LETTER TO A CHRISTIAN NATION by Sam Harris. Alfred A. Knopf, 2006
    NOTE TO THE READER (pvii-xii)

      The truth is that many who claim to be transformed by Christ's love are deeply, even murderously, intolerant of criticism...It is clear that such hatred draws considerable support from the Bible.

      While this book is intended for people of all faiths, it has been written in the form of a letter to a Christian. This book is a response to many of the arguments that Christians put forward in defense of their religious beliefs.

      The primary purpose of the book is to arm secularists in our society, who believe that religion should be kept out of public policy, against their opponents on the Christian Right. Consequently, the "Christian" I address throughout is a Christian in a narrow sense of the term. Such a person believes, at a minimum, that the Bible is the inspired word of God and that only those who accept the divinity of Jesus Christ will experience salvation after death.

      It is well known that the beliefs of conservative Christians now exert an extraordinary influence over our national discourse --- in our courts, schools, and in every branch of government.

    LETTER TO A CHRISTIAN NATION (p1-91)

    1) The wisdom of the Bible (p7-23)

      List of the Ten Commandments (p20)

    2) Real morality (p23-32)

    3) Doing good for God (p33-38)

    4) Are atheists evil? (p38-46)

    5) Who puts the "good" in the "good book"? (p46-50)

    6) The goodness of God (p50-56)

    7) The power of prophecy (p57-62)

    8) The clash of science and religion (p62-68)

    9) The fact of life (p68-79)

    10) Religion, violence, and the future of civilization (p79-87)

    CONCLUSION (p87-91)

    TEN BOOKS SAM HARRIS RECOMMENDS (p92)

    NOTES (p93-96)

    A NOTE ABOUT THE AUTHOR (p97)

      Sam Harris is the author of the New York Times best seller book The End of Faith --- Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason (2004).

      His website is at: www.samharris.org

    INDEX (p187-193)

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