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.
The article starts out pretty typical… [Ezekiel] Stoddard said he was motivated to become a minister after God spoke to him in a dream and told him to read Psalm 23. “God gave me that particular scripture because a lot of people, they try to draw you away from the lord, trying to get you on the wrong path,” he said. So now he’s been ordained as a pastor. Just one thing: he’s 11-you’ve-got-to-be-kidding-me-years-old: video platformvideo managementvideo solutionsvideo player “A… Read more
The House of Representatives held a hearing on Wednesday regarding “The American Muslim Response to Hearings on Radicalization within their Community.” It’s basically a witch-hunt against Muslims, suggesting there are many radicals out there hell-bent on destroying America and they have the support of the wider Muslim community. Of course, we know there are terrorists out there who are Muslim, but to suggest the problem lies with Islam and not the people who distort the faith to their own advantage… Read more
There’s a glowing profile of Secular Coalition for America founder Herb Silverman at Tablet Magazine. He’s the author of the just-released book Candidate Without a Prayer, which (among other things) documents the time he ran for Governor of South Carolina: In 1989, Silverman learned that the South Carolina Constitution prohibited anyone who “denied the existence of the Supreme Being” from running for public office. Silverman had to pick up the gauntlet. It was in his nature. He was 47, unmarried,… Read more
Have you seen that awful video of bus monitor Karen Klein being mercilessly mocked by a group of middle school thugs? Karen Gushta of Truth in Action Ministries knows why that bullying occurred: Because those kids didn’t have enough Jesus in their lives: [Gushta] believes this cultural demise began when prayer was taken out of public schools. “Since that time, the character of our children has gone into a downward spiral,” she laments, “and that’s why I view this as… Read more
We know churches are tax-exempt. To the tune of $71,000,000,000 nationally. That exemption is contingent in part on the fact that they stay out of politics. They’re not allowed to endorse candidates. So what happens when a pastor tells his congregation to vote for Mitt Romney? What happens when many, many, many pastors do it all at once? That’s what’s been happening for years now as part of “Pulpit Freedom Sunday” (taking place this year on October 7th): Pastor Jim… Read more