Christopher Hitchens traces his atheism back to a nature walk in boarding school. That's when, at age ten, his scripture teacher told the class that it is God who makes the trees so green, because green is the color "most restful to our eyes." No one objected, and he says knew from that moment that religion was "rubbish." His new memoir lets us in on his long road to anti-theism, touching on his hidden Jewish heritage, famous friendships, and why he doesn't mind being disliked.
Christopher Hitchens, author of Hitch-22: A Memoir and God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything
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Judith Shulevitz, Wrestling With the Jewish Day of Rest
Begins at 28 min 30 sec
Judith Shulevitz’ new book, The Sabbath World, is about her profound ambivalence toward the Jewish day of rest…and why she follows it anyway. In Hebrew, Shabbat means "to cease"; it's a day for family, community and study, observed from sundown on Friday until the appearance of three stars on Saturday night.
Judith Shulevitz, author of Sabbath World: Glimpses of a Different Order of Time
World Religions 101: Judaism
Begins at 44 min 30 sec
In the second part of our new series on the most influential religions, we look at a faith that dates back more than 3,000 years: Judaism. It's a religion, a philosophy, and a way of life, with about 13–14 million adherents worldwide.
Stephen Prothero, religion blogger for CNN and author of God is Not One: The Eight Rival Religions that Rule the World and Why Their Differences Matter
