Tuesday Religious and Freethought Headlines

Tags

abortion, america, atheist, atheists, big bang, bill maher, blacks, blasphemy, brazil, bride, christian, cosmology, death sentence, evolution, FFRF, gay marriage, godless, halloween, intelligent design, ISIS, israel, john hagee, joseph smith, LBA, london, military, millenials, mormons, nazi, north dakota, ordination, pakistan, politics, pope francis, pro-life, religion, religious, religious right, reza aslan, sacred, secular, secular party, students, tracts, tunisia, UK, undergarments, virgin mary, welfare, x-rated bible

Godless Millennials Could End the Power of the Religious Right

The 2014 midterm elections are drawing near, and it appears that the Democrats may well lose the Senate, since they’re fighting on unfriendly territory. [Read more]

Atheists Have More Followers on Twitter: Study

If you happen to be an atheist, joining Twitter would be a good idea as you could share your views with many more like-minded people. [Read more]

The 10 Least Religious States in America

While the number of people who consider themselves to be atheist has risen 3% worldwide, the number of people who consider themselves religious dropped by 9% between 2005 and 2011. [Read more]

London Black Atheists Celebrates 2nd Anniversary In Style

Clive Aruede and a few other atheists with the aim of bringing together black atheists in London founded London Black Atheists two years ago. LBA provides a nurturing atmosphere for black atheists to come out of the closet and interact in a safe environment. [Read more]

Atheist Group to Distribute “X-Rated Bible” Pamphlets to Florida Schools

The pamphlet the FFRF is planning to distribute is titled An X-Rated Book: Sex and Obscenity in the Bible. The pamphlet’s cover depicts a menacing cartoon Bible angrily reaching out to a woman running away. According to Raw Story, inside the pamphlet are passages from the Bible that mention sex, nudity, and circumcision. [Read more]

Pope Francis Declares Evolution and Big Bang Theory Are Right and God Isn’t ‘A Magician with a Magic Wand’

Speaking at the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, the Pope made comments which experts said put an end to the “pseudo theories” of creationism and intelligent design that some argue were encouraged by his predecessor, Benedict XVI. [Read more]

Pastor John Hagee: ‘Nasty’ Welfare Recipients Don’t Deserve To Live

Pastor John Hagee of the Cornerstone Church delivered an impassioned speech decrying the evils of welfare dependency. [Read more]

Heresy, Orthodoxy, and the Space In-Between

Maybe it’s just me, but it seems like you can’t venture into the world of the Christian Internet without avoiding accusations of heresy being lobbed from one theological camp to another. [Read more]

Young UK Christians Have Faith in Politics But Less in Politicians

The Baptist Union of Great Britain, the Methodist Church and the United Reformed Church have asked Christian young people about their attitudes to voting and politics in Britain. [Read more]

Religious Roots, Secular Festivities: Halloween Takes A Hit In Schools

The justification for the decision has raised the question: is Halloween a secular opportunity for children to dress up and have fun, or a religious celebration masquerading as a costume party? [Read more]

Support for U.S. Campaign against ISIS; Doubts about Its Effectiveness, Objectives

Americans say the U.S. military effort against ISIS is not going well, and just 30% think the U.S. and its allies have a “clear goal” in taking military action. [Read more]

Pakistani Christian Loses Appeal Against Death Sentence for Blasphemy

In 2010, Asia Bibi, a mother of four, became the first woman to be sentenced to death under Pakistan’s controversial blasphemy law. [Read more]

Mormon Church Admits For First Time That Founder Joseph Smith Had A 14-Year-Old Bride

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints says most of Smith’s wives were between 20 and 40 years old. One of them, however, was a 14-year-old girl who was the daughter of Smith’s close friends. [Read more]

Mormon Church Peels Back Mystery of Sacred Undergarments

Often referred to jokingly as “magic Mormon underwear,” the garb, which resembles a T-shirt and shorts, has been ridiculed on Broadway, referenced in political campaigns and exploited online for profit. [Read more]

As Brazilians Drift Away from Catholicism, Virgin Mary Procession as Popular as Ever

More than 2 million worshipers, pilgrims and onlookers poured around an 11-inch wooden figure of the Virgin Mary as it made its way through the streets. [Read more]

Waves of Young Israelis Find a Home in the Former Nazi Capital

When Nir Ivenizki told his grandmother back home in Tel Aviv that he was emigrating from Israel to Germany, the first thing she did was produce a gun. [Read more]

What’s *Really* Wrong with Intelligent Design

Design is nothing without fabrication. [See Post]

Theist Cosmology: As Long As God’s Necessary Somewhere

Since entropy continues to increase, and there is a limit of mass and energy how are we here? If there is not a limit of energy and mass, then why do you think so? [See Answer]

Maher vs. Aslan: Is Religion An All-Powerful Force or Mere Window Dressing?

These folks have so uncritically embraced modernist body-mind dualism that they blame all of the world’s problems on bad ideas (of which Islam is apparently the “motherlode”). [Read more]

Prominent Atheist Organization Closely Tied to Abortion Industry

Since 1978, the Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) has promoted secularism and advocated for the so-called “separation of church and state.” [Read more]

North Dakota Argues ‘Right-to-Life’ Measure Intent

Megan Madden has tried to educate herself about the eight measures facing North Dakota voters on Election Day. But only one still has her confused. [Read more]

Pastor Who Performed Gay Marriage Keeps Ordination

A Methodist pastor who was disciplined after he officiated at the wedding of his gay son will be allowed to remain an ordained minister. [Read more]

Secular Party Set to Win Tunisia Elections

Tunisia’s main secular opposition party was claiming victory on Monday over once-dominant Islamists in the country’s historic parliamentary elections. [Read more]

Students Spring Into Opposition After Bill Maher Announced as Keynote Speaker

In response to an announcement last week that comedian Bill Maher would speak at UC Berkeley’s fall commencement, an online petition started circulating Thursday that demanded that the campus rescind its invitation. [Read more]