Should a Christian read books known to be heretical / blasphemous / against Christianity? Inspired by: May Christians read self improvement books?


May we read un-Christian books? Should we?
In what circumstances?
What guidelines should be used to decide on this?

Some examples of books that I consider relevant for the question:


The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins
God is not Great by Christopher Hitchens
The Quran
His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman
Gospel of Judas
The 120 Days of Sodom by Marquis de Sade
The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown
The Satanic Bible by Anton LaVey


I have read some of the mentioned and would not read some. But I can't say what my guidelines would exactly be. Of course, I only know the ones I've read to be heretical/blasphemous/anti-Christian. Others I put on the list based on hearsay.
I'd give a similar answer to this question as I did the other one, except that having read some of these books already, I doubt I could read them now without being nauseated by what I'm reading.  

There are certain things that, once you read them, you can't get them out of your head.  (pornography, for example).  I've read some very anti-Christian books and articles (in print and on the web) that sound very good on the surface.  (So again, the same caution I gave in the answer on that question applies.)

That said, some of the books on your list are full of the type of information we need to be armed against.  God calls each of us into a different ministry.  I tend to come across people of a certain mindset - atheists, agnostics, people who have serious and real objections to the very core concepts of Christianity.  In order to talk to these people and reach out to them, it is absolutely essential that I know where they are coming from.  Others (my Pastor, for example) would argue that this stuff isn't important because he tends to run across people who are open and seeking God, rather than those who oppose Him.  He'd probably tell you not to even look at this stuff, and to concentrate on the Word instead.  I guess if I knew less atheists, I might agree.  

I just keep going back to the fact that if I hadn't been influenced by people who were educated and prepared for someone like me, I might not have ever been saved.

A while back, I blogged about a book I'd read called "10 Books that Screwed Up the World".  It contains several books not on your list that should be.  I think that if you are one of the people that God has called to reach those that have been corrupted by these teachings, then not only is reading these books OK, it is, in some ways, necessary.  

The point is this:  You can't fight the enemy if you don't know the enemy.  the enemy is not the people who hold these beliefs, they are the beliefs themselves.  You can't hope to make a case against an idea if you don't understand the idea.

However, if you're reading these books because you simply enjoy them, I guess I'm not going to tell you you're wrong for doing so, but I know that I, personally, wouldn't be able to do it.  Walking with the Lord means being in agreement with Him, and obviously, you can't be in agreement with Him if you're in agreement with those who stand against him.

One final point that should really be a separate answer

Back to my statement about being nauseated. I figured out how to verbalize it:  I love God, and to read materials that purposely distort Him and cast Him in a negative light make me furious.  I would be just as furious if someone wrote a pornographic story about my wife or children.  It's offensive.  That's why I'd have a hard time reading these books, even if it does help me to be better prepared.