Hemant Mehta is the founder and editor of FriendlyAtheist.com, a YouTube creator, and podcast co-host. He is a former National Board Certified math teacher in the suburbs of Chicago. He has appeared on CNN and FOX News and served on the board of directors for Foundation Beyond Belief and the Secular Student Alliance. He has written multiple books, including I Sold My Soul on eBay and The Young Atheist's Survival Guide. He also edited the book Queer Disbelief.
I post this article once a month. Thanks for your support! … Over the past couple of years, what began as a personal blog has turned into a hub with several contributors and multiple posts per day. As always, I’d like to continue expanding the reach of this site. That entails bringing on additional contributors with different voices, including more guest posts from people who can offer interesting and different perspectives, creating more YouTube videos, and making the podcasts sound more professional. In order to facilitate all of this, I’ve created a page at Patreon. (You can now see on that page a list of things I’ve been able to do thanks to your contributions.) Read more
A lot of Mormons don’t drink Coca-Cola — or any other caffeinated beverages — because they believe it’s forbidden under their faith. But NPR recently spoke with a Mormon historian to figure out why that’s the case. Is soda really banned? If so, what’s the rationale? What they point out is that no such ban actually exists. And it’s fascinating to see why many Mormons think there’s one in effect, and why that belief still persists: Read more
Chris Shelton spent 27 years in the Church of Scientology before finally coming to his senses and leaving. It’s been three years now since he left and he’s doing everything he can to make sure no one else makes the same mistake. His new book detailing his experience within the organization is called Scientology: A to Xenu: An Insider’s Guide to What Scientology is All About: In the excerpt below, Shelton talks about what drew him to the Church in the first place: Read more
It was January 7 last year when radical Muslims barged into the Charlie Hebdo headquarters in Paris and killed twelve people. This week, as one year passes since that awful day, the satirical publication is marking the tragedy with a special cover. It features a God-like figure armed with a weapon. The headline roughly translates to, “One year later: The assassin is still at large.” Read more
