The Four Horsemen: The Conversation That Sparked an Atheist Revolution Hardcover – March 19, 2019

A collection of perspective regarding mysteries and adventures out there that are never ending. its like reading a pot pourri of a type of riddles and life puzzles that want to be solved, but so far, we have just wonder and pondering, all good and beneficial. I don't like to reveal too much when sharing a book review as it may interfere with the next guy's experience. However, if you have reached the point where you found this book, and are wondering whether to read or pass, I recommend full speed ahead.

"You don't have to boast a PhD or have read Thomas à Kempis, the Qur'an, the Book of Mormon and the teachings of Siddhartha (or indeed On the Origin of Species and Principia Mathematica) to be able to take part in such wrangling and disputation. But boy, isn't it wonderful when you can eavesdrop on four who have." ~Stephen FryOh, to have the sagacious chops to merit a seat at that table! A secular Mt Rushmore. An evolutionary biologist, a neuroscientist, a philosopher, and Hitch (sorry, I couldn't describe Christopher Hitchens with just one word. Historian? Journalist? Contrarian? Sage? Even collectively they fall far short.)One of my utopian fantasies would be to live in a world where all of us could practice and embrace rational discourse at this level. It's a pipe dream that has absolutely no chance, but I like to ponder the implausible. I have another where I'm spooning with Uma Thurman and she whispers, "that was the BEST I've ever had!"

I will start by saying that I am an evangelical Christian and I still liked this book. Of course there were some cheap shots, but I know these come from both sides of the debate. What I liked about the book is that four of the foremost Atheist academics are at least intellectually honest enough to say they don't have all the answers to some very tough and relevant questions to life, and more to the point YOUR life. They would argue that a future evolved mankind will discover these answers though science, and I would argue that this very belief, conviction or "faith" is no different than the Christian faith they attack. Promise that we will have answers later is very intellectually unfulfilling so lay off on how intellectually unfulfilling Christian belief and faith is. You can't have your cake and eat it too. It's also worth noting that not all four were in agreement on some of the tougher life questions.There were a couple of notable characterizations of true Christianity where they completely missed the mark. The first in the notation that the "superstitious" religious zealots discourage critical debate because we supposedly have no intellectual ground to stand on. There are several intellectuals on the Christian evangelical side of the debate who more than hold their own with these four Horsemen in public debates, to include John Lennox who I personally heard debate Richard Dawkins one-on-one in what could only be called an Atheist routing. Maybe Richard was having an off day, but to characterize all evangelical Christians as foolish simpletons has been proved many times over as being ingenuous at best and perhaps even dishonest depending on their intent.It's fair to also share that they made some great points that I happen to agree with even as an evangelical Christian. Both sides have plenty of evidence for the atrocities performed in the name of the godless and those who also claim theism. I would argue the supposed "Christians" killing in the name of God during the Inquisition are as godless as the atheist Pol Pots, Stalins as well as the fundamentalists religious murderers throughout history.In summary, whether you claim to be Atheist or a Theist you should question everything. Don't take man's word for anything at face value, as we all come with biases and preconceived notions (even the intellectuals on both sides). I believe true Christianity will hold up to your scrutiny and everything else will fall underwhelmingly short. I also believe the four Horsemen would agree were they to ever understand what true Christianity is, and not the straw man that they continue to pick away at.

This is an intriguing reportage of a discussion about religion and its discontents. These men are all erudite and proponents of the Enlightenment, Darwinism and the Scientific Method. Faith is considered to be worthless as an argument for belief in God. A point of view that is becoming more prevalent today in America.

It seems a common criticism that this book has become outdated but I found the ideas still as relevant and as on point as ever. Some of the discussion does center around defense of the Atheist movement, but Atheism does need to understand its own version of (for lack of a better word) apologetics. We, as a group, need to be able to recognize and answer the questions presented by the faithful. Even if the answer is I don’t know. I throughly enjoyed and recommend this book.

Yes, you could watch this conversation for free on YouTube. So, you might hesitate on purchasing this tangible piece of charismatic dialog. Well let me tell you this, not only are the essays written by the three remaining authors fantastic reflections on how the “movement” has taken off, but the transcription now has footnotes allowing for the reader to be even more informed of what they are referring to. Worth every penny and looks great on the bookshelf.

There was too much debate to come to solid conclusions like what each individual offers in their books. But it was interesting to see how they handled each other. Some surprising praise of religious traditions like Christmas that I had never heard before.

This debate by four intellectuals was quite interesting, thought provoking and intense. But not recommended for the faint hearted and closed minded.