Leslie Salzillo, who blogs for Liberals Unite, was incredulous when she found this on a Facebook page for the Christian American Patriots Militia (already shared more than 500 times): I don’t have full access to the CAPM (closed) Facebook page yet, but the public part alone is similarly unsettling. This is from the group’s “about” text: Read more
It’s well-known to many, though possibly shocking to some, that President Ronald Reagan’s son, Ron Reagan, is a vocal atheist. He taped a radio ad currently airing on Randi Rhodes’ show that proclaims his godlessness and advocates for the Freedom From Religion Foundation: I’m Ron Reagan, an unabashed atheist, and I’m alarmed by the intrusions of religion into our secular government. That’s why I’m asking you to join the Freedom From Religion Foundation — the nation’s largest and most effective organization of atheists and agnostics, working to keep state and church separate. Phone 1-800-335-4021 or visit the Freedom From Religion Foundation at FFRF.ORG. Ron Reagan, lifelong atheist, not afraid of burning in hell. Read more
A rundown of the bigger charity drives in our community: The American Humanist Association’s Humanist Charities raised more than $25,000 in a single day: Volunteers from the Philippine Atheist & Agnostic Society (PATAS) — Cebu Chapter will be on Hilutungan Island in the town of Bantayan on Sunday, November 17, 2013 to pack and distribute boxes of food, water and supplies to Typhoon Yolanda/Haiyan victims. The island of Hilutungan is one of the most isolated in the Philippines and was heavily devastated by the typhoon. Based on information received by PATAS, relief goods have hardly reached the area because of its location. PATAS is targeting to distribute 600-700 packs of relief good to families on the island. Read more
Remember when Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia reminded all of us in an interview that he believes in the devil? Can we talk about your drafting process– [Leans in, stage-whispers.] I even believe in the Devil. You do? Of course! Yeah, he’s a real person. Hey, c’mon, that’s standard Catholic doctrine! Every Catholic believes that. Every Catholic believes this? There’s a wide variety of Catholics out there … If you are faithful to Catholic dogma, that is certainly a large part of it. … [The Devil] just got wilier. He got wilier. Isn’t it terribly frightening to believe in the Devil? You’re looking at me as though I’m weird. My God! Are you so out of touch with most of America, most of which believes in the Devil? I mean, Jesus Christ believed in the Devil! It’s in the Gospels! You travel in circles that are so, so removed from mainstream America that you are appalled that anybody would believe in the Devil! Most of mankind has believed in the Devil, for all of history. Many more intelligent people than you or me have believed in the Devil. At the time, I wrote that I was appalled that anyone, included conservative Catholics like Scalia, could hold that ridiculous belief: Read more
There must be a sale on billboard space in Sacramento, California, because the Sacramento chapter of the Freedom From Religion Foundation just purchased enough of it to put up 55 billboards over the next month as part of a massive publicity push. I’m almost positive that makes this the largest group of atheist billboards to ever go up at once. Each billboard features a local atheist (or family) along with a quotation of his/her choosing: “They are going up to let the fellow non-believers know they are not alone,” said FFRF Sacramento President Judy Saint of Roseville. There are so many billboards to choose from but here’s just a sampling of them: Read more
Less than a week ago, I posted about how Harlem, Georgia Police Chief Gary Jones was using the police department’s Facebook page to keep citizens informed of not only local crime sprees, safety advice, and upcoming classes, but also how much everyone should love Jesus: There were many more where those came from and the Freedom From Religion Foundation acted quickly, sending the department a letter warning them about how this was all very, very illegal. A lawsuit could be avoided if Jones simply stuck to using the department’s Facebook page for police-related matters and used his personal page to preach about Jesus. Looks like Jones had a fun conversation with his superiors, since this is what he posted on the police department’s page earlier today: Read more
The latest billboard campaign from American Atheists goes right to the heart of how we ought to respond to natural disasters: Do you pray and send Bibles? Or do you volunteer or send money? AA says, over the course of six billboards in central New Jersey going up today, that we should stop asking for supernatural help. It doesn’t do anything of value to help the situation: Read more
This is a guest post by Catherine Dunphy. Dunphy is the Executive Director of the Clergy Project. … I’ve thought quite a bit over the past two years about the concept of shunning in religious families. It’s been in the back of my mind for a long time, a consequence that I knew I’d eventually have to face when my mother discovered the Clergy Project. I knew that the stakes would be high and that my mother’s religious beliefs would ultimately be an obstacle to our relationship. On many occasions over the past decade, I have spoken briefly with her about my lack of faith. Though I never lied to her, I admit that I attempted to downplay my atheist activism. My efforts were to ensure transparency, but also to limit the details and frequency of these conversations so that we could carve out space where our relationship could thrive. It was, I had thought, a happy but uncomfortable truce. Unfortunately, this strategy came crashing down a few short weeks ago, just before my birthday. Read more
Earlier in November, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) held its annual fall meeting, after which it released a Special Message that has raised some a few eyebrows. Why? Well, it just might hold the key to letting the bishops make a graceful exit from the issue of reproductive health-care coverage. The message focuses specifically on the HHS Mandate that would require all employers — even Catholic ones, such as hospitals and universities — to provide health insurance that covers contraception, sterilization, and other examples of reproductive care the Church calls sinful. It’s not even surprising anymore to hear the bishops double down on what awesome work Catholic charities do, and how unfair it all is. But some commenters have picked up on a slight change in tone, so subtle it’s invisible unless you’re very, very good at picking out the nuances of the Church hierarchy’s political double-speak: Read more
There’s a famous image of Jesus on the crucifix called the “San Damiano Cross” that was painted in the 12th century. In 2001, the Shrine of St. Bernadette church in Albuquerque, New Mexico commissioned a version of the painting and the artist’s rendition was pretty true to the original. Turns out the parishioners weren’t pleased about that. See if you can guess why: Read more
