This is one of the cases that pushes so many of us from being mere atheists into becoming angry atheists. It’s a case of unadulterated religious abuse — the kind that wouldn’t be possible if we taught our children critical thinking instead of unsubstantiated faith and unthinking respect for authority. This is the kind of thing that lends credence to the argument that “religion poisons everything.” Like so many others before him, and doubtless many more to come, Belfast priest James Martin Donaghy has been convicted of sexual assault — a total of seventeen offenses against three boys, though he has since admitted to the existence of other victims. These were boys he found and groomed through his work as a parish priest. Tragic, infuriating, but hardly unusual. The devil, you might say, is in the details. [Click headline for more…] Read more
For some reason, Andrew Brown of The Guardian is rehashing that decade-old question with Daniel Dennett: Do the New Atheists bring any new ideas to the table? (For the sake of this post, I’ll use the “New Atheist” terminology, even though it’s a media creation rather than anything substantive.) The short answer, of course, is no. [Click headline for more…] Read more
There’s a revolution coming — led by Christian Americans who are furious that the Supreme Court has redefined their marriages. Or so says Mat Staver, the chairman of notoriously anti-gay Liberty Counsel. It comes as no surprise that Staver has long warned about the apocalyptic repercussions of repealing the Defense of Marriage Act and Proposition 8. Now that the Supreme Court has all but abolished both anti-gay laws, Staver won’t keep quiet. Here’s the video, courtesy of Right Wing Watch: [Click headline for more…] Read more
Pat Robertson, who I’m sure is an avid Facebook user, answers the question we’re all wondering: Is it a sin to “Like” a picture of a same-sex couple? Answer: What do you think? [Click headline for more…] Read more
This is an entertaining 25-minute compilation of Bill Maher’s “New Rules” concerning religion: (via Why Evolution is True) Read more
Last week, the Christian chain Hobby Lobby ran an ad (PDF) in dozens of newspapers proclaiming the Christian heritage of our country, with “godly” quotations from the Founding Fathers, the Supreme Court, and Congress. (They’ve been doing this for years.) In response, the Freedom From Religion Foundation paid for several full-page ads of their own, celebrating our “godless Constitution” and how our Founding Fathers actually supported separation of church and state: … Everything seemed to go smoothly… except at the Daily Oklahoman, where FFRF says their ad was rejected. [Click headline for more…] Read more
Note: Letter writers’ names are changed to protect their privacy. Dear Richard, My name is Kaitlyn. I’m 15 years old and have been an atheist since I was 10. I’m fortunate enough to have parents that are very open minded and irreligious. I happen to live in a small, extremely religious town. (There are 19 Christian churches here, and we just reached a population of 2,000 last spring) I’ve become somewhat notorious for my atheism because I’m really open about it. Most people have gotten used to me, I guess. I’m not targeted much anymore. However, this is not so for my family. [Click headline for more…] Read more
That was quick! The video of the Oak Hills Church service in which I discussed (with Pastor Randy Frazee) atheism, doubt, and what Christians are doing right and wrong is now online: Realization: If I had dropped down on my knees and accepted Christ as my Savior, this thing would be going *so* viral right now. Oh well. Read more
***Update***: A video of the service is now online! … I spent the past couple of days at Oak Hills Church in San Antonio, Texas, talking to about 8,000 Christians about what they do right and wrong, at least when it comes to their interactions with atheists. There aren’t a lot of megachurch pastors (or congregations) who would be okay with that sort of thing, so hats off to Pastor Randy Frazee and his staff for making it happen and making me feel really comfortable there. Video of the event will be available within a couple of days and I’ll post something when it’s up. In the meantime, John Tedesco of the San Antonio Express-News was there for one of the services and his article accurately captures how things went: [Click headline for more…] Read more
Yesterday, I briefly highlighted three cases of ex-convicts who got jobs as Christian pastors. The trust of their flock was the only protective cloak they needed to rape and murder again; so rape and murder they did. In the case of Michigan pastor John D. White, who killed a young woman and is believed to have had sex with her dead body, the congregation that hired him knew he had a rap sheet full of violence. But White had embraced Jesus. No more was needed. His conversion and ordainment quelled all suspicion, worry, or second thought. An actual minister would never do anything truly bad, would he? Forgiveness is always available from God — damn the consequences. Christians think of redemption as a feature of their faith. But what if it’s a bug? To the Almighty, nothing is unforgivable. Let that sink in. Nothing. You can be a genocidal maniac who eats crushed-up infants on toast during snack time… and still go to heaven if you eventually repent. [Click headline for more…] Read more
