I did a bit of a double-take when I saw this press release hit my inbox: The Satanic Temple Offers Donation of Monument to Oklahoma State Capitol This is the group, you might recall, that performed a “Pink Mass” over the tombstone of Westboro Baptist Church founder Fred Phelps’ mother over the summer. So what were they up to now? The Satanic Temple, an established New York City-based religious organization, has offered to donate a public monument to Oklahoma’s Capitol Preservation Commission for display upon Oklahoma City’s capitol grounds. Described as an “homage” to Satan, the purpose of the monument is to complement and contrast the Ten Commandments monument that already resides on the North side of the building. The donation offer has been submitted and is currently awaiting the commission’s reply. When other government buildings have played host to religious displays, atheists have come in to place monuments of their own. This is really no different, so more power to them! What better way to convince public officials that they’re better off not allowing government buildings to become a religious free-for-all? That was basically the mindset of temple spokesperson Lucien Greaves: [According to Greaves], “by accepting our offer, the good people of Oklahoma City will have the opportunity to show that they espouse the basic freedoms spelled out in the Constitution. We imagine that the ACLU would also embrace such a response. Allowing us to donate a monument would show that the Oklahoma City Council does not discriminate, and both the religious and non-religious should be happy with such an outcome. Our mission is to bring people together by finding common sentiments that create solutions that everyone can appreciate and enjoy.” Sounds downright pleasant, really. As you can imagine, I had a lot of questions — about the proposed monument and Satanism in general — and Greaves was kind enough to answer them all: Read more
Rhode Island’s Governor Lincoln Chafee just can’t win. For the past two years, he called the blue spruce erected in the State House a “holiday tree” instead of a “Christmas tree.” He had good reason for it: … Chafee, an independent, said the term is in keeping with the state’s founding as a sanctuary of religious tolerance and pointed to the text of Rhode Island’s Royal Charter of 1663. “The charter, which for the first time in the world gave ‘full liberty in religious concernments.’ Those are the words. First time in the world. It happened right here in Rhode Island,” Chafee said. Chafee also said the State House is public building paid for by Rhode Islanders of all faiths. Way to not exclude non-religious citizens! But after years of taking a beating from conservative groups and Fox News Channel, I guess that whole “religious tolerance” bit is a thing of the past. Chafee has surrendered to the populists and is now calling it a “Christmas tree”: Read more
Perhaps in response to a lot of the stories about Christians who refuse to tip their servers because it’s Sunday or because they’re gay or because they feel it’s immoral, an anonymous person (or persons) is going around the country leaving incredible tips — leaving the identifier @TipsForJesus (which is thankfully not part of some pro-circumcision movement): The identifier takes you to an Instagram account documenting the donations. Read more
More than six months ago, a Nigerian man was found alive in a fully submerged shipwreck, three days after his boat went down. The story of Harrison Odjegba Okene is back in the news because now there’s footage of the incredible rescue. Read more
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In a new campaign ad for the 2014 elections, Sen. Mark Pryor (D-AR) makes a case for why he should be re-elected to his position. You see, he argues that his policy decisions and ability to pass legislation are–oh wait, I’m sorry, he doesn’t talk about any of that. He just tells everyone how much he loves the Bible. Read more
Todd Starnes, the Fox News commentator who frequently spins stories to raise the ire of fellow conservatives, has done it again with a tale about a Georgia elementary school that “confiscates Christmas cards.” Here’s Starnes’ version of the story: For as long as anyone can remember, teachers at Brooklet Elementary School have posted Christmas cards in the hallways outside their classrooms — until Monday. … When boys and girls returned from Thanksgiving break, they discovered that their teachers’ Christmas cards had been removed — under orders from the Georgia school’s administration. Robb Kicklighter’s wife is a third grade teacher at the school. He said many teachers are disgruntled by the school’s decision to confiscate the Christmas cards. “They took down the cards so the kids can’t see them,” he told me. “Some of the cards had the word ‘Christmas’ and some had Nativity scenes.” Assuming that the display of cards wasn’t just limited to those professing faith in Jesus, why would the display be a big deal? Answer: It’s not. Starnes’ story is pure spin. Read more
Steven Furtick, the pastor of Elevation Church in North Carolina, has been under fire recently because of church’s shady finances. In short, the church takes in tens of millions of dollars every year (tax-free, of course), pays Furtick an undisclosed salary decided by a “Board of Overseers” consisting of his celebrity pastor friends, and never bothers to tell the congregation where exactly all their money is going. (All volunteers and employees of the church have to sign a confidentiality agreement promising never to reveal the church’s finances.) Whatever Furtick’s making, though, it’s gotta be pretty sweet considering he just bought a $1,700,000 home: When a local news team started running stories about the church’s lack of transparency and Furtick’s own extravagant lifestyle, he responded by playing dumb, saying “it’s not that great of a house” and he didn’t understand why a helicopter was flying over it. Well, there’s a good reason for that: Read more
I’m losing track of all the atheist/Creationist billboards in Times Square, but the latest salvo in the mythical War on Christmas belongs to American Atheists. Today, they’re launching a 15-second digital billboard reminding viewers that even atheists can celebrate the holiday season. The main message reads: “Who needs Christ during Christmas? Nobody.” Read more
… then Americans United for Separation of Church and State would love to hear from you: If you work for Hobby Lobby, Conestoga Woods, Eden Foods or any other company that is challenging the contraceptive mandate and you’re worried about your ability to obtain contraception coverage, we want to hear from you. Your information will be kept strictly confidential: it won’t go to your employer or to the media. Your story stays with us. You can get in touch with them here. Read more
As Mrs. Betty Bowers explains, you would think Republicans would have a problem with history’s biggest freeloader, but they seem to embrace Him without a problem: Read more
