Greta Christina to speak at Purdue on Atheism & Sexuality


You want to know a perk of being President of an atheist club? You have a lot of say over what speakers get invited to your school. We’ve already had Hemant Mehta and PZ Myers speak here, and when I saw that Greta Christina was added to the Secular Student Alliance’s speaker bureau, I knew I had to snatch her up! And I’m happy to announce that my Favorite Atheist Blogger Trifecta will be completed, and you’re invited to see Greta speak at Purdue:

Atheism & Sexuality

Friday, Feb 5th
5:30 – 7:00 PM
WTHR 172, Oval Dr.
West Lafayette, IN

One hour lecture by Greta Christina with time for Q&A, free and open to the public

The sexual morality of traditional religion tends to be based, not on solid ethical principles, but on a set of taboos about what kinds of sex God does and doesn’t want people to have. And while the sex-positive community offers a more thoughtful view of sexual morality, it still often frames sexuality as positive by seeing it as a spiritual experience. What are some atheist alternatives to these views? How can atheists view sexual ethics without a belief in God? And how can atheists view sexual transcendence without a belief in the supernatural?

Sponsored by the Society of Non-Theists and the Queer Student Union

If you’re in the West Lafayette area, you should definitely come (and RSVP on Facebook)! Though if you’re closer to Indiana University in Bloomington, Greta will be speaking there the night before – keep watching the Secular Alliance of IU’s website for more information.

I’m happy to be hosting a great reply to that Porn and Popcorn nonsense that happened last semester!

Comments

  1. says

    Holy fuck, I'm going to be at a grad school interview. This SUCKS. PZ was neat and all, but Greta's stuff was so useful to me when I was still new to this whole atheism thing.

    *pouts* I guess you'll just have to say hi to her for me. This whole grad-school business better be worth it.

  2. says

    Holy fuck, I’m going to be at a grad school interview. This SUCKS. PZ was neat and all, but Greta’s stuff was so useful to me when I was still new to this whole atheism thing. *pouts* I guess you’ll just have to say hi to her for me. This whole grad-school business better be worth it.

  3. says

    "And while the sex-positive community offers a more thoughtful view of sexual morality, it still often frames sexuality as positive by seeing it as a spiritual experience."- Now there's a word with IMO no real-word reference, "spiritual". Would one or more of the atheists here who use the word care to explain what they mean by it?

  4. says

    “And while the sex-positive community offers a more thoughtful view of sexual morality, it still often frames sexuality as positive by seeing it as a spiritual experience.”- Now there’s a word with IMO no real-word reference, “spiritual”. Would one or more of the atheists here who use the word care to explain what they mean by it?

  5. mcbender says

    I've never seen a convincing definition of the word 'spiritual'. Like 'supernatural' and even 'god', people are more or less expected to infer a definition for it, and most of them do…

    I think the concepts usually referred to by all of those terms are logically incoherent, which may explain why nobody properly defines the terms.

  6. mcbender says

    I’ve never seen a convincing definition of the word ‘spiritual’. Like ‘supernatural’ and even ‘god’, people are more or less expected to infer a definition for it, and most of them do…I think the concepts usually referred to by all of those terms are logically incoherent, which may explain why nobody properly defines the terms.

  7. says

    I wonder if I might ask something. Jen defines herself as a "pervert", and some other lady did the same recently, I forget who. What meaning does this word carry on this site, please?

  8. says

    I wonder if I might ask something. Jen defines herself as a “pervert”, and some other lady did the same recently, I forget who. What meaning does this word carry on this site, please?

  9. says

    @Richard: Far from me be it to decry liquor, I'm a single malt man myself; but I'm pretty sure I don't have one of those spirit things otherwise. Bodies, one; minds, at least two; spirits, none.

  10. says

    @Richard: Far from me be it to decry liquor, I’m a single malt man myself; but I’m pretty sure I don’t have one of those spirit things otherwise. Bodies, one; minds, at least two; spirits, none.

  11. says

    @HugoAhh! Usquebaugh!! There you have me (indeed at this very moment I have a sadly depleted bottle of Lagavulin in the aforementioned liquor cabinet).

    All I can say is that were I to have a god he* would be robustly full-bodied, amber and with a delicious peaty aftertaste.

    And he would be worshipped in casks.

    Here I'm sure my liver thanks me for being an atheist.

    _____* she, it, or preferably them.

  12. says

    @HugoAhh! Usquebaugh!! There you have me (indeed at this very moment I have a sadly depleted bottle of Lagavulin in the aforementioned liquor cabinet).All I can say is that were I to have a god he* would be robustly full-bodied, amber and with a delicious peaty aftertaste.And he would be worshipped in casks.Here I’m sure my liver thanks me for being an atheist._____* she, it, or preferably them.

  13. says

    "indeed at this very moment I have a sadly depleted bottle of Lagavulin"

    GMTA! Mine's a 12-year old cask-strength. Here, too, high time to get another.

    "All I can say is that were I to have a god he* would be robustly full-bodied, amber and with a delicious peaty aftertaste."

    But not long in the nose (whatever that means)?

  14. says

    “indeed at this very moment I have a sadly depleted bottle of Lagavulin”GMTA! Mine’s a 12-year old cask-strength. Here, too, high time to get another. “All I can say is that were I to have a god he* would be robustly full-bodied, amber and with a delicious peaty aftertaste.”But not long in the nose (whatever that means)?

  15. Reality Chic says

    Will the presentation be recorded? I can't make it but would love to watch a recording.

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