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The New Atheism

Good Religion, and the Good It Can Do

by Fr. Jeffrey Kirby

Not every conversation about religion has to begin with an attack on the rules, structure, teachings, offenses, history, limitations, and otherwise undesirable aspects of religion. Nor must it begin with every imaginable tragedy or horror that finds a misplaced root in religion. Not only are such conversations heavy and presumptuous, but they can also become very boring in a short span of time. They lack something.

Certainly, such aspects and debates must occur, but they are perhaps not the best starting point for a conversation on the goodness of religion.