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Media Inquiries: Véronique Rodman
vrodman@aei.org / 202.862.4870
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 5, 2008
The division between atheist and believer appears stark if one surveys the contemporary religious landscape. Nonetheless, philosopher and theologian Michael Novak finds the reality of spiritual life far different from the rhetorical war presented by bestselling atheists and the defenders of the faith who oppose them. In his latest book, No One Sees God: The Dark Night of Atheists and Believers (Doubleday, 2008), AEI's Novak recasts the traditional debate pitting faith against reason and sidesteps the shrill tone that characterizes so many discussions of faith. He demonstrates that we are in what he calls the "End of the Secularist Age," a time defined by the collapse of the notion that the entire world is turning secular--and a time for a "New Age of Reasoned Conversation" in which believers and unbelievers alike recognize each other's dignity in the common darkness that is their lot.
Both the atheist and the believer experience the same "dark night" in which God seems absent, Novak argues, and the conflict between belief and doubt stems not from objective differences but from divergent attitudes toward the unknown. The author acknowledges that belief may, at times, be a challenge, but he also writes that it may be the only fully coherent response to the human experience.
At a time of great challenge to the world, Novak offers atheists and believers the opportunity to find common ground by acknowledging the complex realities of the human struggle with doubt. In the author's reasoned approach to questions about the nature and destiny of human beings, all who value liberty may find hope in this new way of conversing.
Michael Novak is available for interviews and can be contacted directly at mnovak@aei.org or at 202.862.5839. Alternatively, please contact the AEI public affairs department at 202.862.4870 or at vrodman@aei.org with additional media inquiries.
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