It is well known that the Catholic church has a problem with its young people, many of whom see it as out of step with current views on sexuality. The church has locked itself into its dogma and that is unlikely to change anytime soon but you would think that it would realize that it …
Category Archive: Religion
Apr 25 2013
The problem of religion-based laws in a secular state
Some people are fearful that Sharia law (i.e., laws that are based on Islamic religious beliefs) will be introduced in the US and are taking steps to pre-emptively pass legislation that would prevent this from happening. As one might expect, I am opposed to any laws or legal system that depends upon religion for their …
Apr 24 2013
Rowan Atkinson as the new Archbishop of Canterbury
In two comments to this post, I was pointed to a recent sketch by comedian Rowan Atkinson where he plays the new Archbishop of Canterbury giving a fireside chat. It was part of a fundraising TV program called Comic Relief.
Apr 23 2013
Pope Francis says god is not a misty ‘god-spray’
When sophisticated theologians talk about god, one quickly finds oneself wandering around in a rhetorical fog in which god becomes a constantly shape-shifting entity described by metaphors whose meanings are always just beyond one’s grasp. One has to struggle to understand what they are talking about because what these sophisticated thinkers imagine to be god …
Apr 19 2013
Boy Scouts edging towards doing the right thing
One of the hallmarks of how change occurs in religious organizations is that it is done very slowly, by a series of small steps. We see that happening with the Boy Scouts of America. They have been getting a beating about their hostile attitude towards gay members and leaders, with people and businesses withdrawing their …
Apr 17 2013
Promising miracles as a path to wealth
I posted about Pat Robertson’s idiotic response to a question as to why nowadays miracles seem to happen only in places like Africa and not in the US. Why was god not showing the US any love, given that we are his chosen people and all? According to Pat, it is because we have become …
Apr 16 2013
The mess over tax exemptions for churches
I have written before how the tax exemption given to churches creates opportunities for all manner of abuse. The practice of granting churches tax exemptions is long-standing, dating to before American independence but its constitutionality was not tested until 1970 when the US Supreme Court ruled that while it would not be permissible for the …
Apr 15 2013
Pope Francis fails a test
While Pope Francis has received great press for his symbolic gestures of openness and warmth and humility, the real test of how different he would be from his predecessors was when he was confronted with decisions that had significant consequences. One of the first was how he would deal with the ‘problem’ of the ornery …
Apr 15 2013
More on plastic bags warding off impurities
Readers will recall the post about the Orthodox Jew of the ‘kohen’ variety who wrapped himself up in a thick plastic bag in order to prevent himself from becoming ‘ritually impure’ by flying over cemeteries. There were many questions raised by me and in the comments about how this was supposed to work.
Apr 14 2013
Should atheists in the US encourage the establishment of religion?
Whenever I give a talk, as I did recently, on the fight over the teaching of evolution in schools, I am almost always asked why these take place mostly in the US. That is not exactly true but in many other countries, there is no equivalent of the Establishment Clause that people can appeal to …
About the Author
Recent Comments