THE END OF REASON-- Zacharias

The End of Reason: A Response to the New Atheists
Ravi Zacharias, Zondervan, 2008, 143pp.


A rising tide of ‘new atheists’ scathingly indict religion as the source of all ills.  Their rallying purpose is to free the world of all traces of religion. Mockery is the prescribed tool and nothing is held sacred.  Some actually proclaim rape to be preferable to religion and pedophilia to be less harmful than teaching a child about Hell.  The Holocaust is declared the fault of Christianity.  The atrocities carried out by Stalin and Mao are said to be the result of wrong beliefs, (thus religion) not atheism! And they proclaim themselves to be the pinnacle of morality, superior to Jesus Himself.  Is this a new brand of ‘intellectual supremacists’ merely 'masquerading as spokespersons for science' or are they just rabble-rousers out to make a buck from an unwitting public? Either way,  who will give a well-reasoned answer to their volatile rhetoric?

To this end Ravi Zacharias has written his small but powerful book, The End of Reason, which specifically responds to Sam Harris’ claims in The End of Faith and Letter to a Christian Nation.  Ravi’s reasoning is refreshingly gracious without any loss of potency.  He demonstrates atheism’s bankruptcy as a worldview using both logic and references to atheism’s own disillusioned proponents.  He deftly outlines the contradictions implicit in Harris’ views and underlines his blatant ignorance of the world religions he so confidently derides.

The first half of The End of Reason discusses the four essentials of a coherent and credible worldview with reference to atheism.  These are: #1 Origin—how did life come to be?, #2 Meaning—is life random or does it have purpose?, #3 Morality—what’s good and evil? and on what basis do we define these?, and #4 Hope—what is man’s destiny?  A realistic worldview must offer answers to these questions which are consistent with reality.  With great clarity Ravi discusses atheism’s inability to provide credible answers to each of these big questions, concluding that: “Given a starting point of primordial slime, one is forced to live apart from a moral law, with no meaning, no real understanding of love, and no hope.”

The remainder of the book addresses such misunderstood (and misrepresented) topics as Pascal’s Wager, ultimate justice, Christianity’s views on slavery, and genetic engineering.  Each is addressed with a mix of humble inquiry and thoughtful rationale in a tone full of compassion.  “Wise as serpents and harmless as doves” is a befitting description of Ravi’s apologetic style, and I would add a refreshing alternative to the often shocking and profane verbiage of some of the recent proponents of atheism.

Zacharias concludes this address to his fellow Americans by presenting a brief case for the existence of God and of Jesus Christ.  His closing remarks address the schism between religion and radical secularism, calling for open dialogue so that individuals can evaluate the relative truth claims and decide for themselves, and re-affirming that science and religion need not be at odds.  He concludes his argument with a striking statement of personal opinion re: Islam, as this is the example of ‘religion’ that Harris is fond of citing and making the stereotype for all religions, including Christianity.  Ravi says: “Islam is willing to destroy for the sake of its ideology.  I want to suggest that the choice we face is really not between religion and secular atheism…. Secularism simply does not have the sustaining or moral power to stop Islam [as now demonstrated in secularized Europe].  In the end, America’s choice will be between Islam and Jesus Christ.  History will prove before long the truth of this contention.” (p126-7)

There is much to ponder in this small volume, and to refer back to in any discussion with those of an atheistic leaning.  Many such have not pursued their want of belief in God to its logical ends. Ravi provides references to those who have and have come up empty.  The ‘new atheists’ tend to borrow from a worldview richer than their own so as to have a moral standard to live by.  Ravi demonstrates why this is inconsistent with a god-less worldview.  Perhaps most importantly this small volume provides a reminder that there are well-reasoned answers to those who call faith in God irrational and dangerous.

--LS