The New Atheists: An Eastern Orthodox Critique - Tapa blanda

The new atheists criticize Christianity according to assumptions that are native to the Western understanding of religion. Those assumptions—theological, ecclesiological, and even anthropological and cosmological—originate in the occidental Middle Ages. The new atheists (and all atheists) are unwilling to confess that their worldview is indebted to Western Christian thought; indeed, their atheism is product of this religion.

There would be no science without it.

Moreover, the new atheists are ignorant of what we call Eastern Christianity (Eastern Orthodoxy). If they knew that truth was not the product of reason, they would have encountered God, the one true God, not the abstract deity (supreme being) of Western thought. Unfortunately, the argument of theists delineated in public debates only strengthens the position of the new atheists. In himself, God is unknown and unknowable. We know him because he reveals himself to those who seek him, that is, the Holy Trinity. Of course, the knowledge of God is not cognitive but gnostic, spiritual knowledge—something impossible for materialists.

Also, the new atheists examine the nature and history of the church with false assumptions derived from the history of the West. They a priori deny the existence of the supernatural and, therefore, the validity of the gospel, spoken and written. Into all this is thrown a false theology and, therefore, of Incarnate Lord and his place in history.

And, of course, the new atheists have no knowledge of the Eastern Church for no other reason than that they deny the supernatural, holding that all forms of Christianity are fundamentally the same and that access to God and his will comes to the holy.

Meatball has done it again! As author and illustrator of The Magic of Mister Taloo, she tells an awesome story. Through the journey of magic, Mr. Taloo displays the ultimate example of compassion. He’s the greatest magician around, and he’s loved by all. People from far and wide come to see his great magic. But he is not satisfied. He wants to do a whole lot more. And so he works to find his niche!

Jon, Cappy, and Marta—characters from Meatball’s previous books—can’t wait to see the great Mr. Taloo. They learned a valuable lesson, that of allowing nature to perform its role. That great lesson was rewarded with tickets to see The Magic of Mister Taloo.

Meatball continues to bring to us the teachable moment through real-life experiences. She offers the young reader an opportunity to thoughtfully reflect on behaviors that have an impact and use them to decide how they might resolve some issues in their own lives. Through her wonderful stories, children connect to the very things that encourage learning by example. But parents learn a little something too—a test to the magic of Meatball and the Family Bonding Books!