The Atheist's Primer

In 'The Atheist's Primer', a prominent philosopher, Dr Michael Palmer, reinstates the importance of philosophy into the debate about God's existence. The 'new atheism' of Richard Dawkins and others has been driven by largely Darwinian objections to God's existence, limiting the debate to within a principally scientific framework. This has obscured the philosophical tradition of atheism, in which the main landmarks in atheism's history are to be found. With an analysis of atheistic thought from the Ancient Greeks to the present day, Palmer explains and comments on the philosophical arguments warranting atheism, discussing issues such as evil, morality, miracles, and the motivations for belief. The emphasis placed on materialism and the limitations of our knowledge might seem disheartening; but Palmer concludes on a positive note, arguing - alongside Nietzsche, Marx and Freud and many others - that happiness and personal fulfilment are to be found in the very materialism that religious belief rejects. Michael Palmer first addressed these issues in his student-edition, 'The Atheist's Creed', of which 'The Atheist's Primer' is a revised abridgement for the general reader. Dr Michael Palmer is a former Teaching Fellow at McMaster University and Humboldt Fellow at Marburg University. His publications include 'Moral Problems' (1991; 2nd ed. 2005), 'Freud and Jung on Religion' (1997), 'The Question of God' (2001), 'Moral Problems in Medicine' (2005), and the two-volumed 'The Philosophy of Religion' (2008). Prominent commentators said of the unabridged 'The Atheist's Creed' 'This fine anthology of the long struggle for reason against faith will certainly help those who seek emancipation from religious tyranny.' Christopher Hitchens. 'This splendid, readable, and scholarly book should be on every believer's bedside table; and committed atheists will take pleasure from both the extensive and well-chosen extracts and the author's lucid commentary on them. Professor Peter Atkins, Lincoln College, Oxford. 'With the cultural shifts taking place in the modern West, along with the ongoing rise of secularism, this book is as timely as it is helpful. . . . This anthology shows just how rich and expansive atheism's history is, and we would do well to learn from it.' Kile Jones, 'Reviews in Religion and Theology'

A former Teaching Fellow at McMaster University and Humboldt Fellow at Marburg University, Dr Palmer has taught at Marlborough College and Bristol University. For many years Founding Head of the Department of Religion and Philosophy at the Manchester Grammar School, Dr Palmer is also the author of the best-selling textbook Moral Problems as well as of the two-volume textbook The Philosophy of Religion.