says divine books fail simple tests an omniscient author would pass, revealing their human origins.
Be Open But Demand Evidence
- Harris allows for strange ontologies like multiverses or simulations but insists each specific supernatural claim needs evidence.
- He rejects divine books' miraculous claims because none withstand simple empirical scrutiny.
The Problem Of A Helpful God
- Harris argues a benevolent intervening God is inconsistent with massive historical suffering like smallpox and the Holocaust.
- He concludes a capricious divine agent would be morally useless or worse.