Is the Bible Worth Reading and Other Essays
Lemuel Kelley Washburn
Read by LibriVox Volunteers
These are more than 100 short essays on all things atheism and freethought penned by Lemuel K. Washburn, an American freethought writer and editor for the Boston Investigator. He talks about a wide range of topics, for example about women and the church, human integrity, the character of god and the idea and teachings of Jesus. At the end of some essays there are aphorisms from his pen. Washburn is best known for the Cosmian Hymn Book: A Collection of Original and Selected Hymns, a collection of hymns promoted as "perfectly free from all sectarianism" published in 1888. (Summary by Ava) (5 hr 56 min)
Chapters
| Is the Bible Worth Reading | 4:50 | Read by Rapunzelina |
| Sacrifice | 5:39 | Read by weezer |
| The Drama of Life | 6:53 | Read by sorgeaw |
| Nature in June | 6:10 | Read by sorgeaw |
| The Infinite Purpose | 4:31 | Read by weezer |
| Freethought Commands | 1:47 | Read by Alan Mapstone |
| A Rainbow Religion | 5:50 | Read by sorgeaw |
| A Cruel God | 4:38 | Read by sorgeaw |
| What is Jesus | 2:57 | Read by sorgeaw |
| Deeds Better Than Professions | 1:50 | Read by Delilah Bing |
| Give Us The Truth | 2:52 | Read by Delilah Bing |
| The American Sunday | 4:36 | Read by Delilah Bing |
| Lord and Master | 3:03 | Read by Julie Burks |
| Are Christians Intelligent or Honest | 2:36 | Read by Lauren-Emma Blake |
| The Danger of the Ballot | 4:55 | Read by Chad Sawyer |
| Who Carried the Cross | 3:14 | Read by Chad Sawyer |
| Modern Disciples of Jesus | 4:53 | Read by Chad Sawyer |
| A Poor Excuse | 2:08 | Read by False Citrine |
| Profession and Practice | 3:19 | Read by False Citrine |
| Where Is Truth | 4:33 | Read by False Citrine |
| What Does It Prove | 1:37 | Read by calmoji |
| Human Responsibility | 2:12 | Read by calmoji |
| Abolish Dirt | 1:33 | Read by calmoji |
| Religion and Morality | 3:26 | Read by Nicole Gee |
| Jesus as a Model | 1:42 | Read by calmoji |
| Singing Lies | 3:32 | Read by Nicole Gee |
| A Walk Through a Cemetary | 3:17 | Read by Nicole Gee |
| Peace With God | 2:41 | Read by calmoji |
| Saving the Soul | 2:12 | Read by calmoji |
| The Search For Something to Worship | 3:18 | Read by calmoji |
| Where Are They | 1:18 | Read by Julie Burks |
| Some Questions For Christians To Answer | 1:38 | Read by Scarbo |
| The Image Of God | 3:23 | Read by calmoji |
| Religion And Science | 3:38 | Read by Availle |
| The Bible And The Child | 3:30 | Read by Mike Shepard |
| When To Help The World | 5:06 | Read by Julie Burks |
| The Judgment Of God | 3:41 | Read by Chuck Williamson |
| Christianity And Freethought | 2:06 | Read by Alan Mapstone |
| The Brotherhood And Freedom Of Man | 4:08 | Read by ElBee |
| Whatever Is Is Right | 6:00 | Read by ElBee |
| The Object Of Life | 2:51 | Read by ElBee |
| Man | 4:17 | Read by ElBee |
| The Dogma Of The Divine Man | 3:31 | Read by ElBee |
| The Rich Man's Gospel | 3:11 | Read by Julie Burks |
| Speak Well Of One Another | 3:26 | Read by calmoji |
| Disgraceful Partnerships | 3:09 | Read by Julie Burks |
| Science And Theology | 2:01 | Read by Availle |
| Unequal Remuneration | 3:29 | Read by Julie Burks |
| The Old And The New | 3:54 | Read by False Citrine |
| Guard The Ear | 1:50 | Read by False Citrine |
| The Character Of God | 1:08 | Read by False Citrine |
| Not Important | 1:47 | Read by False Citrine |
| Oaths | 2:26 | Read by False Citrine |
| Dead Words | 2:10 | Read by Alan Mapstone |
| Confession Of Sin | 3:37 | Read by Nathan Whitson |
| Death's Philanthropy | 3:11 | Read by Nathan Whitson |
| Our Attitude Towards Nature | 2:23 | Read by Julie Burks |
| Reverence For Motherhood | 3:26 | Read by Julie Burks |
| The God Of The Bible | 3:39 | Read by protabs |
| The Measure Of Suffering | 3:09 | Read by Nicole Gee |
| Nature | 1:54 | Read by J. M. Smallheer |
| Creeds | 4:10 | Read by Chuck Williamson |
| Don't Try To Stop The Sun Shining | 1:55 | Read by J. M. Smallheer |
| Follow Me | 2:31 | Read by Traceyann |
| Can We Never Get Along Without Servants? | 4:54 | Read by Traceyann |
| A Heavenly Father | 3:03 | Read by ElBee |
| Worship Not Needed | 3:33 | Read by ElBee |
| Was Jesus A Good Man | 1:59 | Read by ElBee |
| How To Help Mankind | 3:05 | Read by ElBee |
| On The Cross | 3:18 | Read by ElBee |
| Equal Moral Standards | 3:40 | Read by J. M. Smallheer |
| Authority | 7:01 | Read by Julie Burks |
| A Clean Sabbath | 3:31 | Read by Mike Shepard |
| Human Integrity | 5:25 | Read by Availle |
| Is It True | 3:55 | Read by Mike Shepard |
| Keep The Children At Home | 3:36 | Read by Mike Shepard |
| Teacher And Preacher | 3:46 | Read by Julie Burks |
| Fear Of Doubts | 1:55 | Read by Alan Mapstone |
| Bible-Backing | 3:07 | Read by hiabc |
| Beggars | 3:09 | Read by Andrew Gaunce |
| Habits | 3:07 | Read by Andrew Gaunce |
| Can Poverty Be Abolished | 3:17 | Read by Andrew Gaunce |
| The Roman Catholic God | 3:09 | Read by hiabc |
| Human Cruelty | 1:43 | Read by calmoji |
| Infidelity | 3:26 | Read by hiabc |
| Atheism | 1:58 | Read by Scarbo |
| Christian Happiness | 3:38 | Read by Jennifer Fournier |
| What God Knows | 3:28 | Read by Jennifer Fournier |
| The Meaning Of The Word God | 3:52 | Read by Jennifer Fournier |
| What Has Jesus Done For The World | 3:50 | Read by Jennifer Fournier |
| The Agnostic's Position | 1:55 | Read by Alan Mapstone |
| Orthodoxy | 1:52 | Read by Alan Mapstone |
| Ideas Of Jesus | 3:39 | Read by Tristan |
| The Silence Of Jesus | 3:18 | Read by Tristan |
| Does The Church Save | 3:14 | Read by Tristan |
| Save The Republic | 4:01 | Read by Tristan |
| A Woman's Religion | 3:23 | Read by Tristan |
| The Sacrifice Of Jesus | 5:01 | Read by False Citrine |
| Fashionable Hypocrisy | 5:28 | Read by Chuck Williamson |
| The Saturday Half-Holiday | 3:00 | Read by Amanda Miller |
| The Motive For Preaching | 4:17 | Read by Amanda Miller |
| The Christian's God | 1:46 | Read by Lauren-Emma Blake |
| Indifference To Religion | 3:17 | Read by Availle |
| Sunday Schools | 3:53 | Read by Lauren-Emma Blake |
| Going To Church | 3:46 | Read by Lauren-Emma Blake |
| Who Is The Greatest Living Man | 4:10 | Read by Lauren-Emma Blake |
Reviews
Oh, another one.
potuc
Reason is a part of religious thought, ‘Suzie.’ I have sometimes doubted the existence of God and Jesus, but after reading passages from the Holy Bible, my faith is always rejuvenated! I also have the great luck of being born into a religious family, all of whom have great logic, one of whom is a teacher, one is a librarian, one is a doctor, and they all have faith in God, and give good reasons to believe in God. It’s alright if you disagree with me, I just wish these books and reviews wouldn’t give random, insensible tantrums about religion being fake. 4/5 of all people in the world are religious, are you really going to talk to them like that in real life? I doubt it, and if you do, you are no better than a racist, a racist against religion, a racist against the Divine. Well, hope you like this book, I guess. Please don’t murder me.
Suzie
The author make clear, concise arguments based on logic and common sense. If one could suspend one’s belief in superstition, ignorance, fear, and tradition, one could see the truth in the author’s reasoning. The religious know they are right because they have faith and they have faith because they know they are right. Logic, reason and common sense have no meaning in their world.
Tim Tuttle
Is this audiobook worth listening to? ... go for it. But what are you afraid of?... reasonably intelligent people seeing through your ridiculous lies? If you were to read the Bible for youself, you will see through these essays as tripe and short sighted... having no conception of cultural and historical context, mystical meaning and spiritual depth. These essays are more absurd than they claim the Bible to be. The Bible is the most profound and widely read book ever written... it has influenced man and history more than any book ever has or will. Don't read it?... your loss.