Mid-Week Religion and Freethought Report

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atheist, baptist, blasphemy, christians, churches, circumcision, education, electioneering, evolution, fundamentalism, gaza, genetics, god, godless, google, herpes, hobby lobby, hope academy, imam, indiana, irs, militant, modernity, mohels, mulsim, pluralism, pro-life, public, religion, same-sex, satanists, schools, segregation, threats, united nations, westboro, women

(More) Death Threats from Christians

Aside from interest and support from lapsed and recovering Christians, I’ve also received a great deal of correspondence from many in the Christian community. [Read more]

You Might Be a Militant Atheist If…

It’s common to hear religious theists complain about “militant atheists,” but just what is a militant atheist? What separates militant atheists from regular (pacifist?) atheists? [Read more]

What Should Happen to Churches as Religion Recedes?

In many Western countries (but clearly not all), the decline in church-going has seen the patrimony of churches threatened, particularly ones in smaller towns and villages that cannot harness their appeal as tourist attractions. [Read more]

Christian Fundamentalism and the Fear of Modernity

It is curious that the Christian Right is so antagonistic towards homosexuals and homosexuality. [Read more]

The Westboro Baptist Church Loves Google

Notorious hate group the Westboro Baptist Church is planning to picket Silicon Valley tech companies next week as part of its “God Hates The Media Tour.” [Read more]

UK Muslim Cabinet Member Resigns Over Gaza Conflict Policy

The United Kingdom’s first female Muslim Cabinet member has resigned in protest at Prime Minister David Cameron’s policy over the Gaza conflict. [Read more]

Religion and the Public Square – Religion’s Role in the Public Square

Does a “naked public square” end up demeaning religion and discriminate against religious believers? No, because strict separation of church and state does not demean or discriminate against religion. [Read more]

In a Pluralistic Society Where Would Morals Come From?

The United States is pluralistic secular society, but is it by no means atheistic. The greatness of this country is its willingness to allow free speech and the free exercise of religion. [Read more]

Indiana Ban On Same-Sex Marriage Should Be Struck Down, Says Americans United

Church-State Watchdog Group Joins With Other Organizations In Filing Brief Before U.S. Appellate Court [Read more]

Atheists Want Guard to Stop Bible Handouts

An atheist organization is demanding that the Missouri National Guard stop offering Bibles to new recruits at its recruiting station in St. Louis. [Read more]

America’s Godless Public Schools: Value of a Godless Education, Godless Schools

One of the preeminent battlegrounds for the Christian Right’s war on modernity is America’s secular public school system. [Read more]

2 Mohels Banned After Infants Contract Herpes in Circumcision Rite

New York City has banned two mohels from performing a controversial circumcision rite after they were suspected of infecting babies with herpes. [Read more]

Duke Again Offers Free Coursera Course: “Introduction to Genetics and Evolution”

I’m happy to see that my second Ph.D student, Dr. Mohamed Noor (now chair of biology at Duke) is again offering his immensely popular “Introduction to Genetics and Evolution” course online, as a MOOC. [Read more]

British Imam: Quran Does Not Rule on Segregation

Ahtsham Ali, who is the Muslim adviser to the Prison Service and a former president of the Islamic Society of Britain, said that making men and women sit in separate rooms was not justified in the Quran. [Read more]

Thank You, Satanists

I was happy to hear a similar line of argument come up this week from the Satanic Temple, a New York-based religious organization (although non-tax-exempt, because it doesn’t believe religious organizations should be), announced an ingenious response to the Hobby Lobby verdict. [Read more]

Why Even God Couldn’t Prove That He Was God

“God stood before me on Tuesday.  It rained that day.” One of those claims is verifiable and one is not.  What methods and evidence would you use to test each?  What if that was today? [Read more]

Hobby Lobby, Satanists, and Pro-Life Propaganda

The recent Supreme Court decision in the Hobby Lobby case was supposed to be a narrow ruling. Religious liberty would only allow for disregarding laws as they applied to a mandate for employers to provide coverage for contraception. [Read more]

Evangelical Churches Are Blatantly Violating The Law By Electioneering From The Pulpit

Americans should prepare themselves for an outcry of biblical proportions from the religious right in the near future after the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) won a lawsuit and a settlement with the Internal Revenue Service. [Read more]

Legal Group Asks IRS to Release Docs in Atheist Settlement to Investigate Churches

A prominent Christian legal organization has requested that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) hand over documents surrounding its recent settlement with an atheist activist organization surrounding the investigation of churches that engage in “electioneering.” [Read more]

Hope Academy Charter School Agrees to Rid Graduation of Religious Remarks

Hope Academy Charter School has agreed to stop including spiritual aspects during its graduations, according to a Tuesday, Aug. 5, announcement. [Read more]

Hold Pakistan Accountable for Its Blasphemous Oppression

The world is aflame. Religious minorities are among those who suffer most from increasing conflict. Pakistan is one of the worst homes for non-Muslims. [Read more]

Fox News: IRS Law Against Churches Endorsing Politicians ‘An Assault On People Of Faith’

Fox News co-host Tucker Carlson says that the IRS enforcing a half-century old law prohibiting churches from endorsing politicians is designed to “crush” them, and is “an assault on people of faith” by atheists.

[Read more]