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Center for Naturalism Publications
Encountering
Naturalism: A Worldview and Its Uses, print edition, is currently
out of stock from the CFN
(see below) and
Amazon. However, we can email you a PDF of the book for $10. For an online pdf of
cover, contents and the first chapter, go
here.
Related interviews, reviews and mentions are
here. If you're in the UK, you may still be able to get
it from the
National Secular Society.
Recommendations:
"This little book takes all those deep questions
about life, meaning, purpose and death, and shows how you don't
need religion to make sense of them - indeed how the naturalist way of
thinking about the deepest issues is kinder and truer."
– Dr. Susan Blackmore,
author of Conversations on Consciousness.
"Don't misjudge the
importance of Encountering Naturalism by its small size and inexpensive
cost. It is packed with insights about naturalism and its implications for
free will, for life's meaning and purpose, and for social and political
issues. A must read for anyone wanting a fuller and deeper understanding of
this important philosophical perspective."
–
Dr. William R. Murry, author of
Reason and Reverence:
Religious Humanism for the 21st Century.
"Encountering Naturalism is a wonderfully
readable plunge deep into the implications of a thorough going naturalism.
The naturalistic surface -- with its rejection of miracles and mysteries --
is well-mapped; but for anyone who wishes to explore the questions, perils,
opportunities, and vistas far beneath that surface, there is no better or
more engaging guide than Thomas W. Clark."
–
Bruce Waller,
philosopher and author of The Natural
Selection of Autonomy.
"An excellent and
concise companion to the recent spate of books about atheism from the likes
of Dawkins, Onfray, Hitchens, Grayling et al. It
looks at how we can make sense of the world if we accept that we – human
beings – are purely a part of nature, with no supernatural element
such a soul. If we really are just a collection of atoms, then what does
life mean? Where does morality come from? What does free will mean – and
indeed, is there such a thing in nature? It’s written in straightforward
language that attempts to help us make sense of our place in the universe.
Its insights will have you nodding in agreement, and that little light
marked 'eureka' will be
flashing continuously as you read. Those who aspire to live in a world where
the supernatural exists only in stories will love this book."
–
Terry Sanderson, President,
National Secular Society,
London.
"Encountering
Naturalism is a well-written, short (103
pages) book that serves as a very readable, non-academic introduction to
naturalism. It's very light on scientific and other technical
considerations, focusing instead on other questions readers new to
naturalism might have. One aspect of the book that
I found particularly interesting, perhaps because it's the sort of thing I
haven't paid much attention to, is the way it concentrates on issues
concerning our lack of godlike free will and the implications of this lack
for our notions of responsibility in justice and even psychotherapy. Since
such matters of applied ethics are far outside what I feel competent
commenting about, I naturally can't judge Clark's views on responsibility.
They seem plausible to me (especially since I think most traditional views
of "free will" are barely a cut above superstition), and they don't raise
any immediate red flags. And even if I know very little about issues of
justice or therapy, I think there are some interesting and important
questions here for scientific naturalists. Therefore I recommend Clark's
book."
-
Taner Edis, author of
Science and
Non-Belief,
The Ghost in the
Universe: God in the Light of Modern Science
and other books on science and religion.
Quoted from the Secular Web's blog,
Secular Outpost, 10/5/07.
"I bought a copy of your
book, and read it last week. For anyone who may be interested, I'll give it
a plug: Encountering Naturalism: A Worldview and Its Uses. I enjoyed
it, think I generally agree with it, and will return to it."
-
Russell Blackford,
author and philosopher at
School of Philosophy and Bioethics,
Monash University.
John Derbyshire, a thoughtful
conservative who writes for the National Review, has kind words about
the Center for Naturalism and Encountering Naturalism
here.
Book description:
E NCOUNTERING
NATURALISM
A Worldview
and Its Uses
Most of us have a worldview, an overarching context
for life that helps to shape our beliefs, goals and actions. This book explores
the science-based worldview known as naturalism – a
comprehensive and fulfilling alternative to faith-based religion and other
varieties of dualism.
Taking empirical science as the route to reliable
knowledge, naturalism holds that we inhabit a single, natural world; there is no
separate supernatural realm. We are fully physical beings whose origins lie in
cosmic and biological evolution. We are therefore entirely at home in the universe.
By understanding and accepting our complete connection
to the natural world, naturalism provides a secure foundation for human
flourishing, an effective basis for achieving our purposes and addressing our
deepest concerns. We don’t need belief in the supernatural to sustain us.
Nature, it turns out, is enough.
Ordering: Print edition is currently out of stock.
However, we can email you a PDF of the book for $10. To order, click "Make a Donation" below
and type "book" in the top line. Please put 10 in
the amount box. Then proceed to checkout using
either your PayPal account or your credit card (scroll down on the PayPal page
to see the credit card option). Or you can send a check for $10, payable
to the Center for Naturalism, to the address near the end of this page.
About the author:
Thomas W. Clark is founder and director of the Center for Naturalism and creator
of Naturalism.Org, among the Web’s most comprehensive resources on scientific
naturalism and its applications.
The Center for Naturalism is an educational organization in Massachusetts,
devoted to increasing public awareness of naturalism and its personal and social
implications.
Center for Naturalism
P.O. Box 441705
Somerville, MA 02144
USA
617-480-8846
www.centerfornaturalism.org
www.naturalism.org
info@naturalism.org
Interviews,
reviews, and other mentions of Encountering Naturalism:
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