Time to be Rational: Darwin, Demons and Sex

Advocates of mainstream religion have always been keen to propagate their beliefs, and to claim their superiority. In earlier times, superstitious communities were intent on persecuting people thought to be violating holy teachings. Today the Anglican Communion divides on the issues of homosexuality and the role of women. Christianity and Islam, supposedly inspired by one true divinity, continue to face various schismatic pressures. Irrational creeds are unable to settle internal disputes and controversies. The inevitable result is superstition, countered only by the objective criteria provided by rational inquiry - Charles Darwin offering the supreme example. In "Time to Be Rational", Geoff Simons examines the law (not the theory) of evolution, which is properly regarded as a crucial part of objective biological knowledge. He then demonstrates that there is no logical difference between religion and cult. He examines the social and human impact of mainstream religion, especially in the realm of sexual behavior. Simons shows how the development of mainstream religion can be studied like any other social phenomenon - in turn forcing us to acknowledge its confused and repressive role throughout the long pre-scientific phase of human society. It is high time we learned to outgrow the religious superstitions that continue to dominate the social attitudes of much of the world. It is high time we learned to be rational.