On Channel Four (in Britain), a new reality show will be running over the next three Sundays: Make Me a Christian follows the three-week journey of thirteen non-Christians who also include a witch, a Muslim, an unmarried couple with a child on the way, and a family of six, as they get to grips with Christianity through a number of Bible studies and mentoring from an ecumenical team of church leaders. … The series documents the changes that occur within… Read more
Of the privately funded trips made by White House aides since 2006, guess who picked up nearly a quarter of the tab? “Churches and other religious entities.” The review of government records, undertaken by The Hill, found at least 24 trips for staff members to President Bush were paid for by churches or other religious groups. Faith-based organizations paid for the most travel in the time period, followed by universities and think tanks, which paid for 15 trips each. Groups… Read more
Oh boy. A Christian preacher starts saying a Muslim woman is ignorant. He later says “Mohammad was a pedophile.” A Muslim girl punches him back. She then adds, “Don’t talk about my prophet! I’ll kill you!” … From what I can tell, the video is in favor of the preacher, as it tries to show that Islam is not a religion of peace. (Then again, Christian fundamentalists have no shortage of instances in which they’ve killed on behalf of their… Read more
According to Rochelle Weiss, not so much. Does a good righteous person steal or order others to steal for him? Jesus did. In Matthew 21:1–3, it states that Jesus ordered some of his followers to steal for him: They were now nearing Jerusalem; and when they reached Bethphage at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples with these instructions: “Go to the village opposite, where you will at once find a donkey tethered with her foal beside her; untie… Read more
This Albert Sweigart fellow has a point. And I like the mockup video towards the beginning 🙂 Read more
Back in September, Nebraska State Senator Ernie Chambers (one of the few openly atheistic elected officials in America) was in the news because he was suing God: Why was he doing this? To show (in his words) “that anyone can sue anyone including God. It’s an object lesson too. It demonstrates that the mere filing of a lawsuit doesn’t guarantee a win.” Chambers appeared in court on Tuesday, where a judge “took the case under advisement.” “He may reach a… Read more
Ashley Paramore holds up a banner for the Omnipresent Atheists group in Columbus, Ohio: Any banner with Crocoduck action must be, by definition, awesome. Read more
If you’re not already a member of the American Humanist Association, here’s something you definitely want to take advantage of. The AHA is now offering web-only free membership: Online-Only members receive exclusive access to the Humanist Online and Free Mind Online (coming soon), in addition to up-to-the-minute news on AHA activities and programs. The process is unfortunately not the simplest in the world (they’re working on fixing that), but here’s what you have to do: Go here. Click on Free… Read more
Sarah Braasch, a summer legal intern for the Freedom From Religion Foundation, recently wrote about her experience leaving her faith — she used to be a Jehovah’s Witness. Thankfully, she’s not anymore. This is really a disturbing story: I lived in a constant state of terror as a child. Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that Satan the Devil and his demon hordes are real. They espouse a near hysterical fear of demons, even though this is not always as evident in their… Read more