Faith is one of the world's great evils
• Skeptics & Atheists
From a review of Richard Dawkins' A Devil's Chaplain: Reflections on Hope, Lies, Science, and Love:
Dawkins's passion for evolution is perhaps matched only by his hatred of religion. Indeed Dawkins has railed so often against religion that his reputation as a God-basher may now nearly rival his reputation as a science-booster. A Devil's Chaplain leaves little doubt that the reputation is well deserved. Arguing that those who have masked their contempt for religion must speak out, Dawkins lets loose. He announces that religion is a "dangerous collective delusion" and a "malignant infection." Acknowledging that this position may seem "contemptuous or even hostile," he insists that "it is both." Asked why he is so hostile to organized religion, he answers that he's not particularly fond of disorganized religion either. Indeed: "I think a case can be made that faith is one of the world's great evils, comparable to the smallpox virus but harder to eradicate."
H. Allen Orr, The New York Review of Books: A Passion for Evolution