10.31.2011

Happy Scare a Christian Day!

JesusweenWhile some Christians agonize over what to do each year when Halloween rolls around, I have found that many atheists consider it one of their favorite holidays. I am happy to count myself among them. Halloween is one of the few holidays I still enjoy. In fact, it might be the only one. And yes, I suppose that part of the enjoyment might come from seeing how terrified some Christians are of Halloween.

A few years ago, you could walk around my neighborhood this time of year and never realize that Halloween was off limits to many of the neighborhood children. Houses were proudly decorated in such a manner that I questioned whether my neighbors had temporarily set their absurd religious beliefs aside.

10.30.2011

Christian Hell vs. Muslim Hell

Hell

I know full well what I'm getting when I turn on the History Channel for anything related to religion: pro-Christian propaganda. I guess I shouldn't be too hard on them. After all, they are in the business of entertaining people, the majority of whom do not particularly like to think. Historical accuracy is not going to be their primary concern. If you doubt this, just remember that much of what they show has nothing whatsoever to do with history (or even reality). They are in the entertainment business and are not some sort of public service concerned with reality-based education.

I do not trust most of what I see on the History Channel to be an accurate depiction of anything historic. After all, they seem determined to treat the open question of whether Jesus ever lived as completely settled and beyond doubt. But something caught my ear while watching part of one of the many shows about hell they like to replay this time of year.

10.29.2011

Idiot of the Week: Noelle Nikpour

I was initially hesitant to select Noelle Nikpour for Idiot of the Week "honors" because I thought she had to be joking in this video. Now that I've watched it again and realized that she is a Republican strategist who has made a number of appearances on Fox "News" I think she may be serious. And if there is even a remote chance that she's serious about any part of this, she certainly deserves to be named Idiot of the Week.

Update: Jerry Coyne (Why Evolution is True) has posted a brief transcript of at least one of the highlights of the video.

10.27.2011

The Confrontational Nature of Coming Out Atheist

ConfrontationGreta Christina has written one of the most thought-provoking posts about coming out as an atheist that I've read in a while. Her central point is that coming out as an atheist (i.e., disclosing one's atheism to others) can be regarded as an inherently oppositional act because it communicates to religious believers that they are wrong on the god question.

For all of us who have been wondering why our very existence seems to agitate many religious believers, I think we may have our answer. Few people like to realize they might be wrong, particularly when it comes to beliefs they have not critically examined. Perhaps this is a case of blaming the messenger even when our only message is that we do not believe in their gods.

10.12.2011

The Silent Atheist Majority

Silence

What is the silent atheist majority? Some are atheists who do not see atheism as worth discussing at all. They may look down on their more outspoken colleagues for what they perceive as proselytizing atheism. Even though they may acknowledge the existence of bigotry and discrimination against atheists, they have not experienced it themselves. It is unfortunate that others have confronted it, they say, but it really isn't their concern. Others remain silent out of fear. They worry that they might face consequences for disclosing atheism, and they'd rather play it safe. Collectively, these people and others like them make up the vast majority of the atheist community, even as many of them deny that there is any sort of atheist community. They are the silent atheist majority.

Among the more outspoken atheists, some are quick to disparage the silent atheists. They may be viewed as apathetic or accused of cowardice. Although nobody would argue that some atheists are indeed apathetic or fearful, such accusations probably do little to attract people to a more active style of atheism. Moreover, this silent atheist majority is the greatest ally outspoken atheists could have. They are the sleeping giant that atheists who are not happy with how they are treated by the religious majority should be desperate to awaken.

10.08.2011

Idiot of the Week: Albert Mohler

English: Al Mohler, President of Southern Bapt...
Al Mohler, President of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Nothing goes with idiocy quite as well as Christian extremism, and I have finally found a worthy "winner" from somewhere other than politics. You may be less familiar with him than many others, but his is a name you should know.

Albert Mohler is the president of the Southern Baptist Convention. I know, you're probably thinking that this is sufficient to make him an idiot. That might be true, but I'd raster focus on the contradiction between Mohler's stated beliefs and his recent tribute to Steve Jobs.

Mohler wants to extract lessons for Christians from the death of Jobs.
God has invested massive creative abilities in his human creatures. These are often used for good, and sometimes deployed to evil ends. Steve Jobs devoted his life to a technological dream that he thought would empower humanity. He led creative teams that developed technological wonders, and then he made them seemingly necessary for life in the digital age.