Last week, I mentioned newly-atheist parents who have still-religious children. Reader Jon informed me of a slightly different situation his girlfriend is experiencing: She is 47 and has been an atheist her whole life. Her daughter is 26 and is a born again Christian. She constantly pressures her mother to convert. There is no chance of this happening, but the continuing efforts put a strain on their relationship at times. The daughter has recently taken to involving the grandkids in… Read more
Calgary Bishop Fred Henry isn’t a fan of the atheist bus ads he sees in his city. He’s in favor of the rebuttal advertising that’s now on Calgary buses (“God cares for everyone… even for those who say He doesn’t exist!”) but I think this is the money quotation: “If you can say that God probably doesn’t exist, go ahead, relax and enjoy yourself, why can’t I say abortion kills a child? Give me an answer. So far I haven’t… Read more
I watched this last night. It was painful. Nightline brought together four people — all of whom believe in the supernatural — to debate the existence of Satan. Because apparently, that needs to be debated… Here’s all you need to know about the event: Representing the “rational” side was… Deepak Chopra. I’d say everybody lost. It would’ve been nice to have atheist representation on the show, but I suppose Nightline wanted more of an argument than, “Satan?! Really? Are you… Read more
9-year-old Paje Wiklund was playing baseball when she was swallowed by a sink hole — an old cesspool — on her way to first base. She would’ve fallen 16 to 20 more feet… but she happened to land on an old pipe. After that, her friends were able to rescue her. How is the family responding? … family members said they are grateful the pipe was there because they shudder to think how they would’ve rescued their child otherwise. “She’s… Read more
At least the billboards are being put up in a place that really needs them, what with the Christianists trying to force their ridiculous ideas into the science curriculum in that state. The billboards, much like the bus ads, are not there to convert passers-by. Rather, the hope is to reach the atheists who think they’re alone. “We’re not trying to attract people who believe in God. We’re not trying to change their minds,” said Terry McDonald with Metroplex Atheists…. Read more
One decision all college atheist groups need to make is which category of student organizations they’d like to be included in: Religious? Academic? Other? Penn State’s Atheist/Agnostic Association (PSAAA) is listed as a Religious group in the campus directory. As a result, they were allowed to sign up for office space in the Pasquerilla Spiritual Center in campus. That makes a whole lot of religious people feel uneasy: “They have every bit of a right to express how they feel… Read more
This doesn’t seem like it should be much of an argument. If your campus group — atheist, religious, whatever — receives funding from your public school via activities fees, then you cannot ban certain people from joining the group. If you want to ban people, then you won’t be recognized as an official campus organization. Hastings College of Law in San Francisco is home to a (currently unofficial) chapter of the Christian Legal Society. That group wanted access to student… Read more
I’ve been fortunate that when churches have invited me to speak with the pastor on stage, they’ve stuck to the script when it comes to the program. They talked about what they told me they wanted to talk about. Atheist Jennifer wasn’t as lucky. She was invited — along with her agnostic friend — to participate in a panel on religion for a Communicating Across Cultures class at her college. It wasn’t supposed to be complicated, she thought — she… Read more
We’ve seen people try the eye-for-an-eye approach to justice — literally. But it doesn’t work, says a new study from Bonn and Maastricht Universities in Germany and the Netherlands. … vindictiveness is not a maxim to be recommended. Anyone who prefers to act according to the Old Testament motto of “An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth” has on average less friends — and is clearly less than satisfied with his or her life. Which book… Read more
I hate it when this happens. It’s hard enough to find local atheist groups that have entertaining, fun, enjoyable meetings. One of the best parts about those events, though, is having conversations about religion. You can’t always have those kinds of discussions at work and home. Personally, I like it when Christians come to these events. If they want to have a serious discussion about religion with a bunch of atheists, bring it on. Let’s have some fun and hash… Read more
