March 30 Religion and Atheism News Digest

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air force, america, atheism, atheists, basketball, belief, bill, book, chaplain, church, CNN, coming out, deception, denial, disbelief, doctrine, documentary, duck dynasty, FFRF, freedom, fundamentalist, gay, gay marriage, god is not dead, going clear, HBO, indiana, jim crow, liberty, muslim, NCAA, nonbelievers, passion of christ, phil robertson, presbyterian, religion law, religious, RFRA, ron reagan, scientology, skepticism, so help me god, spanky taylor, study, ted cruz

Atheists Open Up: What They Want You to Know

CNN’s documentary, “Atheists: Inside the World of Non-Believers,” tells the story of a number of people who put themselves in that group — and the stigma they’ve faced.

How Skepticism of Religion Has Grown in the US – And Who are Becoming Atheists

If you are religiously unaffiliated, it means you believe in some spiritual higher power, but you just don’t identify yourself as being a believer of one religion or another.

Who the Unchurched Really Are

Robert Putnam reminds us: the demographic that is the most unchurched is the working class, the lower income non-college-educated folks.

Be Not Deceived: RFRA Is Not About Religious Liberty

These bills began popping up around the country right as the Supreme Court announced that it would begin hearings on marriage equality which will likely result in the legalization of same-sex marriage at a national level.

Pence’s Pandora Problem: Ind. Governor Signs Troubling ‘Religious Freedom’ Bill

Indiana just passed a law that could allow for religious-based discrimination, but Gov. Mike Pence wants you to believe the measure he signed won’t cause any harm.

Indiana Religious Freedom Legislation Sparks Firestorm

So much has erupted in big media and social media since Indiana Governor Mike Pence signed the Religious Freedom Restoration Act into law the other day, sanity is another thing we need to restore.

Why I’m Going to Spend a Week Ripping “God’s Not Dead” to Pieces

I’m left with the impression that the people involved in making and promoting this movie really think that they’re creating some kind of persuasive case for atheists in particular to consider.

Dumb Dynasty: Phil Robertson’s Outrageous Comments on Atheism

Envisioning a scenario in which an atheist family, including the atheist children, are raped and murdered by intruders, [Phil] Robertson attempted to prove that a lack of belief in god corresponds with a total lack of morality.

How Will Its Doctrinal Shift on Gay Marriage Affect the Presbyterian Church (USA)?

The Presbyterian Church (USA) announced March 17 that a nationwide referendum among regional bodies (“presbyteries”) has redefined marriage as “between two people, traditionally a man and woman” so same-sex couples can wed in church.

Astrobiology and the Religious Imagination

For many, religious doctrines’ perspective on truth through antiquated, roundabout, and interpretable metaphors no longer provides a satisfying approach.

The Blind Spot in the Study of Religion

If we look at common definitions of religion, they typically frame our understanding of religion through its meaning for the religious alone.

Gay Passion of Christ Envisioned and Attacked

Jesus arrives as a gay man of today in a modern city with “The Passion of Christ: A Gay Vision,” a controversial series of paintings that are newly available as a book.

Not Believing vs. Believing Not – The Difference Between Disbelief and Denial

Many have trouble comprehending that “not believing X” (not believe gods exist) doesn’t mean the same as “believing not X” (believe gods do not exist).

Being Gay in the Muslim World

Gay rights gains in the West are impacting homosexuals in Muslim countries, often with unexpected results.

CNN’s Daniel Burke Survived a GetReligion Interview, But Will His ‘Friendly Atheists’ Story Endure Our Critique?

I am impressed with the fair, transparent nature of CNN’s story. Rather than a blunt statement like “The atheists’ Catholic relatives refused to comment,” Burke provides a detailed explanation.

Ted Cruz’s Religious Horror: Why He’s Really Running for High Priest of America

Read Cruz’s words and watch his stagecraft — and you see this is the deeply fundamentalist vision he’s propagating.

Offended By An Oath: Proposal Would Force Air Force Cadets To Say ‘So Help Me God’

Then in 2014, thanks to complaints from Americans United and others, an atheist airman was allowed to reenlist without saying the part of the enlistment oath that includes the words “so help me God.”

Indiana Religion Law is Jim Crow of Our Time

LGBT people enjoy no such protection under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, but at least always had trusted their home state legislatures and governors not to turn on them.

Definition of Fundamentalist Atheism

The label “fundamentalist atheism” is used pejoratively as a criticism of contemporary atheism by associating it with fundamentalist ideologies which are intolerant, militant, oppressive, and anti-democratic.

Spanky Taylor and Escaping Scientology

HBO have a new documentary airing this weekend called “Going Clear; Scientology and the Prison of Belief” and one of the people featured is Spanky Taylor who tells of her experience both within scientology and escaping from it.

Freedom From Religion Group Targets NCAA Basketball Teams For Having Chaplain

FFRF Co-President Dan Barker noted that giving these chaplains secular titles compounds the violation by blurring the line between a legitimate position and an abuse of that position.

Famous Atheists Coming Out Of Closets: Ron Reagan Jr.’s Ad Strikes a Chord

Former president Ronald Reagan’s son, Ron Reagan, Jr, is completely out of the closet about his atheism, and it is his tongue in cheek remark about burning in hell that has the other networks refusing to air the spot.