-
The Great Agnostic
- Robert Ingersoll and American Freethought
- Narrated by: Rich Miller
- Length: 5 hrs
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Prime members: New to Audible?Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
The Great Agnostic
Buy for $19.95
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Listeners also enjoyed...
-
Freethinkers
- A History of American Secularism
- By: Susan Jacoby
- Narrated by: Rich Miller
- Length: 13 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 61
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 51
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 52
At a time when the separation of church and state is under attack as never before, Freethinkers offers a powerful defense of the secularist heritage that gave Americans the first government in the world founded not on the authority of religion but on the bedrock of human reason. In impassioned, elegant prose, celebrated author Susan Jacoby traces more than 200 years of secularist activism, beginning with the fierce debate over the omission of God from the Constitution.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Essential history of free thought in America
- By Clark Savage on 11-27-17
By: Susan Jacoby
-
Agnostic
- A Spirited Manifesto
- By: Lesley Hazelton
- Narrated by: Lesley Hazleton
- Length: 4 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 64
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 61
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 61
One in four Americans rejects any affiliation with organized religion, and nearly half of those under 30 describe themselves as "spiritual but not religious". But as the airwaves resound with the haranguing of preachers and pundits, who speaks for the millions who find no joy in whittling the wonder of existence to a simple yes/no choice? Lesley Hazleton does.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Leave some room for doubt 😊
- By David on 04-20-16
By: Lesley Hazelton
-
Strange Gods
- A Secular History of Conversion
- By: Susan Jacoby
- Narrated by: Elizabeth Wiley
- Length: 19 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 40
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 37
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 37
In this original and riveting exploration, Susan Jacoby argues that conversion - especially in the free American "religious marketplace" - is too often viewed only within the conventional and simplistic narrative of personal reinvention and divine grace. Instead, the author places conversions within a secular social context that has, at various times, included the force of a unified church and state, desire for upward economic mobility, and interreligious marriage.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Our own fabrications
- By David E. Felker on 01-03-17
By: Susan Jacoby
-
The Founding Myth
- Why Christian Nationalism Is Un-American
- By: Andrew L. Seidel, Susan Jacoby - Foreword
- Narrated by: Christopher Grove
- Length: 12 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 1,061
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 940
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 932
Do "In God We Trust", the Declaration of Independence, and other historical "evidence" prove that America was founded on Judeo-Christian principles? Are the Ten Commandments the basis for American law? A constitutional attorney dives into the debate about religion's role in America's founding.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Just 2 Issues
- By VIPER G on 09-01-19
By: Andrew L. Seidel, and others
-
The Age of American Unreason
- By: Susan Jacoby
- Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell
- Length: 14 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 264
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 149
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 151
Combining historical analysis with contemporary observation, Susan Jacoby dissects a new American cultural phenomenon - one that is at odds with our heritage of Enlightenment reason and with modern, secular knowledge and science. With mordant wit, Jacoby surveys an antirationalist landscape extending from pop culture to a pseudo-intellectual universe of "junk thought".
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Interesting, but explanation by redescription
- By T. Andrew Poehlman on 07-15-08
By: Susan Jacoby
-
The Atheist Handbook to the Old Testament, Volume 1
- By: Joshua Bowen
- Narrated by: Seth Andrews
- Length: 11 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 249
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 216
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 216
The Old Testament is a fierce battleground for atheists and Christian apologists, with each side accusing the other of taking challenging and troubling passages out of context. In this handbook, Joshua Bowen not only provides the background to the Old Testament and the ancient Near East, but engages with hotly contested topics like slavery, failed prophecy, and the authorship of debated Old Testament books.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Very informative with beautiful narration
- By Frank Rizzo on 07-07-21
By: Joshua Bowen
-
Freethinkers
- A History of American Secularism
- By: Susan Jacoby
- Narrated by: Rich Miller
- Length: 13 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 61
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 51
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 52
At a time when the separation of church and state is under attack as never before, Freethinkers offers a powerful defense of the secularist heritage that gave Americans the first government in the world founded not on the authority of religion but on the bedrock of human reason. In impassioned, elegant prose, celebrated author Susan Jacoby traces more than 200 years of secularist activism, beginning with the fierce debate over the omission of God from the Constitution.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Essential history of free thought in America
- By Clark Savage on 11-27-17
By: Susan Jacoby
-
Agnostic
- A Spirited Manifesto
- By: Lesley Hazelton
- Narrated by: Lesley Hazleton
- Length: 4 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 64
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 61
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 61
One in four Americans rejects any affiliation with organized religion, and nearly half of those under 30 describe themselves as "spiritual but not religious". But as the airwaves resound with the haranguing of preachers and pundits, who speaks for the millions who find no joy in whittling the wonder of existence to a simple yes/no choice? Lesley Hazleton does.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Leave some room for doubt 😊
- By David on 04-20-16
By: Lesley Hazelton
-
Strange Gods
- A Secular History of Conversion
- By: Susan Jacoby
- Narrated by: Elizabeth Wiley
- Length: 19 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 40
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 37
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 37
In this original and riveting exploration, Susan Jacoby argues that conversion - especially in the free American "religious marketplace" - is too often viewed only within the conventional and simplistic narrative of personal reinvention and divine grace. Instead, the author places conversions within a secular social context that has, at various times, included the force of a unified church and state, desire for upward economic mobility, and interreligious marriage.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Our own fabrications
- By David E. Felker on 01-03-17
By: Susan Jacoby
-
The Founding Myth
- Why Christian Nationalism Is Un-American
- By: Andrew L. Seidel, Susan Jacoby - Foreword
- Narrated by: Christopher Grove
- Length: 12 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 1,061
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 940
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 932
Do "In God We Trust", the Declaration of Independence, and other historical "evidence" prove that America was founded on Judeo-Christian principles? Are the Ten Commandments the basis for American law? A constitutional attorney dives into the debate about religion's role in America's founding.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Just 2 Issues
- By VIPER G on 09-01-19
By: Andrew L. Seidel, and others
-
The Age of American Unreason
- By: Susan Jacoby
- Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell
- Length: 14 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 264
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 149
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 151
Combining historical analysis with contemporary observation, Susan Jacoby dissects a new American cultural phenomenon - one that is at odds with our heritage of Enlightenment reason and with modern, secular knowledge and science. With mordant wit, Jacoby surveys an antirationalist landscape extending from pop culture to a pseudo-intellectual universe of "junk thought".
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Interesting, but explanation by redescription
- By T. Andrew Poehlman on 07-15-08
By: Susan Jacoby
-
The Atheist Handbook to the Old Testament, Volume 1
- By: Joshua Bowen
- Narrated by: Seth Andrews
- Length: 11 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 249
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 216
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 216
The Old Testament is a fierce battleground for atheists and Christian apologists, with each side accusing the other of taking challenging and troubling passages out of context. In this handbook, Joshua Bowen not only provides the background to the Old Testament and the ancient Near East, but engages with hotly contested topics like slavery, failed prophecy, and the authorship of debated Old Testament books.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Very informative with beautiful narration
- By Frank Rizzo on 07-07-21
By: Joshua Bowen
-
Doppelganger
- A Trip into the Mirror World
- By: Naomi Klein
- Narrated by: Naomi Klein
- Length: 14 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 507
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 470
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 469
What if you woke up one morning and found you’d acquired another self—a double who was almost you and yet not you at all? What if that double shared many of your preoccupations but, in a twisted, upside-down way, furthered the very causes you’d devoted your life to fighting against? Not long ago, the celebrated activist and public intellectual Naomi Klein had just such an experience—she was confronted with a doppelganger whose views she found abhorrent but whose name and public persona were sufficiently similar to her own that many people got confused about who was who.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Elite Psychobabble
- By A Reviewer on 09-30-23
By: Naomi Klein
-
Hitch-22
- A Memoir
- By: Christopher Hitchens
- Narrated by: Christopher Hitchens
- Length: 17 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 2,382
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,947
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,931
Over the course of his 60 years, Christopher Hitchens has been a citizen of both the United States and the United Kingdom. He has been both a socialist opposed to the war in Vietnam and a supporter of the U.S. war against Islamic extremism in Iraq. He has been both a foreign correspondent in some of the world's most dangerous places and a legendary bon vivant with an unquenchable thirst for alcohol and literature.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Truth, the whole truth and nothing but.
- By Laura on 08-23-10
-
The Rebel
- By: Albert Camus
- Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini
- Length: 11 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 152
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 124
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 120
By one of the most profoundly influential thinkers of our century, The Rebel is a classic essay on revolution. For Albert Camus, the urge to revolt is one of the "essential dimensions" of human nature, manifested in man's timeless Promethean struggle against the conditions of his existence, as well as the popular uprisings against established orders throughout history. And yet, with an eye toward the French Revolution and its regicides and deicides, he reveals how inevitably the course of revolution leads to tyranny.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
This book is amazing
- By Amazon Customer on 10-06-19
By: Albert Camus
-
Starry Messenger
- Cosmic Perspectives on Civilization
- By: Neil deGrasse Tyson
- Narrated by: Neil deGrasse Tyson
- Length: 7 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 3,607
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 3,183
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 3,156
In a time when our political and cultural views feel more polarized than ever, Tyson provides a much-needed antidote to so much of what divides us, while making a passionate case for the twin chariots of enlightenment—a cosmic perspective and the rationality of science. After thinking deeply about how science sees the world and about Earth as a planet, the human brain has the capacity to reset and recalibrates life’s priorities, shaping the actions we might take in response. No outlook on culture, society, or civilization remains untouched.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Optimistic
- By Anonymous on 09-23-22
-
To Make Men Free
- A History of the Republican Party
- By: Heather Cox Richardson
- Narrated by: Heather Cox Richardson
- Length: 15 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 167
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 147
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 145
Acclaimed historian Heather Cox Richardson traces the shifting ideology of the Republican Party from the antebellum era to the Great Recession. While progressive Republicans like Teddy Roosevelt and Dwight Eisenhower revived Lincoln’s vision and expanded the government, their opponents appealed to Americans’ latent racism and xenophobia to regain political power, linking taxation and regulation to redistribution and socialism. In the modern era, the schism within the Republican Party has grown wider, pulling the GOP ever further from its founding principles.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Fascinating read!
- By Marsha on 12-27-21
-
Jesus and John Wayne
- How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation
- By: Kristin Kobes du Mez
- Narrated by: Suzie Althens
- Length: 12 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 3,017
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 2,591
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 2,560
How did a libertine who lacks even the most basic knowledge of the Christian faith win 81 percent of the white evangelical vote in 2016? And why have white evangelicals become a presidential reprobate's staunchest supporters? Jesus and John Wayne is a sweeping account of the last 75 years of white evangelicalism, showing how American evangelicals have worked for decades to replace the Jesus of the Gospels with an idol of rugged masculinity and Christian nationalism.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Like reading a history of my evangelical life
- By Renee on 10-15-20
-
How to Hide an Empire
- A History of the Greater United States
- By: Daniel Immerwahr
- Narrated by: Luis Moreno
- Length: 17 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 3,363
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 2,955
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 2,946
We are familiar with maps that outline all 50 states. And we are also familiar with the idea that the United States is an "empire", exercising power around the world. But what about the actual territories - the islands, atolls, and archipelagos - this country has governed and inhabited? In How to Hide an Empire, author Daniel Immerwahr tells the fascinating story of the United States outside the United States. In crackling, fast-paced prose, he reveals forgotten episodes that cast American history in a new light.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
How to beat a straw man to death
- By Susan on 01-25-20
By: Daniel Immerwahr
-
Breaking the Spell
- Religion as a Natural Phenomenon
- By: Daniel C. Dennett
- Narrated by: Dennis Holland
- Length: 12 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 749
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 655
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 642
For all the thousands of books that have been written about religion, few until this one have attempted to examine it scientifically: to ask why - and how - it has shaped so many lives so strongly. Is religion a product of blind evolutionary instinct or rational choice? Is it truly the best way to live a moral life? Ranging through biology, history, and psychology, Daniel C. Dennett charts religion’s evolution from “wild” folk belief to “domesticated” dogma.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Great Reader Actually Enhances A Great Book!
- By Don Caliente on 07-14-14
-
It's OK to Be Angry About Capitalism
- By: Senator Bernie Sanders, John Nichols
- Narrated by: Senator Bernie Sanders
- Length: 10 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 328
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 268
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 267
It’s OK to be angry about capitalism. Reflecting on our turbulent times, Senator Bernie Sanders takes on the billionaire class and speaks blunt truths about our country’s failure to address the destructive nature of a system that is fueled by uncontrolled greed and rigidly committed to prioritizing corporate profits over the needs of ordinary Americans.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A true and unbiased understanding of politics today
- By Sassy monster on 02-21-23
By: Senator Bernie Sanders, and others
-
The Undertow
- Scenes from a Slow Civil War
- By: Jeff Sharlet
- Narrated by: Jeff Sharlet
- Length: 11 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 158
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 139
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 139
An unmatched guide to the religious dimensions of American politics, Jeff Sharlet journeys into corners of our national psyche where others fear to tread. The Undertow is both inquiry and meditation, an attempt to understand how, over the last decade, reaction has morphed into delusion, social division into distrust, distrust into paranoia, and hatred into fantasies—sometimes realities—of violence.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
I'm just not feeling this one....
- By J. Richmond on 08-04-23
By: Jeff Sharlet
-
The Shock Doctrine
- The Rise of Disaster Capitalism
- By: Naomi Klein
- Narrated by: Jennifer Wiltsie
- Length: 9 hrs and 2 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,981
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,364
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,359
In her groundbreaking reporting, Naomi Klein introduced the term "disaster capitalism." Whether covering Baghdad after the U.S. occupation, Sri Lanka in the wake of the tsunami, or New Orleans post-Katrina, she witnessed something remarkably similar. People still reeling from catastrophe were being hit again, this time with economic "shock treatment," losing their land and homes to rapid-fire corporate makeovers. The Shock Doctrine retells the story of the most dominant ideology of our time, Milton Friedman's free market economic revolution.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
If It's Bad for Humanity, It's Good for Business
- By Nelson Alexander on 09-29-07
By: Naomi Klein
-
American Psychosis
- A Historical Investigation of How the Republican Party Went Crazy
- By: David Corn
- Narrated by: Steven Jay Cohen
- Length: 17 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 589
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 517
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 509
A fast-paced, rollicking account of how the GOP since the 1950s has constantly encouraged and exploited extremism and paranoia to gain power, AMERICAN PSYCHOSIS offers listeners a brisk can-you-believe-it journey through the netherworld of far-right irrationality and the Republican Party’s interactions with the darkest forces of America—which culminated in Donald Trump’s triumph. It tells the hidden history of how the Party of Lincoln forged alliances with extremists, kooks, racists, and conspiracy-mongers and fueled fear, anger, and resentment to win elections.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Important history poorly read
- By A. Hawley on 09-16-22
By: David Corn
Publisher's summary
A biography that restores America's foremost 19th-century champion of reason and secularism to our still contested 21st-century public square.
During the Gilded Age, which saw the dawn of America's enduring culture wars, Robert Green Ingersoll was known as "the Great Agnostic". The nation's most famous orator, he raised his voice on behalf of Enlightenment reason, secularism, and the separation of church and state with a vigor unmatched since America's revolutionary generation. When he died in 1899, even his religious enemies acknowledged that he might have aspired to the US presidency had he been willing to mask his opposition to religion. To the question that retains its controversial power today - was the United States founded as a Christian nation? - Ingersoll answered an emphatic no.
In this provocative biography, Susan Jacoby, the author of Freethinkers: A History of American Secularism, restores Ingersoll to his rightful place in an American intellectual tradition extending from Thomas Jefferson and Thomas Paine to the current generation of "new atheists". Jacoby illuminates the ways in which America's often-denigrated and forgotten secular history encompasses issues, ranging from women's rights to evolution, as potent and divisive today as they were in Ingersoll's time. Ingersoll emerges in this portrait as one of the indispensable public figures who keep an alternative version of history alive. He devoted his life to that greatest secular idea of all - liberty of conscience belonging to the religious and nonreligious alike.
More from the same
Related to this topic
-
Freethinkers
- A History of American Secularism
- By: Susan Jacoby
- Narrated by: Rich Miller
- Length: 13 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 61
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 51
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 52
At a time when the separation of church and state is under attack as never before, Freethinkers offers a powerful defense of the secularist heritage that gave Americans the first government in the world founded not on the authority of religion but on the bedrock of human reason. In impassioned, elegant prose, celebrated author Susan Jacoby traces more than 200 years of secularist activism, beginning with the fierce debate over the omission of God from the Constitution.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Essential history of free thought in America
- By Clark Savage on 11-27-17
By: Susan Jacoby
-
Strange Gods
- A Secular History of Conversion
- By: Susan Jacoby
- Narrated by: Elizabeth Wiley
- Length: 19 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 40
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 37
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 37
In this original and riveting exploration, Susan Jacoby argues that conversion - especially in the free American "religious marketplace" - is too often viewed only within the conventional and simplistic narrative of personal reinvention and divine grace. Instead, the author places conversions within a secular social context that has, at various times, included the force of a unified church and state, desire for upward economic mobility, and interreligious marriage.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Our own fabrications
- By David E. Felker on 01-03-17
By: Susan Jacoby
-
American Gospel
- God, the Founding Fathers, and the Making of a Nation
- By: Jon Meacham
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 7 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 450
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 270
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 265
In American Gospel (literally meaning the "good news about America"), New York Times best-selling author Jon Meacham sets the record straight on the history of religion in American public life. As Meacham shows, faith, meaning a belief in a higher power, and the sense that we are God's chosen, has always been at the heart of our national experience, from Jamestown to the Constitutional Convention to the Civil Rights Movement to September 11th.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
what you weren't taught in school
- By Stanley on 06-12-06
By: Jon Meacham
-
Founding Faith
- Providence, Politics, and the Birth of Religious Freedom in America
- By: Steven Waldman
- Narrated by: David Colacci
- Length: 9 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 135
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 64
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 62
The culture wars have distorted the dramatic story of how Americans came to worship freely. Many activists on the right maintain that the United States was founded as a "Christian nation". Many on the left contend that the Founders were secular or Deist and that the First Amendment was designed to boldly separate church and state throughout the land. None of these claims are true, argues Beliefnet.com editor in chief Steven Waldman.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Eye-opening
- By Michael on 06-28-08
By: Steven Waldman
-
Thomas Jefferson
- A Biography of Spirit and Flesh
- By: Thomas S. Kidd
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 11 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 57
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 51
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 51
Thomas Jefferson was arguably the most brilliant and inspiring political writer in American history. But the ethical realities of his personal life and political career did not live up to his soaring rhetoric. Indeed, three tensions defined Jefferson’s moral life: democracy versus slavery, republican virtue versus dissolute consumption, and veneration for Jesus versus skepticism about Christianity. In this book, Thomas S. Kidd tells the story of Jefferson’s ethical life through the lens of these tensions.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
This version is the standard non in depth bio
- By Fred F on 03-28-24
By: Thomas S. Kidd
-
Why Liberals Win the Culture Wars (Even When They Lose Elections)
- The Battles That Define America from Jefferson's Heresies to Gay Marriage
- By: Stephen Prothero
- Narrated by: Tristan Morris
- Length: 10 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 55
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 48
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 48
Though they may seem to be dividing the country irreparably, today's heated cultural and political battles between right and left, progressives and the Tea Party, religious and secular are far from unprecedented. In this engaging and important work, Stephen Prothero reframes the current debate, viewing it as the latest in a number of flashpoints that have shaped our national identity.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Resistance to Change
- By Joanne on 04-07-16
By: Stephen Prothero
-
Freethinkers
- A History of American Secularism
- By: Susan Jacoby
- Narrated by: Rich Miller
- Length: 13 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 61
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 51
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 52
At a time when the separation of church and state is under attack as never before, Freethinkers offers a powerful defense of the secularist heritage that gave Americans the first government in the world founded not on the authority of religion but on the bedrock of human reason. In impassioned, elegant prose, celebrated author Susan Jacoby traces more than 200 years of secularist activism, beginning with the fierce debate over the omission of God from the Constitution.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Essential history of free thought in America
- By Clark Savage on 11-27-17
By: Susan Jacoby
-
Strange Gods
- A Secular History of Conversion
- By: Susan Jacoby
- Narrated by: Elizabeth Wiley
- Length: 19 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 40
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 37
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 37
In this original and riveting exploration, Susan Jacoby argues that conversion - especially in the free American "religious marketplace" - is too often viewed only within the conventional and simplistic narrative of personal reinvention and divine grace. Instead, the author places conversions within a secular social context that has, at various times, included the force of a unified church and state, desire for upward economic mobility, and interreligious marriage.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Our own fabrications
- By David E. Felker on 01-03-17
By: Susan Jacoby
-
American Gospel
- God, the Founding Fathers, and the Making of a Nation
- By: Jon Meacham
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 7 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 450
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 270
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 265
In American Gospel (literally meaning the "good news about America"), New York Times best-selling author Jon Meacham sets the record straight on the history of religion in American public life. As Meacham shows, faith, meaning a belief in a higher power, and the sense that we are God's chosen, has always been at the heart of our national experience, from Jamestown to the Constitutional Convention to the Civil Rights Movement to September 11th.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
what you weren't taught in school
- By Stanley on 06-12-06
By: Jon Meacham
-
Founding Faith
- Providence, Politics, and the Birth of Religious Freedom in America
- By: Steven Waldman
- Narrated by: David Colacci
- Length: 9 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 135
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 64
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 62
The culture wars have distorted the dramatic story of how Americans came to worship freely. Many activists on the right maintain that the United States was founded as a "Christian nation". Many on the left contend that the Founders were secular or Deist and that the First Amendment was designed to boldly separate church and state throughout the land. None of these claims are true, argues Beliefnet.com editor in chief Steven Waldman.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Eye-opening
- By Michael on 06-28-08
By: Steven Waldman
-
Thomas Jefferson
- A Biography of Spirit and Flesh
- By: Thomas S. Kidd
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 11 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 57
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 51
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 51
Thomas Jefferson was arguably the most brilliant and inspiring political writer in American history. But the ethical realities of his personal life and political career did not live up to his soaring rhetoric. Indeed, three tensions defined Jefferson’s moral life: democracy versus slavery, republican virtue versus dissolute consumption, and veneration for Jesus versus skepticism about Christianity. In this book, Thomas S. Kidd tells the story of Jefferson’s ethical life through the lens of these tensions.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
This version is the standard non in depth bio
- By Fred F on 03-28-24
By: Thomas S. Kidd
-
Why Liberals Win the Culture Wars (Even When They Lose Elections)
- The Battles That Define America from Jefferson's Heresies to Gay Marriage
- By: Stephen Prothero
- Narrated by: Tristan Morris
- Length: 10 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 55
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 48
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 48
Though they may seem to be dividing the country irreparably, today's heated cultural and political battles between right and left, progressives and the Tea Party, religious and secular are far from unprecedented. In this engaging and important work, Stephen Prothero reframes the current debate, viewing it as the latest in a number of flashpoints that have shaped our national identity.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Resistance to Change
- By Joanne on 04-07-16
By: Stephen Prothero
-
The Chosen Wars
- By: Steven R. Weisman
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 12 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 56
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 49
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 48
The Chosen Wars tells the dramatic story of how Judaism redefined itself in America in the 18th and 19th centuries - the personalities that fought each other and shaped its evolution and, importantly, the force of the American dynamic that prevailed over an ancient religion. Determined to take their places as equals in the young nation, American Jews rejected identity as a separate nation and embraced a secular America. Judaism became an American religion.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A History of the Reform Movement
- By E. B. Weinberg on 08-24-18
-
Thy Kingdom Come
- An Evangelical's Lament
- By: Randall Balmer
- Narrated by: Jeff Woodman
- Length: 7 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 63
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 36
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 36
For much of American history, evangelicalism was aligned with progressive political causes: nineteenth-century evangelicals fought for the abolition of slavery, universal suffrage, and public education. But contemporary conservative activists have defaulted on this majestic legacy, embracing instead an agenda virtually indistinguishable from the Republican Party platform.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Historical Reality
- By Cliff J on 08-10-07
By: Randall Balmer
-
The Mark of a Giant
- 7 People Who Changed the World
- By: Ted Stewart, Chris Stewart
- Narrated by: Art Allen
- Length: 8 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 89
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 80
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 81
Throughout the course of history, civilization has been blessed by strong-minded men and women who have impacted our world in extraordinary ways. Their imprint upon humanity is beyond dispute. And many would contend that they were no less than the result of Divine Providence - a gift of God to the human race. The Mark of a Giant examines the lives and contributions of seven men and women who changed the world: Abraham of Ur, Pericles, the Apostle Paul, Sir Isaac Newton, Marie Curie, Martin Luther King Jr., and Mother Teresa.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
So Good!!
- By momof4 on 05-11-15
By: Ted Stewart, and others
-
The Tyranny of Clichés
- How Liberals Cheat in the War of Ideas
- By: Jonah Goldberg
- Narrated by: Jonah Goldberg
- Length: 11 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 727
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 649
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 642
According to Goldberg, if the greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist, the greatest trick liberals ever pulled was convincing themselves they’re not ideological. Today “objective” journalists and academics and “moderate” politicians peddle some of the most radical arguments by hiding them in homespun aphorisms.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
I enjoyed it...and I'm a Democrat!!
- By Private. on 05-14-12
By: Jonah Goldberg
-
Liberal Fascism
- The Secret History of the American Left
- By: Jonah Goldberg
- Narrated by: Johnny Heller
- Length: 15 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,171
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 757
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 757
"Fascists", "Brownshirts", "jackbooted stormtroopers" - such are the insults typically hurled at conservatives by their liberal opponents. Calling someone a fascist is the fastest way to shut them up, defining their views as beyond the political pale. But who are the real fascists in our midst?
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Great book
- By Mark on 05-10-08
By: Jonah Goldberg
-
Our Constitution the Way it Was
- By: Madalyn Murray O'Hair
- Narrated by: David Smalley
- Length: 2 hrs and 36 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 42
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 36
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 34
In these transcripts of her American Atheist Radio programs, Dr. Madalyn Murray O'Hair tells us about Freedom of Religion in Colonial America, American Deism, Rewriting of History by Christians, The Christianity of our Founding as a Nation, Free thought in American Historical Documents, Free thought Organizations in the Early U.S., Thomas Paine - American Deist and Freethinker, Colonel Ethan Allen, James Madison's Memorial and Remonstrance Against Religious Assessments, Jefferson's Idea of Religious Freedom, and Jefferson on Christianity.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Phenomenal!!!
- By Average Joe on 01-17-18
-
Moral Combat
- How Sex Divided American Christians and Fractured American Politics
- By: R. Marie Griffith
- Narrated by: Jo Anna Perrin
- Length: 13 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 48
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 44
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 44
Gay marriage, transgender rights, birth control - sex is at the heart of many of the most divisive political issues of our age. The origins of these conflicts, historian R. Marie Griffith argues, lie in sharp disagreements that emerged among American Christians a century ago. From the 1920s onward, a once-solid Christian consensus regarding gender roles and sexual morality began to crumble, as liberal Protestants sparred with fundamentalists and Catholics over questions of obscenity, sex education, and abortion.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Very thorough
- By Ellen Gilmartin on 10-12-19
-
Socrates
- A Man for Our Times
- By: Paul Johnson
- Narrated by: John Curless
- Length: 4 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 160
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 137
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 139
Acclaimed historian and best-selling author Paul Johnson’s books have been translated into dozens of languages. In Socrates: A Man for Our Times, Johnson draws from little-known resources to construct a fascinating account of one of history’s greatest thinkers. Socrates transcended class limitations in Athens during the fifth century B.C. to develop ideas that still shape the way we think about the human body and soul, including the workings of the human mind.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Plat-Soc-Paul
- By Megasaurus on 11-17-12
By: Paul Johnson
-
The Honor Code
- How Moral Revolutions Happen
- By: Kwame Anthony Appiah
- Narrated by: Kwame Anthony Appiah
- Length: 6 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 82
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 69
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 68
In this groundbreaking work, Kwame Anthony Appiah, hailed as "one of the most relevant philosophers today" (New York Times Book Review), changes the way we understand human behavior and the way social reform is brought about. In brilliantly arguing that new democratic movements over the last century have not been driven by legislation from above, Appiah explores the end of the duel in aristocratic England, the tumultuous struggles over foot binding in 19th-century China, the uprising of ordinary people against Atlantic slavery, and much more.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Horribly Boring
- By Merle N. Savedow on 02-10-21
-
Stamped from the Beginning
- The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America
- By: Ibram X. Kendi
- Narrated by: Christopher Dontrell Piper
- Length: 19 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 4,061
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 3,548
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 3,516
Some Americans cling desperately to the myth that we are living in a post-racial society, that the election of the first Black president spelled the doom of racism. In fact, racist thought is alive and well in America - more sophisticated and more insidious than ever. And as award-winning historian Ibram X. Kendi argues in Stamped from the Beginning, if we have any hope of grappling with this stark reality, we must first understand how racist ideas were developed, disseminated, and enshrined in American society.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Fabulous book, poor reader
- By EBMason on 11-15-17
By: Ibram X. Kendi
-
The Supreme Court
- The Personalities and Rivalries That Defined America
- By: Jeffrey Rosen
- Narrated by: Alan Sklar
- Length: 8 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 187
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 90
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 91
A leading Supreme Court expert recounts the personal and philosophical rivalries that forged our nation's highest court and continue to shape our daily lives. The Supreme Court is the most mysterious branch of government, and yet the Court is at root a human institution, made up of very bright people with very strong egos, for whom political and judicial conflicts often become personal.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Overruled!
- By Stephen McLeod on 08-23-08
By: Jeffrey Rosen
-
The Soul of America
- The Battle for Our Better Angels
- By: Jon Meacham
- Narrated by: Fred Sanders, Jon Meacham
- Length: 10 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 5,397
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 4,718
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 4,685
Our current climate of partisan fury is not new, and in The Soul of America Meacham shows us how what Abraham Lincoln called the “better angels of our nature” have repeatedly won the day. Painting surprising portraits of Lincoln and other presidents, including Ulysses S. Grant, Theodore Roosevelt, and LBJ, and illuminating the courage of influential citizen activists and civil rights pioneers, Meacham brings vividly to life turning points in American history. Each of these dramatic hours have been shaped by the contest to lead the country to look forward rather than back.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Thanks! I needed this!
- By Kindle Customer on 05-29-18
By: Jon Meacham
What listeners say about The Great Agnostic
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Vance Dickenson
- 05-08-22
A wonderful account of an extraordinary man.
The Great Agnostic is a grand accomplishment by Susan Jacoby. An edgy reminder of how far society has drifted away from reason and decency. Thank you Ms. Jacoby.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- tony
- 08-09-17
Marvelous
I have been introduced, and become curiously familiar with this American hero. Everything about this audiobook, the subject matter, the layout, the story form, all of it, fantastic.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
4 people found this helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Robert J. Wagner
- 10-31-18
A Different Point of View
I enjoyed the book. It packs a punch. If you have doubts about religion then this is the book for you.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful