Saturday, August 17, 2013

Controversial Books to Read

I think it is important for adults to expose themselves to other points of view for many reasons. One of which is to be able to understand and have compassion for others that do not have the same environment, experience and viewpoint.   I use the word adult, because without a strong foundation both intellectually and spiritually a child and even a young adult can be easily confused about right, wrong and intent.

Here are a few books that obviously do not line up to my world view, but I have found helpful in discussions with others in both understanding their point of view and framing intelligent rebuttal.

  1. The Quran
  2. The Communist Manifesto
  3. The Secret
  4. The Book of Mormon
  5. The Golden Compass Series
  6. The God Delusion
  7. The Prince
  8. On the Origin of Species
I realize there are many Christians who believe that the reading list is unfit for consumption and reading such books will only lead to the decay of values and is a misuse of time.  If your conviction is to not read this book list, then don't. I have found that reading them through the lens of my faith it only strengthened it and gave me a framework for conversation.

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