My summer at atheist camp
When I tell people that last summer I volunteered at an American summer camp designed for the children of atheists, agnostics and other non-believers, I get very mixed reactions. Some even react as if I were trying to abolish religion, brainwashing children with my 'liberal agenda', or force communism on the innocent little ones. So, now that Camp Quest is due to arrive in the UK in 2009, I feel I should set the record straight...read article
Fun Things To Do In Church
1. Pull aside an unruly child in a preschool Sunday School class and say: "If you're bad in here, you'll go to Hell."
2. A week beforehand, find a member of ACT-UP. Tell him the scheduled sermon is entitled "Why God Sent AIDS to Punish Homosexuals".
3. Put stray dogs in coat closets.
4. Un-tune the piano.
5. Replace the pianist's sheet music with "Stairway to Heaven".
6. Going through all the hymnals, mark song 666.
7. Find an empty seat, and ask the person next to it: "Is this seat SAVED?"
8. Toss around a giant beach ball before service, like at Grateful Dead concerts.
read the rest
2. A week beforehand, find a member of ACT-UP. Tell him the scheduled sermon is entitled "Why God Sent AIDS to Punish Homosexuals".
3. Put stray dogs in coat closets.
4. Un-tune the piano.
5. Replace the pianist's sheet music with "Stairway to Heaven".
6. Going through all the hymnals, mark song 666.
7. Find an empty seat, and ask the person next to it: "Is this seat SAVED?"
8. Toss around a giant beach ball before service, like at Grateful Dead concerts.
read the rest
Three Crucial Things to Know Before Challenging An Atheist’s Unbelief
propose that there are three categories of atheists:
Natural Atheists: Those brought up by atheist parents who never experienced the conflict between religion and rationality.
Apathetic Atheists: Those whose faith was not particularly strong and who, without a compelling drive to believe or not believe, defaulted to atheism - becoming an atheist involved very little internal debate and conflict.
Dissonant Atheists: Those who grew up with belief but who were overwhelmingly torn up over the incompatibility between faith and rationality. These people sought one thing - to rid themselves of the terrible cognitive dissonance cat #1 and #2 atheists are spared from.
I’m here to talk about category #3 atheists because, well, I fall in that grouping...read article
Natural Atheists: Those brought up by atheist parents who never experienced the conflict between religion and rationality.
Apathetic Atheists: Those whose faith was not particularly strong and who, without a compelling drive to believe or not believe, defaulted to atheism - becoming an atheist involved very little internal debate and conflict.
Dissonant Atheists: Those who grew up with belief but who were overwhelmingly torn up over the incompatibility between faith and rationality. These people sought one thing - to rid themselves of the terrible cognitive dissonance cat #1 and #2 atheists are spared from.
I’m here to talk about category #3 atheists because, well, I fall in that grouping...read article
Thor worshipper sues prison authorities
IN the very unlikely event of us ever feeling the need to worship a god, we could do a lot worse than choosing the Nordic deity, Thor.
Unlike the bad-tempered, psychotic old God of the Jews, Christians and Muslims, Thor – for all his antics with his mighty, magic hammer, Mjolnir – seems to have been an amiable sort of fella, who would never dream of visiting floods or pestilence upon innocent folk.
What’s more, he is so often portrayed as virile young hunk, not a grumpy, dysfunctional old git.
Nevertheless, we can understand why the authorities at the Utah Department of Corrections might be a tad nervous about allowing Michael Polk to worship Thor while in prison...read article
Unlike the bad-tempered, psychotic old God of the Jews, Christians and Muslims, Thor – for all his antics with his mighty, magic hammer, Mjolnir – seems to have been an amiable sort of fella, who would never dream of visiting floods or pestilence upon innocent folk.
What’s more, he is so often portrayed as virile young hunk, not a grumpy, dysfunctional old git.
Nevertheless, we can understand why the authorities at the Utah Department of Corrections might be a tad nervous about allowing Michael Polk to worship Thor while in prison...read article
10 Morals Atheism Gives Me
I would argue that my lack of a belief in God makes me a more moral person than someone who is religious. My moral choices aren’t made out of fear of eternal punishment. Just as I don’t have a reason to have “good” morals, I don’t have an excuse for bad ones, either...read article
Pete Stark
March 14, 2007
U.S. Rep. Pete Stark is probably not the first non-believer in the House — he’s just the first to admit it.
A milestone in American politics was reached this week when U.S. Rep. Pete Stark (D-Calif.) stated that he has no belief in a supreme being.
Stark is the highest-ranking public official to come out of the closet as a non-believer. His emergence came about after the Secular Coalition for America, a Washington group that lobbies on behalf of non-religious Americans, sponsored a contest to find elected officials who openly hold no belief in God...read article
U.S. Rep. Pete Stark is probably not the first non-believer in the House — he’s just the first to admit it.
A milestone in American politics was reached this week when U.S. Rep. Pete Stark (D-Calif.) stated that he has no belief in a supreme being.
Stark is the highest-ranking public official to come out of the closet as a non-believer. His emergence came about after the Secular Coalition for America, a Washington group that lobbies on behalf of non-religious Americans, sponsored a contest to find elected officials who openly hold no belief in God...read article
Students to be taught there's no God
VICTORIAN state primary school students will soon be able to take religious education classes which teach there is no evidence God exists.
The Humanist Society of Victoria has developed a curriculum for primary pupils that the state government accreditation body says it intends to approve, The Sunday Age newspaper reported.
Accredited volunteers will be able to teach their philosophy in the class time allotted for religious instruction, the newspaper said.
As with lessons delivered by faith groups, parents will be able to request that their children do not participate...read article
The Humanist Society of Victoria has developed a curriculum for primary pupils that the state government accreditation body says it intends to approve, The Sunday Age newspaper reported.
Accredited volunteers will be able to teach their philosophy in the class time allotted for religious instruction, the newspaper said.
As with lessons delivered by faith groups, parents will be able to request that their children do not participate...read article
Mental Disorders Theory, Parents’ Genes in Competition
Two scientists, drawing on their own powers of observation and a creative reading of recent genetic findings, have published a sweeping theory of brain development that would change the way mental disorders like autism and schizophrenia are understood.
The theory emerged in part from thinking about events other than mutations that can change gene behavior. And it suggests entirely new avenues of research, which, even if they prove the theory to be flawed, are likely to provide new insights into the biology of mental disease...read article
The theory emerged in part from thinking about events other than mutations that can change gene behavior. And it suggests entirely new avenues of research, which, even if they prove the theory to be flawed, are likely to provide new insights into the biology of mental disease...read article
God's Total Quality Management Questionnaire
God would like to thank you for your belief and patronage. In order to better serve your needs, He asks that you take a few moments to answer the following questions. Please keep in mind that your responses will be kept completely confidential, and that you need not disclose your name or address unless you prefer a direct response to comments or suggestions...read survey
Proofs for the Existence of God
Spoonbot has learned that some atheists don’t believe in God! How ludicrous. While there are an almost infinite number of proofs of the existence of God (in fact, the sheer number of proofs of the existence of God could be taken as, itself, an absolute proof of the existence of God) it wouldn’t hurt to put a couple more out there, to help some of these non-believing atheists to become better people...read article
The God Simulator
You are eternal, omnipotent God. For the past boring eternity, You have been sitting around in darkness twiddling Your thumbs wondering what the hell You are supposed to be doing and pondering where You came from and what Your purpose is and why You look like an angry old white man. Suddenly, You are hit with the desire to do something...Play
Group plans to sue city over removal of controversial billboard
RANCHO CUCAMONGA - A Wisconsin group advocating the separation of church and state plans to sue the city for playing a role in the demise of a billboard on Archibald Avenue and Foothill Boulevard.
A billboard with the message "Imagine No Religion" by the Freedom From Religion Foundation was taken down by sign company General Outdoor less than a week after it went up. The move came after the city told the sign company it received 90 calls of complaint against the sign...read article
A billboard with the message "Imagine No Religion" by the Freedom From Religion Foundation was taken down by sign company General Outdoor less than a week after it went up. The move came after the city told the sign company it received 90 calls of complaint against the sign...read article
5 TV Shows that Predicted the Future
Sitting around watching television might not be as useless as you think. Certain shows have been remarkably accurate in their forecasts of the future. The list suggests that British TV producers are far more prophetic than their American counterparts. But that’s OK; when someone invents Warp Drive, I’ll revise the list....read article
Top 10 Arguments That Can’t Be Won
Since the time of fire, man has had arguments – rare or well done? Of course, arguments depend on your point of view, or in the case of husbands and wives, what the wife thinks. Some arguments are never-ending. Over the centuries, there have been some doozies that have kept philosophy students and teachers debating.
To be included on this list of Arguments That Can’t Be Won, the argument must have no clear answer that cannot be countered with another opposing view....read the article
To be included on this list of Arguments That Can’t Be Won, the argument must have no clear answer that cannot be countered with another opposing view....read the article
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