Pam's Blog (20)

Religion is not atheism

I’ve been reading lots of recent discussion about why atheism is or is not a religion. These discussions have prompted me to think, which - if you read to the end - is perhaps the highest compliment I can make about them.

Most people begin the debate by defining atheism and religion, and many feel that the dictionary definitions for these terms are lackluster at best. Even…

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Added by Pam on May 12, 2009 at 11:00am — 4 Comments

National Day of Prayer

Today (May 7, 2009) is the "National Day of Prayer", which became a law in 1952 under President Harry Truman after Rev. Billy Graham lead a six-week crusade in Washington. Believers and nonbelievers alike have spoken out against a government sanctioned day of prayer.

J. Brent Walker, executive director of the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty, said "it is not the government's job to tell the American people what, where or when… Continue

Added by Pam on May 7, 2009 at 8:30am — 1 Comment

Ed Buckner Presents

Yesterday I attended a lecture by Ed Buckner, President of American Atheists. His lecture, titled "This Is a Free Country, Not a Christian Nation: In Freedom We Trust", was informative and provoked a few thoughtful questions from the audience.

Basically, Buckner discussed why the United States is not a Christian nation. He challenged other freethinkers to ask people who make this claim to explain what they mean by it. One could certainly argue that America has a Christian majority,… Continue

Added by Pam on May 4, 2009 at 3:21pm — No Comments

Friday Funnies

I really do appreciate good headline writers...

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Court climax premature for Madonna of Orgasm Church

The Madonna of Orgasm Church (Orgasmens Madonnas kyrka) has suffered a disappointing reversal following a Swedish court ruling that the church’s name is unacceptable and offensive.

The church’s founder, artist Carlos Bebeacua who resides in Lövestad in southern… Continue

Added by Pam on May 1, 2009 at 10:41am — No Comments

Children and Evolution

Margaret Evans, an assistant research scientist for the Center for Human Growth and Development at the University of Michigan, published a piece in 2000 titled “Beyond Scopes: Why Creationism Is here to Stay” that discussed creationist and evolutionist beliefs in children. I’ll summarize her paper as briefly as… Continue

Added by Pam on April 28, 2009 at 11:36am — 5 Comments

Cosmic "Mystery Blob"

In case you haven't heard...

Giant Mystery Blob Discovered Near Dawn of Time

A newly found primordial blob may represent the most massive object ever discovered in the early universe, researchers announced today.

The gas cloud, spotted from 12.9 billion light-years away, could signal the earliest stages of galaxy formation back when the universe was just 800 million years…

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Added by Pam on April 23, 2009 at 12:13pm — 6 Comments

Easter "News"

Just in case you missed the news, yesterday was Easter and atheists were “up in arms” over it, according to the Exception Magazine.

Daughter Denied Chocolate Bunny Due to Mother's Atheism

Atheists are up in arms over Easter. A user of the social bookmarking site Reddit, which often features an atheist perspective on…

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Added by Pam on April 13, 2009 at 8:44am — 6 Comments

Stretching your Beliefs

It seems that people who believe in some kind of god, any kind of god, even ones they’ve created for themselves, are more acceptable than those that do not.

I was chatting with a lady I met last Sunday at Massimo Pigliucci’s presentation. She told me she held a belief in the supernatural, though not one that aligned with mainstream religion, and seemed offended by the idea that I didn’t believe in any sort of deity or supernatural hocus-pocus whatsoever.

You don’t believe… Continue

Added by Pam on April 9, 2009 at 12:04pm — 5 Comments

Capitalization

I was flipping through my 2005 Associated Press Stylebook to check the correct capitalization of a word when I noticed the following:

agnostic, atheist An agnostic is a person who believes it is impossible to know whether there is a God.

An atheist is a person who believes there is no God.

I immediately wondered why the Associated Press capitalized God in that entry, so I checked.

gods and…

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Added by Pam on April 8, 2009 at 5:59pm — 3 Comments

Massimo Pigliucci Speaks about Science & Religion

This past Sunday I had the pleasure of hearing Massimo Pigliucci give a presentation titled, “What’s Science got to do With It? When Scientists talk Nonsense about Science and Religion”. Pigliucci is a professor of ecology and evolution at the State University of New York at Stony Brook, is an outspoken critic of creationism, an advocate of science education, and has a doctorate in genetics, a Ph.D. in botany, and a Ph.D. in philosophy. He writes for the Skeptical Inquirer,…

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Added by Pam on April 8, 2009 at 8:13am — 3 Comments

A New Day!

O, friends, it is a new day! I suddenly and without any reason whatsoever believe in the Christian God that made the earth and every living thing in it. I believe in His holy Word the Bible, the only True book ever written. I no longer accept Evolution. I no longer support gay marriage. I will no longer call a nonbeliever my friend. The Bible tells me so.

I leave my profile as a testimony to all the ignorance I once had, so that I may never fall back into the trappings of… Continue

Added by Pam on April 1, 2009 at 8:02am — 4 Comments

Devil Debate

ABC recently hosted a debate among a four-panel group about the existence of Satan. Satan believers included pastor Mark Driscoll and former prostitute, Annie Lobert, founder of Hookers for Jesus. Nonbelievers were Bishop Carlton Pearson and Dr. Deepak Chopra, physician and writer on spirituality and mind-body medicine.

Like me, you might be wondering why a former prostitute and a spiritual…

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Added by Pam on March 30, 2009 at 11:00am — 1 Comment

Qustion about Rationalist Organization

Is anyone here a member of the Rationalists of East Tennessee?

I heard about the group on NPR this morning, discussing the upcoming meeting: What's Science Got to Do with It? When Scientists Talk Nonsense about Science and Religion.

I plan to go for the speech, but I also want to find out more about the group. I wonder what the benefits of membership are, if it's worth the annual fee, and things like… Continue

Added by Pam on March 27, 2009 at 8:01am — 2 Comments

Zany in Texas

Texas has played host to a lot of recent tomfoolery. Shenanigans linked to and summarized below.

Texas' moment-of-silence law upheld by appeals court panel

The Texas law that requires public school students to observe a daily minute of silence is constitutional because it expressly allows any silent use of that minute, whether religious or not, a three-judge panel of the 5th… Continue

Added by Pam on March 23, 2009 at 9:16am — 2 Comments

Christian Conservatism Offended by Penis

Conservative Christians are offended by lots of things: liberals, atheists, Harry Potter, Muslims, Jews, but they seem to be offended most by the human body, the penis in particular.

"Forget trying to maneuver your way through all the mixed reactions to Watchmen crowding the interweb today. There’s only one question you need to answer, apparently, in order to make up your mind whether or not to see the…

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Added by Pam on March 13, 2009 at 9:29am — 10 Comments

BIRTH CONTROL IS SINFUL IN THE CHRISTIAN MARRIAGES and also ROBBING GOD OF PRIESTHOOD CHILDREN!!

Elyzabeth Anderson's book is a tumor within the literary world, laughing jubilantly with a stick extended and ready to beat the reader lovingly in the head.

Below is the Amazon.com product description.

THIS IS A HOLYSPIRIT MANUSCRIPT BOOK: WHEN YOU BUY THIS BOOK YOU WILL BE READING A HOLYSPIRIT DIRECTED BOOK FROM GOD; & *CHRIST JESUS. THIS BOOK IS GODS HOLYSPIRIT VOICE: THE CALL FOR ALL CHRISTIANS &… Continue

Added by Pam on March 11, 2009 at 4:17pm — 5 Comments

The Separation of Church and State

Why should we care about the separation of church and state? Is the division of government and religion a good thing? What does this concept even mean?

The term “separation of church and state” does not appear anywhere in the US Constitution. What does appear, however, are these words in the First Amendment, stating that “Congress shall make no laws respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof …”

So, people are…

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Added by Pam on February 11, 2009 at 11:21am — 4 Comments

The Fallout

Even as a young child, I despised church. Church meant itchy dresses, uncomfortable pews, and two hours I could have better spent playing outdoors. Being a child, I never understood gOd in the way Christians want gOd to be understood. To me, gOd was like a friendly old man in the clouds, the same way Santa Clause was a friendly old man in the North Pole. And I don’t remember a thing about Jesus. As far as I knew, Jesus was Starbuck to gOd’s Ahab.

Religion was never my turn-on.… Continue

Added by Pam on February 1, 2009 at 10:19am — 3 Comments

Do Animals "Sin"?

lust gluttony

greed pride

sloth wrath

envy

If animals do not sin, then why is it considered sin when humans engage in these same behaviors? To say humans are somehow superior to animals is to commit the sin of pride.

If animals do sin, then they should be visited by the wrath of god and subject to proselytizing, and all dogs really do go to…

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Added by Pam on January 27, 2009 at 9:35am — 1 Comment

Spirituality, Not Religion, Makes Kids Happy

The link between spirituality and happiness is pretty well-established for teens and adults. More spirituality brings more happiness.

Now a study has reached into the younger set, finding the same link in "tweens" and in kids in middle childhood.

Specifically, the study shows that children who feel that their lives have meaning and value and who develop deep, quality relationships — both measures of spirituality, the researchers claim — are… Continue

Added by Pam on January 14, 2009 at 8:00am — 2 Comments