You guys have helped me with Interweb issues before… maybe you can help me here.
For whatever reason, this website doesn’t appear on the first page of Google when you search for my name. Or even when you search for “Friendly Atheist.”
What am I doing wrong…?
Thanks in advance.
Michael Heath, Executive Director of the Christian Civil League of Maine, knows exactly who to blame for our current financial crisis.
Glad we’ve straightened that one out. (Pun intended.)
(Thanks to Greta Christina for the link!)
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 tend to Americans’ spiritual needs, not behave like partisan political hacks. I urge the IRS to act swiftly in these cases.”
Six churches — whose pastors all endorsed (surprise, surprise) John McCain and Sarah Palin — are mentioned specifically. Here are some of them:
Warroad Community Church, Warroad, Minn.: Pastor Gus Booth told his congregation, “We need to vote for the most righteous of candidates. And it doesn’t take a brain surgeon to figure that out. The most righteous is John McCain.”
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Calvary Chapel, Philadelphia, Pa.: The Rev. Francis Pultro told the congregation, “As Christians it’s clear we should vote for John McCain. He is the only candidate I believe a Christian can vote for.”
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First Southern Baptist Church, Buena Park, Calif.: The Rev. Wiley Drake said, “I am angry because the government and the IRS and some Christians have taken away the rights of pastors. I have a right to endorse anybody I doggone well please. And if they don’t like that, too bad….According to my Bible and in my opinion, there is no way in the world a Christian can vote for Barack Hussein Obama. Mr. Obama is not standing up for anything that is tradition in America.”
College students aren’t taking this lightly.
At Iowa State University, both atheist and religious students joined forces to speak out against this violation of church/state separation.
Members of the ISU Atheists and Agnostics Society and representatives of Collegiate United Methodist Church & Wesley Foundation set up booths outside the Parks Library on Friday to voice their disapproval of Pulpit Freedom Sunday.
Anastasia Bodnar, graduate student in agronomy, said she was glad the Atheists and Agnostic Society could work with the Wesley Foundation to speak out against Pulpit Freedom Sunday. She said it is clearly in opposition to laws concerning the separation of church and state, and if tolerated, would be harmful to both institutions.
“That’s not what churches are for,” Bodnar said. “They’re for spirituality and for helping people find their way in life, and charity, and all of these really good things. To take that and dirty it with our current political system, it’s really blasphemous.”
That’s how it should be. Endorsing candidates from the pulpit is bad for all churches. Christians ought to be as upset about Sunday’s activities as atheists.
Do these participating pastors have so little faith in their own congregations that they don’t trust them to vote of their own accord?
(Thanks to Matthew for the link!)
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 of breath could receive treatment.
[Dayton fire District Chief Vince] Wiley said an adult and juvenile were taken to area hospitals and others had their eyes or faces washed on the scene. He did not know how many people were treated at the scene.
This happened the same weekend that a movie called Obsession: Radical Islam’s War Against the West was being shown to religious groups in the area. No connection between the movie and the attack has been made, though the fear-of-Islam card may have been played.
Obviously, there’s a difference between attacking peoples’ ideas and the people themselves. This crosses the line.
The mosque’s secretary, Ismail Gula, said that “he had received many calls of support from Christians and Jews over the weekend.”
As Humanists, we ought to send our support as well.
The number for the mosque is (937) 228-1503 and their email address is isgd@hotmail.com.
Rev. Dr. C. Welton Gaddy, President of Interfaith Alliance, had this to say:
“Interfaith Alliance calls on its members and friends, and all Americans who believe in religious freedom and all those who value religious liberty and equality to send a strong, unified message that we will not tolerate bias motivated violence of any kind. We need to let the Muslim community of Dayton, and across America, know that we stand with them against terrorism and that we condemn this senseless act of violence and the propaganda that helped to fuel it.”
(Thanks to Lyz for the link!)
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 mic on me and taped my talk and the Q&A afterwards.
After it was over, I pulled the mic off my shirt and wrapped it up as I spoke to other people who had questions. One of the cameraman came by and asked if he could have his mic back. I handed to him.
Then he stared at me for a second.
“Do you have the clip?”
“What clip?” I asked.
“The clip that the mic was resting inside…”
“Umm… no?”
He started patting me down. That was awkward. So I started patting myself down. No luck. We looked on the floor like the clip was a contact lens. Nothing. I went to the bathroom so I could untuck my shirt and see if it had fallen off somewhere on my person… nope.
Eventually, I had to tell the cameraman I didn’t have his clip.
He looked angry. Very angry.
When I began my talk, I thought it would be disappointing if the footage didn’t air at all. Now that it is over, I’m afraid that if/when this segment airs, they’re going to show some horribly embarrassing footage of me instead as an act of revenge. Damn.
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Speaking of 60 Minutes, did you know commentator Andy Rooney is an atheist?
He spoke to Duncan Crary of the Humanist Network News and the piece aired on HNN’s latest podcast (MP3).
It’s a very brief segment that begins at the 1:35 mark.
***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.”
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Cartoonist Matt Bors has been tapped to draw cartoons for Free Inquiry magazine! He will be taking the place of long-time contributor Don Addis.
While Addis is fantastic, Bors is much more current and Internet-friendly.
The October/November issue has hit newsstands and features four cartoons by Bors that deal with papal indulgences, why god allows suffering, Barack Obama’s religiosity and Blue Laws that prevent liquor from being sold on Sunday. (A pressing concern for the secular lush.) Bors also illustrated the cover.
“Religious issues are some of my favorite to tackle,” says Bors. “Editorial cartooning is about bringing the powerful down a notch through humor. What better target than the creator of the universe and his Earth-bound surrogates?”
“I’m proud to be joining a magazine that looks at society’s most cherished beliefs with a skeptical eye. It is the approach I strive for in my cartoons.”
Here’s just one example of Bors’ fantastic work:
(via Bors Blog)
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.
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 is their tithe, they say ‘I guess this home is not for me’ and they walk away,” he said.
I can understand religious people putting God before their own comforts. To them, tithing is not a minor expense; it’s the most important thing they can do with their income.
But if you were their pastor, wouldn’t it be prudent of you to refuse their money? Why not tell them to take care of themselves and their family before the church?
Or if you do give money to church but face financial difficulties, why not give less money but volunteer more of your time?
Even suggesting this may backfire:
“You can suggest that maybe they can pay their tithe in kind, through volunteer work,” said Bathsheba Wyatt-Draper, a counselor at nonprofit lender NHS Chicago. “But if they react badly, you have to let it go. Period.”
Giving the money when you don’t have it seems counterproductive to me.
If you take care of yourself and your family, you’ll probably be able to give much more to the church in the future.
By putting God first — regardless of the situation — the religious people are thinking short-term only. That’s not going to help them or their church.
Church leaders who know parishioners in these dire situations, but continue to take their tithed income, are just taking advantage of these people.
(via Get Rich Slowly. Thanks to Lexi for the link!)
***Update***: The site will be ready to take orders next week. I’ll repost this when the products are available! Sorry for any confusion.
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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 see. Instantly, atheists of all ages were checking out this amazing learning tool (click below for larger image):
Here’s a closeup:
How awesome is that?!
That timeline (also in poster form) is now available at her new website. While you’re there, check out the other excellent items she created.
The website is still not 100% finished, but it’s getting there. It should be good to go shortly.
It would be great to see a business like this grow — a place for atheist parents to buy intellectual toys for their kids.
I love it!
I Sold My Soul on eBay
Jim and Casper Go To Church
