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.
Our latest podcast guest is Eric, a writer currently living in Chicago. He was raised in California in the Worldwide Church of God, a Christian organization that is now known as Grace Communion International and has been considered by many to be a cult. Jessica spoke with him about his upbringing in the church, how it affected his childhood, and how he ultimately left it all behind. (We apologize for the sound quality in this episode! The audio equipment wasn’t working properly so we had to resort to alternate means.) Read more
As much as I dislike church-sponsored mission trips, especially short-term ones that don’t really help people in developing countries (but make for a great photo-op), I have to admire the way some Christians are willing to go overseas in order to help people they’ve never met. Even if proselytizing is included in the mix, those trips can make a big difference. Conor Robinson wanted to create an atheist version of a mission trip — minus the proselytizing — and that’s why he began the Humanist Service Corps, a project of Foundation Beyond Belief. He’s currently leading a team in Ghana for his second stint overseas, and he’s looking for team members to join him beginning this summer. He was kind enough to answer my questions about his work. Read more
Back in March, I posted about how Faith Christian Church, which has operated on the campus of the University of Arizona for decades now, was essentially a criminal-led cult. That was according to 30 former members and employees (and their parents) who said it took a long time to get over what happened to them. Read more
