Atheist, A. C. Grayling has written a book giving fellow atheists advice on ways to live a good life. Other than as an act of sheer hubris, giving advice on a commodity – goodness – which has no meaning for atheists seems particularly pointless. If atheism is true, the moral actions of humans are entirely predetermined by evolution, including Grayling’s writing of this superfluous book.

From here:

In The Good Book, Professor Grayling attempts to whisk together in one tome the wisdom of Ancient Greek philosophers, Confucian sages, medieval poets and the discoveries of modern science.

Without any reference to gods, souls or afterlives, it aims to give atheists a book of inspiration and guidance as they make their way in the world.

In place of the more well-known Ten Commandments, his atheist principles are: “Love well, seek the good in all things, harm no others, think for yourself, take responsibility, respect nature, do your utmost, be informed, be kind, be courageous.”

Professor Grayling, the president elect of the British Humanist Association, is unambivalent about the biblical mission of his work.

“The point about the religious bible is that it purports to give us some direction. It contains the commands of a divinity wishing us to live a certain way,” he says.

“In fact it has a message which is that there is one great truth and one right way to live.

“The modest offering of The Good Book is that there are as many good lives as there are people who have the talent to live them, and that people must take the responsibility for thinking for themselves and making that decision for themselves.

“What this book does is try and offer them resources for thinking about that.”