Providing an extended defense of anti-theism - the view that God’s existence would (or does) actually make the world worse in certain respects - Lougheed explores God’s impact on a broad range of concepts including privacy, understanding, dignity, and sacrifice.

Part 1: Setting the Stage.- Chapter 1: The Current Debate.- Chapter 2: The Meaningful Life Argument.- Part 2: Arguments for Anti-Theism.- Chapter 3: The Privacy Argument for Anti-Theism.- Chapter 4: The Autonomy and Dignity Arguments for Anti-Theism.- Chapter 5: The Sacrifice and Complete Understanding Arguments for Anti-Theism.- Chapter 6: The Axiological Status of God, Lesser-Gods, and Aliens. Why Atheist Worlds are Necessarily the Best.- Part 3: Beyond Monotheism.- Chapter 7: The Axiological Status of Schellenberg's Ultimism.- Chapter 8: The Axiology of Panentheism and Pantheism.- Chapter 9: The Axiology of Buddhism.- Chapter 10. Beyond Religion.

"This book makes a fine contribution to the literature on the axiology of theism. [...] I recommend this book to everyone interested in contemporary philosophy of religion".– Graham Oppy, Professor of Philosophy, Monash University, Australia"[...] a sustained and fascinating defense of a view called anti-theism: the view that God's existence would make the world overall worse. Lougheed adeptly addresses the most serious objections to anti-theism and provides a compelling set of arguments for the view."– Michael Almeida, Professor of Philosophy, University of Texas at San Antonio, USAThis book explores the value impact that theist and other worldviews have on our world and its inhabitants. Providing an extended defense of anti-theism - the view that God’s existence would (or does) actually make the world worse in certain respects - Lougheed explores God’s impact on a broad range of concepts including privacy, understanding, dignity, and sacrifice. The second half of the book is dedicated to the expansion of the current debate beyond monotheism and naturalism, providing an analysis of the axiological status of other worldviews such as pantheism, ultimism, and Buddhism.  A lucid exploration of contemporary and relevant questions about the value impact of God’s existence, this book is an invaluable resource for scholars interested in axiological questions in the philosophy of religion. 

“This book makes a fine contribution to the literature on the axiology of theism. Part I provides a nice overview of the prior state of play. Part II shows that there is much more to say on behalf of anti-theism than many initially might have supposed. Part III makes an impressive start on the task of broadening the discussion to a wider range of worldviews--not merely theistic and naturalistic--and a more extensive set of issues, including, for example, questions about the axiology of authority and governance. I recommend this book to everyone interested in contemporary philosophy of religion.” Graham Oppy, Professor of Philosophy, Monash Univeristy, USA“Over the last ten years the axiological status of theism has become a major research program in analytic philosophy of religion. The central issue is whether the world—or individuals in the world—would (might) be worse (better) off were it true that God exists. There are an extraordinary number of 'moving parts' in the discussion and Lougheed provides a lucid and valuable discussion of the main points at issue, including difficult questions about coherent philosophical methodology, ethics, the nature of value, and what constitutes a meaningful life. The Axiology of Theism offers a sustained and fascinating defense of a view called anti-theism: the view that God's existence would make the world overall worse. Lougheed adeptly addresses the most serious objections to anti-theism and provides a compelling set of arguments for the view. The book concludes with some much-needed discussion about traditional monotheistic assumptions and the value of moving the debate beyond these limitations.”Michael Almeida, Professor of Philosophy, University of Texas at San Antonio 

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