Weekend Religion and Atheist Report

Tags

ancient, ark, arkansas, arrested, atheists, banned, bible, christian, christians, confession, dinesh d'souza, disciples, FFRF, football, fundamentalists, god particle, higgs boson, in god we trust, ISIS, jesus, lesbian, literalism, militants, pat robertson, pennsylvania, religious rights, rick santorum, same-sex, saudi arabia, schools, secularism, sentencing, sexuality, stephen hawking, teens, weddings, women, worship

Federal Prosecutors: Dinesh D’Souza’s Online Activity Proves He’s Not Sorry

Offering a chilling reminder to the world that the first rule of Twitter is to never tweet, federal prosecutors on Wednesday rejected conservative filmmaker and campaign finance fraudster Dinesh D’Souza’s plea for a reduced sentence. [Read more]

‘God Particle’ Could Destroy Universe, Says Stephen Hawking

God particle: The Higgs boson, frequently referred to as the ‘God particle’ over the objections of scientists, could usher in a quantum doomsday, says renowned physicist Stephen Hawking. [Read more]

Malaysian Imprisoned for Offensive Ramadan Comment on Facebook

An offensive comment on Facebook about the Muslim holy month of Ramadan and Hari Raya Aidilfitri, the feast of breaking the fast, has resulted in a Malaysian man being sent to prison. [Read more]

27 Christians in Saudi Arabia Arrested for Using House as a Church

Saudi authorities have swooped on a house in the eastern province city of Khafji, on the border with Kuwait, and arrested 27 people for using the premises as church last week. [Read more]

The Strange, Complex Story of Women and ISIS Militants

With their penchant for gruesome beheadings, it’s easy to believe ISIS militants capable of any monstrosity, including medieval-sounding brutality towards women. [Read more]

10 Signs You Take The Bible Too Literally

1. You laugh when you read about dinosaur fossils, because you know they are really God’s little inside joke to confuse atheists. [Read more]

Pat Robertson Gets to the Bottom of What Turns Teen Girls Lesbian

Televangelist Pat Robertson warned on Thursday that teens could be turned into lesbians if they are molested or if they watch “girl-on-girl” movies. [Read more]

Another Republican Candidate Implodes by Telling the Truth

This time in a televised local debate, in front of an audience of interested voters and party loyalists. A spectacular fail, and I’m not exaggerating. [Read more]

Are Religious Rights and Freedoms Being Trampled?

Some religious people complain that we are now witnessing a ‘clash of rights’. They suppose that in the hotelier and photography examples, we are, in effect, allowing gay rights to ‘trump’ religious rights. [Read more]

Why Did Jesus’ Disciples Abandon Him in His Last Hours?

There is much in the New Testament to cause one to question whether the Jesus story(s) of the Gospels ever really happened. [Read more]

Secularists Query Decision to Reinstate Registrar Who Refused to Conduct Same-Sex Weddings

Margaret Jones, a Senior Deputy Registrar at Bedford register office, was sacked by her employers after confirming that she would be unwilling to conduct same-sex weddings on the basis of her Christian beliefs. [Read more]

The Philandering Fundamentalists

Welcome to the world of Independent Fundamental Baptists (IFB). IFB types don’t believe in church hierarchy. They’re not usually part of any official denomination. [Read more]

Calls for National Debate Over Collective Worship Requirement in Schools

Renewed calls have been made for a national debate about the requirement on schools to hold acts of collective worship. [Read more]

The Rise of Christian Sexual Atheists

I have an almost daily habit of reading various news articles on my iPhone, especially the ones that impinge on moral issues or Christianity in particular. [Read more]

Readers of the Lost Ark: Following the Literary Trail of an Ancient Religious Symbol

There is probably no artifact in the Bible more famous than the Ark of the Covenant — or, to use its fullest and most ancient title, the “Ark of Yahweh Sabaoth Who Sits Enthroned upon the Cherubim”. [Read more]

Changes to Germany’s ‘Church Tax’ Prompts Exodus

Hundreds of thousands of German tax-payers are leaving their officially designated religions to avoid paying a ‘church tax’ levy on capital gains. [Read more]

25 Years: Women Working Against Fundamentalism in the UK

Women Against Fundamentalism (WAF) was formed during the height of the Rushdie Affair in 1989, soon after the publication of The Satanic Verses when Muslim fundamentalist organisations, through their transnational networks, attempted to get the book banned, staging demonstrations and book burnings, including in the UK. Ayatollah Khomeini, then Supreme Leader of Iran, issued a fatwa authorizing the killing of Salman Rushdie. [Read more]

Facing Failure: Why the Seal of Confession Is Inviolable

If a child told me, in the context of a confession, that she was being abused — by anyone — I would do everything in my power to counsel her to seek help, by disclosing the abuse to a parent, to a trusted adult, to a teacher or a counselor, or to me outside the confessional. [Read more]

Pennsylvania County Council Votes Against Displaying ‘In God We Trust’ Motto

A county council in Pennsylvania has voted against a proposal to display the national motto, ‘In God We Trust,’ at the county courthouse. [Read more]

Freedom From Religion Foundation ‘Objects’ to Prayers at Eagle Nest Senior Center

Until Aug. 21 “no one ever complained” to Eagle Nest Senior Center site manager Beverly Cownover about the center’s pre-meal Christian prayers. That day the village received a letter from the Freedom From Religion Foundation. [Read more]

Arkansas State Removes Christian Symbol From Football Helmets

Arkansas State is removing a Christian cross decal from the back of its football helmets following a complaint that it violated separation of church and state laws, the school said Wednesday. [Read more]

Santorum: We Should Call Secularism a Religion So We Can Ban It from Schools

Rick Santorum is upset that teachers in public schools are using class time to teach things like math and arithmetic rather than the truth of Rick’s particular religion, and Santorum has a solution.

[Read more]