Today is the day Dan Brown’s newest book The Lost Symbol comes out. (Screw brilliant prose. I can’t wait to read it.) Brown did an interview with James Kaplan for Parade in which he discussed his religious beliefs. To no one’s surprise, he’s not very religious. But it’s always nice to hear someone say as much in public: Q: Are you religious? A: I was raised Episcopalian, and I was very religious as a kid. Then, in eighth or ninth… Read more
Yes, this sort of religiously-motivated brutality is still being taken seriously in parts of the world: Muslims who commit adultery in Indonesia’s Aceh province may be stoned to death under a controversial new sharia law passed by the local parliament on Monday. … The provincial government initially proposed the law but now says it rejects some of the clauses added by parliament and wants to make some further revisions. A new parliament will be sworn in next month which may… Read more
***Update***: Ignore the post below. The news source got it wrong: The original article confused the film’s distributor, Icon Distribution, with Mel Gibson owed Icon Productions. The companies use the exact same logo and indeed Icon Distribution was once owned by Gibson. It is no longer. We regret the error. … The Creation movie controversy just got weirder. First, producers could not find an American distributor. Now, there’s a bidding war for the film. Also, we have this interesting note:… Read more
A while back a man sued the New York Yankees because they wouldn’t let him go to the bathroom during the singing of “God Bless America.” Now, three teenagers are suing another baseball team — the minor league Newark (N.J.) Bears — because they were forced to leave the ballpark after not standing during the same song. The boys say their constitutional rights were violated when they were asked to leave Newark’s Bears and Eagles Riverfront Stadium in June by… Read more
I get all warm and fuzzy inside when I hear about brand new campus atheist groups forming. The University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill Secular Student Alliance has its first official meeting this Thursday night (September 17th) at 7:00 p.m. If you’re interested in church/state separation, dispelling rumors about non-religious people, and providing a safe haven for atheists on campus, check out the group! As an added bonus, they’re going to paint a giant chalk picture of His Noodliness… Read more
I’ve been reading a book called Write These Laws on Your Children: Inside the World of Conservative Christian Homeschooling (Beacon Press, August, 2009) by Robert Kunzman. The book is a look at six Christian families and how they homeschool their children. Not every family fits the stereotype I know I have in my mind. Some are impressive; others leave much to be desired. In the following passage, the author asks one father about the isolation his children face at home…. Read more
The United Coalition of Reason is one of the groups responsible for putting up atheist billboards and bus ads across the country. It’s not really a group in and of itself. It’s main purpose is to promote local atheist groups in the area. They want atheists to know there are other like-minded people out there and groups for them to join. Which group? It doesn’t matter. Whether you’re a Secular Jew or a Humanist or a capital-a Atheist is besides… Read more
As you may have heard, the Creation movie about Charles Darwin’s life (starring Paul Bettany and Jennifer Connelly) is having trouble finding a distributor. However, US distributors have resolutely passed on a film which will prove hugely divisive in a country where, according to a Gallup poll conducted in February, only 39 per cent of Americans believe in the theory of evolution. … Jeremy Thomas, the Oscar-winning producer of Creation, said he was astonished that such attitudes exist 150 years… Read more
If you live near Chicago (or are willing to make a trip), you’re invited to the greatest party *ever*! It takes place at Howl at the Moon, a dueling piano bar, on Friday, September 25th. I’ve been to this place before, and it’s awesome. If you haven’t been there, you’re in for a good time. Hopefully, you can bring along some of your friends with you! Here’s the deal if you can make it: Free cover if you get in… Read more
