Atheist Parenting Group Makes News in North Carolina

Here’s a very positive article by Yonat Shimron of The News & Observer in Raleigh, NC about atheist parents gathering together each week to share wisdom and ideas on how to raise children.

These parents know what it’s like to fumble for the right answer to questions such as “Why don’t we go to church?” and “Is God real?” and they want to share their responses with like-minded parents.

For example, when 6-year-old Evan Spiering announced one day that “God created the world,” his father, Todd Spiering, answered, “Grandpa believes that. Some people believe other things.”

Spiering, 31, a self-employed carpenter who hosted the gathering Sunday, said he wants his three children to question and probe.

“We don’t have to act like we have it all figured out,” Spiering said. “I’m more comfortable not knowing.”

Raleigh is one of the most active atheist parenting groups in the country, but according to Dale McGowan (who wrote the book Parenting Beyond Belief), there are at least 32 similar groups nationwide!

We’re growing…! (I await the news of atheist octuplets.)

(Thanks to Rebecca for the link!)

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Jacob

I live in Raleigh and saw the article in the N&O. It was really exciting to hear news about other atheists in the area since the south often seems so overwhelmingly christian.
Dale McGowan

All the positive press lately has me woozy and confused…
MaleficVTwin

Technically, Sulemans’ octuplets will be atheists until she indoctrinates them…….
debg

I don’t suppose anyone knows if there’s an atheist group for parents (or for anyone at all for that matter) in Wyoming? I would love to share ideas with local non-believers, but aside from one Darwin Fish on a car bumper (and I was mighty tempted to chase that car down), I might as well be alone.
Amy

debg – The Raleigh PBB group formed out of a larger Raleigh/Durham Atheists group that originated on Meetup.com. You should try checking there first. If there’s not a local group you can start one easily on the website.
Robyn

Dude, there are other atheists in North Carolina?? SCORE.
Too bad they’re in Raleigh. And I’m not a parent.
MrsRefney

We visited Raleigh in April, with the intention of scouting the area for a possible move next year.

Add another check mark to the “pro” column!!! 🙂
debg

Amy, thanks, I’ll check it out!
JohnFrost

Representing for NC, woot!

I’m a parent of two in Greensboro–unfortunately, I haven’t been able to make our meetups here, but I understand it’s growing, and there are several parents, too.
Michael

While I’m not a parent, I live in Chapel Hill and work in Raleigh, and I am a member of the Triangle Atheist Meetup and the Triangle Skeptics Meetup. Maybe we’ll get some more members as a result of the exposure in the N&O. The atheists group is already pretty large.