The Profits of Religion (Great Minds Series)
by Upton Sinclair
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Book Summary Information
Author: Upton SinclairEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2000-11
ISBN: 1573928445
Number of pages: 315
Publisher: Prometheus Books
Book Reviews of The Profits of Religion (Great Minds Series)
Book Review: And you thought Richard Dawkins was hard on religion...
Summary: 5 Stars
I give it 5 stars because of all the trouble people like U. Sinclair and H.L. Mencken had to go through to speak a word of truth in this time. Also, it seems to me that researching and preparing a modern atheist book would be much easier than combing through libraries in the manner of the author of this book. I'm about 3/4 of the way through with this one and it is the fourth book I've read from Sinclair. It is very wordy(like most religios books) and I would have been frustrated without my Kindle(really easy to find a definition). I have enjoyed The Jungle, The Moneychangers and King Coal. I haven't read Oil!, but I "There will be blood" is what turned me on to this author. This book is no different. Why is everyone so dismissive of this writer anyway?
About the book, it is what it says it is. Get ready to read about the "unholy alliance" of organized religion and "big business". Ever wonder how the church benefits from its actions and why they are tolerated by the aristocracy? Sinclair explains it clearly(could have done without some of the verbage). He gives one example after another of how the church has stood in the path of every human advancement throughout history. Name a reform of the last 500 years and Sinclair will show you how it was opposed by the church. Child labor laws? Check. Improvement of labor conditions? Check. Innoculations, education(not just darwinism) and so it goes. When all is said and done, I have to admit that religion is taking a beating these days from the media. Not a word was spoken contrary to religion in Sinclair's time. I know the tyrrany of Catholic child molestation was unpunished and deserved more hate than it received. But, it was reported. Also, just today, I saw the NYT bitching about fundamentalists messing around with Texas public school curriculum and Bill Maher premiers a new comedy on HBO tonight. How do I know he is? Because I keep seeing advertisements everywhere. So, we are in the process of slowly eradicating organized religion. It will happen. But, it will also be replaced. In fact, I think it already has. Oppression has become more subtle. The ruling class is less blatant and the masses only need good entertainment to keep them in check. American Idol, anyone?
All in all, the book is thought provoking and relevant. We all owe this author a debt of gratitude. He fought hard in his life and it was worthwhile.
Summary of The Profits of Religion (Great Minds Series)
This excoriating critique of religion, especially as represented by powerful clerical institutions, is a lesser-known work by the author who had earlier become famous with his publication of "The Jungle", an expose of the poor labour conditions and unsanitary practices in Chicago's meat-packing industry. More than just a tirade against religion, this is the work of an impassioned, idealistic socialist writing at the beginning of the First World War, when the notion of an international socialist revolution still seemed like a very real possibility to many of the left-leaning thinkers of the day. Sinclair's chief concern is social justice and his aim is to enlighten common people by training his critical intelligence like a sharpshooter on the many hypocrisies of established religion, which stand in the way of achieving a just society for all. More than anything he is particularly incensed by the collusion of religion with the power structure of capitalism in exploiting the poor to increase its own wealth while ignoring the obvious material needs of the less fortunate. In the end Sinclair places his faith in a 'new religion' based on the known facts of human nature and on the largely untapped potential of human beings to solve their own problems through reason and science. This work, written before Sinclair and others on the American left became disillusioned with Stalin's Soviet-style socialism, offers an interesting glimpse into the intellectual currents prevalent on the left at the beginning of the twentieth century.History & Criticism Books
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