Book Review: The Atheist's Fatal Flaw

The Atheist's Fatal Flaw: Exposing Conflicting Beliefs (2014, Baker Books) by the patriarchal Norman Geisler and newcomer Daniel McCoy is an important contribution to the existing apologetic literature. In classic Geisler style, this book moves forth in a relentlessly logical fashion. In essence, they spend the book examining two inconsistencies: "in the first case, though initially indicting God for not fixing the problem of moral evil, the atheist then indicts God for his attempts to fix it" (p. 131) and second, "although denouncing as evil the interventions that God proposes in order to fix moral evil, the atheist then reverses himself by absolving those same types of interventions at a societal level" (p. 132). In essence, certain actions are okay, so long as we do not attribute them to God.

What I found to be the primary strength of this book was the painstaking effort Geisler and McCoy went to accurately represent the atheist's viewpoints and inconsistencies. The first half of the book is full of numerous examples from atheists such as Hitchens, Dawkins, Dennett, Barker, and others.  In fact, I suspect the naive reader may read the first half of the book and wonder if it is Christian.  Keep reading.

The Atheist's Fatal Flaw is a useful, unique book, but it is not for the faint of heart. Gaining some basic grounding in apologetics, philosophy, and logic prior to tackling this book may be of benefit. Regardless, I think this book will benefit many in the years to come.

I received this book free from the publisher through the Bethany Baker House book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”