Showing results by author "Dan Barker" in All Categories

What words come to mind when we think of God? Merciful? Just? Compassionate? In fact, the Bible lays out God’s primary qualities clearly: jealous, petty, unforgiving, bloodthirsty, vindictive—and worse! Originally conceived as a joint presentation between influential thinker and bestselling...

Expanding on a concept from New York Times bestseller The God Delusion, former ordained minister and current atheist Dan Barker gives us a biblical play-by-play illustrating God's not-so-admirable qualities.

Part 1 of Godless, "Rejecting God", tells the story of how I moved from devout preacher to atheist and beyond. Part 2, "Why I Am an Atheist", presents my philosophical reasons for unbelief. Part 3, "What's Wrong with Christianity", critiques the bible (its reliability as well as its morality) and the historical evidence for Jesus. Part 4, "Life Is Good!", comes back to my personal story, taking a case to the United States Supreme Court, dealing with personal trauma, and experiencing the excitement of Adventures in Atheism.

For thousands of years, holy books have told us that such a life is available only through obedience and submission to some higher power. Today, the faithful keep popular devotionals and tracts within easy reach on bedside tables and mobile devices, all communicating this common message: Life is meaningless without God. Former pastor Dan Barker eloquently, powerfully, and rationally upends this long-held belief.

What drives us to be good? How do we even know how to be good? Philosophers and theologians have dealt with such questions for millennia, but Dan Barker thinks the answers are not so complicated. In Mere Morality, he argues there's no need to appeal to supernatural commandments or the fear of some higher power when considering morality. Stripping “good" and "evil” down to the basics, he offers a simple compass for navigating life's most difficult moral and ethical dilemmas.

Dr. Daniel Fry, an engineer in charge of the installation of instruments for missile control and guidance at White Sands Proving Ground near Las Cruces, New Mexico, was whisked away on an 8,000-mile flying saucer ride from White Sands to New York City and back. Thus begins his instruction by the illustrious Venusian thinker, Commander Valiant Thor, who wanted everyone on Earth to understand the truth about our existence and how we can spiritually profit from the beneficence of extraterrestrial contact.

Do we have free will? And if we don’t, why do we feel as if we do? In a godless universe governed by impersonal laws of cause and effect, are you responsible for your actions? Former evangelical minister Dan Barker and author of God: The Most Unpleasant Character in All Fiction unveils a novel solution to the question that has baffled scientists and philosophers for millennia.

A Mexican immigrant and rising star within the Christian community abandons his faith and comes out as a gay atheist in this exceptionally moving and soul-searching memoir. Fernando Alcántar recounts his incredible journey from poor Catholic boy on the dusty streets of Mexico to globetrotting missionary and high-profile Christian leader in the United States - where he eventually left his celebrated life behind to advocate for the liberating power of reason and equality.

Sound interesting? The author thinks so too! Listen to Contraduction and learn a new way to think about the world.

Dan Barker interviews inspiring business people and entrepreneurs within the three counties of Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire. We hear their stories, how they started running their own business, as well as the successes, failures and lessons learnt along the way. The aim of the podcast is to inspire others, at the same as connecting more people within this great region of the UK. As a photographer and video producer, Dan gets to meet many different business owners in the area. This is his chance to find out more about the people behind them, what made them choose to 'go it ...