Some guy named James Randi, a self-described "bright" critical thinker has written a commentary blasting religion in favour of "materialism". I'm always intrigued when I first see such articles, thinking that I am about to find a rational critique of religion. I'm always disappointed. The writers' usual flaw is a shallow understanding and literalist interpretation of the bible together with a science vs. religion stance. Randi makes the same mistake.

His major arguments against religion are: 1) the stories are fantastic and impossible to prove, 2) materialism is the simplest explanation of the world as we see it and is verifiable, 3) religion is evil and behind most of the world's violence, wars, etc, 4) if God does exist and man has faith in Him, his free will doesn't exist. I find all these arguments unsatisfying (and I have no faith). Let's tackle them one at a time from a Jewish perspective.

1) The Bible is fantastic and could not have happened. Some of Randi's examples show he's coming from a Christian background, but he does mention some stories from the Torah as well. In Jewish thought, there is no demand on the believer to take the stories literally. Of course there are Jewish fundamentalists who think differently, but they are not mainstream. However, Randi cannot accept this viewpoint as it would destroy most of his thesis. If you see the Bible in a non-literalistic light, you see that it's not a historically accurate document and, therefore, does not contradict science.

The Bible has never struck me as a history book. It's primarily a book of morality and values - things that science cannot always discover. Look at the book of Genesis, for example. The stories of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and their families contain many timeless values concerning family and relationships.

When it comes to Biblical interpretation, I will have to defer to over 2000 years of tradition and discussion amongst sages much smarter than me or Randi.

2) Materialism is the simplest explanation of the universe. I suppose that's one explanation. From what little cutting edge science I follow, I wonder how he explains scientists' inability to explain the behaviours they are seeing at the sub-atomic level. Perhaps they will figure those out in time, but more mysteries may reveal themselves. Ockham's razor may in fact cut along other lines. If you consider the odds of life forming on its own, they are extreme. Scientists still can't explain how proteins spontaneously form amino acids. Some say this points to a creator.

3) Religion is the root of all evil. Right. Hitler and Stalin were fundamentalist Christians.

4) Free will. This is a huge theological discussion... All I can say is that having parents that set rules for me didn't take away my free will.

The search continues for a strong argument for a completely rational approach to life.