I laughed 🙂 On the first day, God created the heavens and the earth. “Let there be light,” He said, and there was light. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening — the first night. On the second day, God separated the oceans from the sky. “Let there be a horizon,” He said. And lo: a horizon appeared and God saw that it was good. And there was evening — the second night. On the third… Read more
Paul Wallace, a physicist and Christian, has added to the pile of obituaries of the Intelligent Design movement. Jason Rosenhouse wrote one back in November: In the mid-nineties it was possible to wonder seriously if ID was a serious intellectual movement, or just another fad that would die out on its own. That verdict is now in. ID is dead. As a doornail. Even as YEC [Young Earth Creationism] shows renewed life with the success of the Creation Museum and… Read more
Don’t think the billboard promoting Larry Taunton’s book The Grace Effect is a big deal? Just another example of a silly Christian billboard in the South? Well, here’s a question for anyone just glossing over it: Would Christians react the same way if we put up an equally ignorant billboard? Reader Keith created this mockup: Arguably, this would get media attention, even though the implication that a devoutly religious leader would end up just like Hitler makes no sense. I’m… Read more
***Update***: It’s a Poe. Nicely done, Manka Bros. … It’s exactly as bad as you think it’s going to be. And it starts with these lyrics: Whatchu gonna do with atheists? All those pagan atheists? I’m gonna set set set them free. Make them Christian just like me. My jaw. It hurts from dropping so far… (Thanks to pleomorphic for the link) Read more
Tell me if you’ve heard this one before… An independent Commission of Inquiry was conducted recently, investigating historical child sexual abuse within the Dutch Roman Catholic Church. They found tens of thousands of victims and (wait for it) about 800 possible perpetrators over the span of around 60 years. It’s incredible how much “sin” took place in a place that’s supposed to be holy. Statistics indicate that, in general, child sexual abuse is vastly under-reported, so the numbers are likely… Read more
Here’s a perfect example of bad reporting. John Trumbo of the Tri-City Herald in Washington state wrote an article about Greg Morgan, a local man who recently found an unusual sandstone formation. And there’s only one conclusion he can draw from it: Morgan, who is a mechanical engineer and worked in the aviation industry before coming to Hanford, said he was shocked when he first saw a picture of The Wave because it contradicted his original thinking about an ancient… Read more
No one’s forcing me to attend The Crown College in Powell, Tennessee, but holy hell, I can’t believe anyone would even consider it after going through their handbook (PDF). It’s dated 2009-2010, but it’s still the version they’re linking to today. Not only do they suck any type of freedom out of you, but I would be in serious trouble if I hugged a female friend, gave a woman a ride home even if she desperately needed one, or dated… Read more
Michele Bachmann believes God is on her side today during the Iowa caucuses: “I think we’re going to surprise a lot of people,” said Bachmann, a Waterloo native and social conservative who is a U.S. representative from Minnesota. She serves on the House Intelligence Committee, which she thinks gives her an edge on national security and foreign policy issues. “I think it will be a miracle,” Bachmann said in an interview aboard her campaign bus. “If you look at the… Read more
If you’ve been hanging around the freethought communities lately, you’ve probably heard a lot about sexism. You’ve probably heard plenty of women sharing their experiences: feeling objectified, feeling dismissed, feeling threatened, feeling constantly sexualized. Does that mean every man in the skeptic and atheist communities is a misogynist douchebag? Absolutely and unquestionably not. Does the fact that not every man in the skeptic and atheist communities is a misogynist douchebag mean that these women’s experiences are invalid? Absolutely and unquestionably… Read more
Note: Letter writers’ names are changed to protect their privacy. Dear Richard, Thank you for being there (in “The Friendly Atheist”) when I finally realized I was grieving the loss of my faith. After a lifetime of service to the Presbyterian Church, including three years in seminary and seven years in pastoral ministry, it left me completely three years ago, at the conclusion of a difficult interim position. I’m 64 years old. My husband, also clergy, never took anything in… Read more
