
Unconvinced
How Belief Is Not a Choice and Why That Changes Everything
Jon Cohen(Author)
Globe Pequot Press
Will be published approx. on 17. November 2026
Book
Hardback
128 pages
978-1-4930-9632-9 (ISBN)
Description
Unconvinced is a bold, accessible, and morally urgent book about a widespread assumption in religion that often goes unexamined: that we are responsible for what we believe. Drawing on philosophy, psychology, neuroscience, and theology, it makes the case that belief is not a choice—and that salvation systems which reward or punish people for what they believe are therefore unjust.
The book doesn’t attempt to settle the question of God’s existence. Instead, it zeroes in on how belief works and why that matters. Through engaging arguments and real-world analogies, it offers a new lens through which to evaluate the logic and ethics of belief-based religion, particularly Christianity and Islam.
The central claim is simple but disruptive: belief cannot be chosen, and we should be judged instead by our honesty, integrity, and moral effort. Unconvinced is for readers who have wrestled with doubt and those who care about justice, truth, and the human condition.
The book doesn’t attempt to settle the question of God’s existence. Instead, it zeroes in on how belief works and why that matters. Through engaging arguments and real-world analogies, it offers a new lens through which to evaluate the logic and ethics of belief-based religion, particularly Christianity and Islam.
The central claim is simple but disruptive: belief cannot be chosen, and we should be judged instead by our honesty, integrity, and moral effort. Unconvinced is for readers who have wrestled with doubt and those who care about justice, truth, and the human condition.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Old Saybrook
United States
Product notice
sewn/stitched
Cloth over boards
With dust jacket
Weight
304 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-4930-9632-9 (9781493096329)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Jon Cohen is an award-winning music producer with a parallel career as a writer, speaker, and advocate for secular humanism, scientific skepticism, and reason. Former contributor to The Skeptic magazine and Skeptical Inquirer, with a track record of public engagement on critical thinking, moral philosophy, and the psychology of belief. He lives in Surrey, England.