Michael Heath, Executive Director of the Christian Civil League of Maine, knows exactly who to blame for our current financial crisis. The gays. Glad we’ve straightened that one out. (Pun intended.) (Thanks to Greta Christina for the link!) Read more
Americans United for Separation of Church and State is already filing complaints for the IRS to investigate churches whose pastors participated in Pulpit Freedom Sunday — endorsing a presidential candidate and jeopardizing their church’s tax-exempt status. “These pastors flagrantly violated the law and now must deal with the consequences,” said the Rev. Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United. Continued Lynn, “This is one of the most appalling Religious Right gambits I’ve ever seen. Church leaders are supposed to… Read more
Here’s a story that deserves a little more attention. On Friday night in Dayton, Ohio, a “chemical irritant” was sprayed into the Islamic Society of Greater Dayton mosque — into a room filled with mothers and their children (some of whom were infants) gathering for Ramadan prayers. The 300 or so inside were celebrating the last 10 days of Ramadan with dinner and a prayer session, but the prayer session was interrupted so those suffering from tearing, coughing and shortness… Read more
Over the weekend, I spoke about my book and atheism at a monthly meeting for Chicago Mensa members — Mensa being the society for people with high IQs. When I arrived, cameras followed me into the meeting room… that was a bit weird, I thought. Why were cameramen there? I found out that 60 Minutes was doing a segment on the organization and they were filming local group meetings. Since I happened to be speaking that night, they put a… Read more
***Update***: Matt issued a retraction on his press release: “I have to retract my earlier press release about cartooning for Free Inquiry. My future contributions to the magazine were not as certain as I thought and they have informed me that I am not their regular cartoonist. My future with the magazine is uncertain at this point. I take blame for any confusion.” … Cartoonist Matt Bors has been tapped to draw cartoons for Free Inquiry magazine! He will be… Read more
This blog’s favorite Senate candidate — Kay Hagan (Democrat) from North Carolina — has now pulled ahead of incumbent Elizabeth Dole in recent polls! You can help keep the momentum going by donating to Hagan’s campaign by clicking here. Read more
Last week, USA Today ran an article about how some Christians continue to tithe (give 10% of their income to church) despite not being able to pay their mortgage: “I’ve had home owners who face foreclosure sitting in front of me saying, ‘I’ll do anything, anything to keep my home,” said Ozell Brooklin, director of Acorn Housing in Atlanta, a nonprofit which offers foreclosure counseling. “But after we’ve gone through their monthly expenses and the only thing left to cut… Read more
***Update***: The site will be ready to take orders next week. I’ll repost this when the products are available! Sorry for any confusion. … Last year, I had a chance to meet Kate Miller. She is the woman behind Charlie’s Playhouse, a website which sells Darwin-friendly toys for children. After several months of preparation, the online store is finally ready for the public! When I met her, she had just rolled out a prototype “timeline of evolution” for all to… Read more
It is Pulpit Freedom Sunday — a day for pastors to break the law and endorse a candidate. They’re welcome to do so, of course. I’ll be thrilled to see them paying taxes. If they want to remain tax-exempt, though, they should refrain from doing so. And other Christian pastors ought to condemn their colleagues who are trying to unite their religion with the government. This video from the Interfaith Alliance documents the shaky wall of separation between church and… Read more
