History for Atheists
Atheist activism has a serious history problem. In the History for Atheists podcast, history writer Tim O'Neill tries to correct the misconceptions many of his fellow atheists have about history and debunks some common myths and fringe ideas about religious history generally.
Episodes
25 episodes
Dr Nathan Johnstone Interview - New Atheist Bad History
My guest today is Dr Nathan Johnstone. Nathan is the author of the excellent 2018 book, The New Atheism, Myth and History: The Black Legends of Contemporary Anti-Religion. Like me, Nathan is an unbeliever. And, like me, he has been concerned at...
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Season 5
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Episode 1
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1:13:59
Dr David Perry Interview - The "Dark Ages"
My guest today is Dr David M. Perry . David is a medieval historian and author of several books, including The Bright Ages: A New History of Medieval Europe and the forthcoming Oathbreakers, both co-authored with Matthew Gabriele. He has taught...
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Season 4
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Episode 3
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54:30
Dr Kipp Davis Interview - Jewish Apocalypticism
My guest today is Dr Kipp Davis. Kipp is a biblical scholar and an expert in early Jewish literature and history, with a focus on the Dead Sea Scrolls. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Manchester (2009), has held several professional ...
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Season 4
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Episode 2
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1:31:59
Hypatia - Myths and History
The story often told about Hypatia of Alexandria was that she was a great scientist, rationalist and scholar who was brutally murdered by a mob of Christians who hated her knowledge and learning, with her death ushering in the Dark Ages. But th...
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Season 4
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Episode 1
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53:12
Dr Philipp Nothaft Interview - The Date of Christmas
My guest today is Dr Philipp Nothaft. Philipp is a Fellow of All Souls Oxford and a historian specializing in astronomy, astrology and calendars in late antiquity, the Middle Ages and early modern Europe. He’s also the author of a key paper on ...
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Season 3
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Episode 4
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59:31
Prof. Ken Dark Interview - The Archaeology of Jesus' Nazareth
My guest today is Professor Ken Dark. Ken is Visiting Professor at King's College and formerly Professor of Archaeology and History at the University of Reading. His archaeological work has focused on Late Antiquity and the Byzantine Era, but, ...
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Season 3
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Episode 3
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1:29:49
Joseph AP Wilson Interview - Was Paul Sexist?
Both conservative Christians and many atheist activists point to 1Corinthians 14:34-35 and note how Paul forbids women to speak in church. The Christians do this to maintain that women should not preach and cannot be pastors or priests. The ath...
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Season 3
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Episode 2
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1:07:18
Cats and the Black Death
Some atheists and even some prominent scientists claim that the Black Death was caused or at least made worse by a wholesale massacre of cats ordered by the Catholic Church in the Middle Ages. But is this true? And where did this strange story ...
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Season 3
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Episode 1
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43:18
Sebastian Major Interview - Galileo and History Myths
My guest today is Sebastian Major, writer and presenter of the excellent "Our Fake History" podcast. Sebastian recently presented a three part episode on the Galileo Affair, debunking the many historical myths surrounding Galileo. He did a fine...
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Season 2
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Episode 5
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1:06:31
Pagan Halloween?
The idea that all the traditional holidays and festivals of the year are “pagan” in origin and were simply “stolen by the Church” is one that has permeated popular culture and is repeated without question in newspaper, magazine and online artic...
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Season 2
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Episode 4
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35:28
David Hutchings & James C. Ungureanu interview - The Conflict Thesis
My guests today are David Hutchings and James C. Ungureanu, co-authors of Of Popes and Unicorns: Science, Christianity and How the Conflict Thesis Fooled the World. David is a physicist, science teacher and writer and James is a histor...
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Season 2
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Episode 3
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1:10:26
Is Easter Pagan?
Every year fundamentalist Christians, New Agers, neo-pagans and many atheists loudly agree that Easter was not originally a Christian feast and was a pagan fertility festival stolen by Christianity. Unfortunately, despite what endless memes and...
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Season 2
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Episode 2
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29:08
Derek Lambert Interview - Jesus Mythicism
My guest today is Derek Lambert, the presenter of the excellent Mythvision video channel. Derek has been kind enough to have me on his channel several times over the last two years to discuss atheist bad history in general and Jesus Mythicism i...
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Season 2
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Episode 1
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1:43:48
Constantine and the Bible
The historical myths surrounding the emperor Constantine, his conversion to Christianity and the claim he created the Bible at the Council of Nicaea are persistent and continue to be propagated in popular culture, despite being total nonsense. ...
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Season 1
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Episode 12
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48:26
Ted McCormick Interview - Steven Pinker's Enlightenment
My guest today is Associate Professor Ted McCormick. Ted is a specialist in intellectual history and the history of science at Concordia University in Canada. He examines the intersections between science, technology, economy and empire in the ...
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Season 1
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Episode 11
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56:09
Thony Christie Interview - The Galileo Affair Part 3
My guest today is the historian of science, Thony Christie. Thony is an independent scholar based in Germany who also the author of the superb Renaissance Mathematicus blog. His kn...
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Season 1
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Episode 10
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54:20
Thony Christie Interview - The Galileo Affair Part 2
My guest today is the historian of science, Thony Christie. Thony is an independent scholar based in Germany who also the author of the superb Renaissance Mathematicus blog. His knowledg...
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Season 1
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Episode 9
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50:59
Thony Christie Interview - The Galileo Affair Part 1
My guest today is the historian of science, Thony Christie. Thony is an independent scholar based in Germany who also the author of the superb Renaissance Mathematicus blog. His kn...
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Season 1
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Episode 8
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48:56
The Great Library of Alexandria - Part Two
What was the Great Library of Alexandria and why does it feature in some anti-religious rhetoric? In this second part of a two-part episode, we will look at how the Great Library came to an end. And then examine how the myth that it was "burned...
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Season 1
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Episode 7
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30:45
The Great Library of Alexandria - Part One
What was the Great Library of Alexandria and why does it feature in some anti-religious rhetoric? In this first part of a two-part episode, we will examine some of the misconceptions about the Great Library, look at what it was and - more impor...
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Season 1
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Episode 6
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40:56
Tom Holland Interview - "Dominion"
A conversation with bestselling history author Tom Holland about his book "Dominion - The Making of the Western Mind".You can buy a copy of "Dominion" here:
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Season 1
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Episode 5
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1:16:01
Did Jesus Exist? Yes (Probably).
Why do almost all scholars accept that a historical Jesus most likely existed? An overview of the reasons behind the consensus that there probably was a historical, human preacher behind the later stories of Jesus.For more on Jesus Myth...
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Season 1
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Episode 4
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30:51
Dr Seb Falk Interview - "The Light Ages" - Science in the Middle Ages
Cambridge University historian Dr Seb Falk joins History for Atheists to discuss his book "The Light Ages" and misconceptions about science in the Middle Ages.His book is available from various vendors and comes highly recommended:<...
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Season 1
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Episode 3
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56:41
The Medieval Flat Earth Myth
Despite it having been repeatedly debunked by historians, some atheist activists continue to peddle the myth that the Medieval Church taught the earth was flat. But how did this myth arise and what did medieval people really know about the shap...
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Season 1
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Episode 2
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34:43
Introduction - Why History for Atheists?
Atheist activism has a serious history problem. Tim O'Neill, author of the History for Atheists blog, explains why he began tackling the errors about the history of religion made by many of his fellow atheists and why he created his video chann...
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Season 1
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Episode 1
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12:28
