Punishment in Hell for the Deadly Sin of Gluttony: Force-Fed Rats, Toads, Snakes
Friday February 29, 2008
Image Source:Jupiter Images
Gluttonous people, those guilty of the deadly sin of gluttony, will be punished in hell by being force fed rats, toads, and snakes. Unlike most of the other ... Read More
Christian Love & Tolerance: Baptist Burns Richard Dawkins in Effigy
Friday February 29, 2008
So-called "new" atheists are frequently chastised both for a lack of tolerance of religious faith and for a lack of charity towards religion in only criticizing "extreme" forms of religion ... Read More
Hillary Clinton on the Pledge of Allegiance: Clinton's Anti-Atheist Bigotry
Friday February 29, 2008
Hillary Clinton Pledges Allegiance to
'One Nation Under God'
June 2, 2007
Photo: Mark Hirsch/Getty Images
The Pledge of Allegiance tells us whether a politician truly believes in political equality for all or if ... Read More
Should You Reveal Your Atheism at Work to Coworkers & Employers?
Thursday February 28, 2008
Revealing atheism to anyone can lead to problems, but revealing atheism to employers or coworkers comes with unique problems not associated with revealing atheism to family or friends. People at ... Read More
Buzz Patterson: Atheists, Agnostics, Wiccans Suppressing Christian Freedom
Thursday February 28, 2008
Over the past few years we have been inundated with examples of how conservative, evangelical Christians have been trying to subvert the military by infusing it at every level with ... Read More
Weekly Poll: Should Atheists Shut Up and Stop Upsetting Christians?
Thursday February 28, 2008
Propaganda Poster: Christian Nationalists Assuming Control of the American Flag
Wednesday February 27, 2008
Image © Austin Cline
Original Poster:National Archives
One area where Christian Nationalists have attempted to exercise more subtle control over American culture is through the American flag. Efforts to ban flag burning ... Read More
Air Force Pays Evangelicals to Preach About Terrorism
Wednesday February 27, 2008
If a military cadets asked you to arrange for speakers about modern terrorism, would you choose experts and scholars on the subject or evangelical Christians who make questionable claims about ... Read More
Forum Discussion: Historical Jesus
Wednesday February 27, 2008
What do you think about the "historical" Jesus? Was there a Jesus, as the gospel stories depict? Was there perhaps one or more traveling preachers whose activities and mannerisms were ... Read More
Catholic vs. Protestant Commandments
Tuesday February 26, 2008
One interesting difference occurs in how Catholics translate the Deuteronomy verses into actual commandments. In the Butler Catechism, verses eight through ten are simply left out. The Catholic version thus ... Read More
The Happy Heretic: Resurrected? Back in Action? Well, She's Back...
Tuesday February 26, 2008
Judith Hayes' column The Happy Heretic appeared monthly between 1996 and 2005, then it stopped and she seemed to disappear. I'm not sure what happened to cause her to stop ... Read More
Comment of the Week: Gunpowder Theism
Tuesday February 26, 2008
The hostile reactions from some Christians to recent atheist books has been "explained" by the idea that atheists have been so aggressive, intolerant, and unreasonable that they are only getting ... Read More
Sixth Commandment: Thou Shalt Not Kill
Monday February 25, 2008
Many believers regard this as perhaps the most basic and easily accepted of all the commandments. After all, who would object to the government telling people not to kill? Unfortunately, ... Read More
Chuck Norris Blames School Shootings on Atheism, Evolution
Monday February 25, 2008
Chuck Norris at aMike Huckabee Campaign EventPhoto: Eric Thayer/Getty Images
The apparent senselessness of school shootings is hard for people to deal with, so they struggle to come up with explanations. ... Read More
Book of the Week: Divided by God: America's Church-State Problem
Monday February 25, 2008
Image courtesyPriceGrabber.com
Some of America's most rancorous debates are over the separation of church and state. Should the government have the authority to pick certain religions and/or religious beliefs for favoritism, ... Read More
Does God Exist? Godless Morality & Ethics: Being Good Without Gods or Religion is Possible
Sunday February 24, 2008
Can there be a godless morality? Can we assert a superiority for a godless morality over traditional, theistic, and religious morality? Yes, I think that this is possible. Unfortunately, few ... Read More
Pentecostal Holy War Against GOP Senator?
Sunday February 24, 2008
Senate Finance Committee ChairmanChuck Grassley (R-IA)
Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Chuck Grassley, a Republican Senator from Iowa, has been making waves in the conservative Christian community for investigating the actions of popular ... Read More
Mailbag: Rebuttal
Sunday February 24, 2008
From: ****
Subject: Evolution
I ran across your comments relative to my article, **** and I can assure you that I am quite familiar with both evolution and science. Since your article ... Read More
Persecution of Witches: Joan of Arc, Witch and Heretic
Saturday February 23, 2008
Image Source:Jupiter Images
Although accusations of witchcraft seem to have been most commonly made against older women who lived on the margins of society and who may have become socially troublesome, ... Read More
Florida Legislators Oppose Teaching Science in School, But Lose
Saturday February 23, 2008
It might seem extreme to suggest that legislators in Florida actually oppose teaching science, but that's the upshot of their opposition to teaching evolution as it exists in modern science. ... Read More
Texas Monthly, Inc. v. Bullock (1989)
Saturday February 23, 2008
Although the Supreme Court has decided in the past that tax exemptions accorded to religious organizations were constitutional, that was in the context of broad tax exemptions offered generally to ... Read More
Punishing Envy: Punishment in Hell for Envy: Immersed in Freezing Water
Friday February 22, 2008
Image Source:Jupiter Images
Envious people, those guilty of committing the deadly sin of envy, will be punished in hell by being immersed in freezing water for all eternity. It's unclear what ... Read More
Missouri Fighting for a Right to Pray
Friday February 22, 2008
Image © Austin Cline
Original Poster:National Archives
If Republicans are a reliable source of information, then the right of Christians to pray in Missouri is in serious danger. What other reason do ... Read More
Barack Obama on the Pledge of Allegiance: Equality vs. Privilege in School
Friday February 22, 2008
One of the issues where religious believers have the least sympathy for atheists and church/state separation is the Pledge of Allegiance. This isn't hard to understand because it's one of ... Read More
Evolution Basics: Does Evolution Contradict Christianity?
Thursday February 21, 2008
Image Source:Wikipedia
Is Christianity compatible with the Theory of Evolution? It seems like it should be - after all, quite a few churches (including the Catholic Church) have recognized that the ... Read More
Archbishop of Hypocrisy: Oppressive Shariah OK, Calls to Prayer Not OK
Thursday February 21, 2008
Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams thinks that it would be fine to introduce just enough Shariah law into British courts to enable further oppression of women and young girls — ... Read More
Weekly Poll: Is Religion More a Force for Good or Evil?
Thursday February 21, 2008
Propaganda Poster: Submission & Obedience to Husbands
Wednesday February 20, 2008
Image © Austin ClineOriginal Poster:Library of Congress
Carefully structured and clearly organized hierarchies of power appear to be very important not only to Christian Nationalists, but conservative and fundamentalist religious believers ... Read More
Female Referee Removed: Women Can't Have Authority Over Males
Wednesday February 20, 2008
According to various news outlets, veteran referee Michelle Campbell was denied a chance to work a boy's varsity basketball game in Kansas because the home school, St. Mary's Academy, won't ... Read More
Forum Discussion: What's the Purpose of Life?
Wednesday February 20, 2008
A common claim made by religious theists is that without their god and their religion, there is no point or meaning to life. Implicit in their claim is that purpose ... Read More
Anti-Lent: Test Drive a Bad Habit, New Sin or Guilty Pleasure for a Few Weeks
Tuesday February 19, 2008
Lent is the penitential period of 40 days from Ash Wednesday to Easter when Christians fast and do penance in preparation for Easter and to spiritually "join" Jesus with the ... Read More
Muslims Plot to Kill Danish Cartoonist Over Muhammad Cartoons
Tuesday February 19, 2008
Many people, especially in Denmark, have probably relegated the story of Muslim riots following the publication of cartoons of Muhammad to the history books. For some Muslims, however, this issue ... Read More
Comment of the Week: Aggressive Atheism, In Your Face
Tuesday February 19, 2008
Just how aggressive and "in your face" should atheists be? Even the relatively moderate amount of aggressiveness shown thus far has led to accusations of militancy, violence, and fundamentalism. This ... Read More
Fifth Commandment: Honor Thy Father and Mother
Monday February 18, 2008
Is the Fifth Commandment something that everyone should obey? It's easy to argue that, as a general principle, honoring one's parents is a good idea. It would have been especially ... Read More
Shariah in Niger: Marriage & Sex with Prepubescent Girls
Monday February 18, 2008
When I wrote to criticize the remarks of the Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Willaims about introducing aspects of Shariah into British courts, I pointed out that we must remember the ... Read More
Book of the Week: True Religion
Monday February 18, 2008
Image courtesyPriceGrabber.com
Religion, particularly forms of religion that are fundamentalist or fervent in nature, have experienced explosive growth in recent decades. Many have found this to be strange, considering that great ... Read More
Atheists & Voting: How Can Atheists Vote to Positively Influence Government?
Sunday February 17, 2008
As citizens and voters, atheists of every nation have a vested interest in the direction which their country takes. Atheism may not entail any necessary positions which all atheists must, ... Read More
Forced to Vote at Church with Anti-Choice Propaganda
Sunday February 17, 2008
Many municipalities force citizens to vote at local churches where a person can be inundated with political and religious messages which those churches are permitted, by law, to promote. It ... Read More
Mailbag: Are You Qualified?
Sunday February 17, 2008
From: "Kit"
Subject: None
From what it looks like, Austin Cline is the only person making this site. Of the universities you have been to, it makes you sound quite impressive. However, ... Read More
Catholic Ten Commandments
Saturday February 16, 2008
The use of the term “Catholic” Ten Commandments is meant loosely because both Catholics and Lutherans follow this particular listing which is based upon the version found in Deuteronomy. This ... Read More
Vermont: Teacher Promotes Christianity in Class
Saturday February 16, 2008
Some Christian teachers in public schools seem to forget that they are state employees and, as such, they are acting as representatives of the state when they are on the ... Read More
Albert Einstein on the Role of God in Religious, Scientific Conflicts
Saturday February 16, 2008
What did Albert Einstein think about the role of God in modern conflicts? Einstein wrote: 'if this being is omnipotent, then every occurrence, including every human action, every human thought, ... Read More
Protestant Ten Commandments
Friday February 15, 2008
Protestants (which here refers to members of the Greek, Anglican, and Reformed traditions — Lutherans follow the “Catholic” Ten Commandments) usually use the form which appears in the first Exodus ... Read More
Atheist Kicked Out of Class for Not Standing During Pledge
Friday February 15, 2008
Because Christians have chosen the transform the Pledge of Allegiance into a religious oath, they have created conflict with atheists who don't believe in any gods, with theists who don't ... Read More
Third Reich Christianity: Nazi Germany as Implementation of a Christian Agenda
Friday February 15, 2008
Hitler and the Nazis are often cited as an example of the horrible crimes which atheists have committed in the 20th century. They are only assumed to be atheists, though, ... Read More
Originals & Sequels of the Ten Commandments
Thursday February 14, 2008
As many people are aware, but perhaps tend to forget, the Ten Commandments had to be written down twice. Moses got them once, but upon his return to camp he ... Read More
Female Muslim Medics: Hygiene Rules Violate Our Religion
Thursday February 14, 2008
Of all the attempts by religious believers to get exemptions from standard laws and regulations, those involving the health and safety of others — usually those not part of the ... Read More
Weekly Poll: Do you celebrate any holidays?
Thursday February 14, 2008
Ten Commandments as Treaty
Wednesday February 13, 2008
It has been suggested by some scholars that the Ten Commandments is best understood by comparing it to some of the treaties written during the same time period. Rather than ... Read More
Bullying a Student for Reading "The Golden Compass"
Wednesday February 13, 2008
Christians are supposedly the ones being persecuted in America, but when was the last time you heard about a Christian in public school having to endure organized bullying from multiple ... Read More
Forum Discussion: Tired of Souls and Spirits
Wednesday February 13, 2008
Just about every debate between atheists and theists ends up including discussion about the existence of supernatural, immortal, transcendent, immaterial souls. Religious theists typically insist that these souls are our ... Read More
Fourth Commandment: Remember the Sabbath, Keep It Holy
Tuesday February 12, 2008
This is the only ritualistic commandment in this particular listing, and curiously enough it is pretty much unique among ancient cultures. Nearly all religions have some sense of 'sacred time,' ... Read More
Kegerreis Outdoor Advertising OK with Anti-Atheist Bigotry
Tuesday February 12, 2008
Image © Austin Cline
Original Poster:University of Georgia
It's depressing to witness the degree to which people and organizations will tolerate anti-atheist bigotry when they would accept nothing remotely similar directed at ... Read More
Comment of the Week: Church Tithing or Religious Extortion?
Tuesday February 12, 2008
Christian churches and institutions like to portray themselves as being concerned primarily with the spiritual and transcendent — rather than squabbling over the problems of this world, they are focused ... Read More
Philosophy Fundamentals: What is Critical Thinking?
Monday February 11, 2008
The term 'critical thinking' is used, in one form or another, throughout this site - but what does it mean? Some may get the impression that it simply involves finding ... Read More
Archbishop of Canterbury: Equal Protection Under Law is Dangerous
Monday February 11, 2008
Archbishop of Canterbury,Dr Rowan Williams
Photo: Scott Barbour/Getty Images
One of the fundamental pillars of modern, liberal democracy is equality under the law: every citizen, no matter their race, gender, religion, wealth, ... Read More
Book of the Week: Thinking from A to Z
Monday February 11, 2008
Image courtesy PriceGrabber.com
Critical, skeptical thinking often isn't easy. It's not that it's unnatural, but more credulous attitudes are often easier to adopt and maintain because they take much less work. ... Read More
Christian Zionism: Religion as Law, Power, and Conquest
Sunday February 10, 2008
Even among conservative and fundamentalist Christians, Christian Zionists represent some of the most extreme and dangerous ideologues in American religion. Unfortunately, they are also very influential in conservative Christianity; the ... Read More
Bill to Ban Gay Pride Events in Jerusalem
Sunday February 10, 2008
Members of far-right orthodox political parties in Israel want a new law which would allow the Jerusalem city government to ban gay pride parades on the argument that they are ... Read More
Mailbag: Atheism Not Valid?
Sunday February 10, 2008
From: "Richard"
Subject: Question: Why do people choose to be atheists?
If you cannot refute a person's arguments for theism then how is it that you can now become an "atheist"? I ... Read More
Where is the Virgin Mary Today? Pareidolia: Seeing Religious Faces Everywhere
Saturday February 9, 2008
Image Source:Jupiter Images
Sometimes it seems that every other week, someone is claiming to see images of religious figures (Mary and Jesus are the most common) on walls, in windows, or ... Read More
Promoting Life Without Religion is Disrespectful & Intolerant
Saturday February 9, 2008
Atheists hear a lot about how they are "militant" and "fundamentalist" for being "disrespectful" of and "intolerant" towards religion. It's hard to come up with reasonable examples of this happening ... Read More
Defining Secularism: George Jacob Holyoake Coined the Term Secularism
Saturday February 9, 2008
The term secularism was created in 1846 by George Jacob Holyoake to describe 'a form of opinion which concerns itself only with questions, the issues of which can be tested ... Read More
Can Godless Atheists Have Moral Values?
Friday February 8, 2008
A popular claim among religious theists is that atheists have no basis for morality - that religion and gods are needed for moral values. Usually they mean their religion and ... Read More
Archbishop of Canterbury: Protect Religion with Laws Against "Cruel" Words
Friday February 8, 2008
Archbishop of Canterbury,Dr Rowan Williams
Photo: Scott Barbour/Getty Images
Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, recently delivered the James Callaghan Memorial Lecture in which admitted that Britain's current blasphemy laws were "unworkable" ... Read More
Unexplained vs. Unexplainable: How Theists Misunderstand Science
Friday February 8, 2008
Many theistic arguments in defense of the existence of a god involve arguing that certain events that have not yet been fully explained by naturalistic science are unexplainable in principle ... Read More
Godlessness: Conspiracy of Godless Atheists Against America
Thursday February 7, 2008
Christian Right attacks on atheists have helped ensure that atheists remain the most despised minority in America. These attacks are not a series of isolated criticisms; instead, they are integrated ... Read More
Kristof: Scorning People for Opinions is "Intrinsically Repugnant"
Thursday February 7, 2008
When religious believers have trouble responding substantively to the criticism of outsiders, a common and increasingly favorite tactic is to object to the very existence of criticism itself. A lack ... Read More
Weekly Poll: Has Western Culture Become Atheistic and Irreligious?
Thursday February 7, 2008
Do People Follow the Ten Commandments?
Wednesday February 6, 2008
There are lots of debates over the cultural and political status of the Ten Commandments, but in all of those debates there is a common assumption that devout religious people ... Read More
Archbishop: Catholics Should Be Allowed to Discriminate with Government Funding
Wednesday February 6, 2008
The Colorado legislature is considering a bill that would change which religious groups can be exempt from non-discrimination laws. Currently the exemptions appear to be fairly broad, but under the ... Read More
Forum Discussion: Power of Prayer
Wednesday February 6, 2008
It's common to find religious theists promoting reliance on prayer: they pray to change the weather, pray when people are sick, pray when others disagree with them, pray for politicians, ... Read More
What Do People Believe About the Ten Commandments?
Tuesday February 5, 2008
Many people today believe that the Ten Commandments are in and of themselves a proper moral code, but this position is very dubious. Although it does contain some basic moral ... Read More
Death to Blasphemers: Afghan Journalist Sentenced to Die
Tuesday February 5, 2008
If blasphemy is a significant offense against God, then when the state is given the authority to punish blasphemy, why not also do so with the death penalty? This seems ... Read More
Comment of the Week: Atheists Forsaking a Pardon
Tuesday February 5, 2008
A popular analogy among Christian apologists is to compare Jesus' death on the cross with a pardon from prison — especially a prison where one has been sentenced to death. ... Read More
Third Commandment: Thou Shalt Not Take the Name of the Lord in Vain
Monday February 4, 2008
What does it mean to 'take the name of the Lord thy God in vain'? That has been the subject of quite a bit of debate. Some have argued that ... Read More
Timothy Waldrop: Anti-Atheist Bigot Denying Own Bigotry
Monday February 4, 2008
One of the more interesting tricks which bigots use to defend themselves is to admit that, yes, they are bigots — but so is everyone else, so why are you ... Read More
Book of the Week: American Apocrypha: Essays on the Book of Mormon
Monday February 4, 2008
Image courtesyPriceGrabber.com
What’s the difference between authentic and inauthentic scripture? Is it age? Historical accuracy? Correct prophecies? These and many more criteria have been used to justify including writings in scriptural ... Read More
Godless Atheists as Scapegoats: Atheists are Scapegoats for the Christian Right
Sunday February 3, 2008
Attacks on minorities are frequently not about minorities themselves, but something else: they are scapegoats for something larger, usually something perceived to be a conspiracy against all that is right ... Read More
School Refuses to Promote, Privilege Christianity; Citizens & Parents Protest
Sunday February 3, 2008
The distribution of Gideon Bibles is a long-standing practice in many American public schools. Only in recent years have parents — some Christian — been willing to challenge this tradition. ... Read More
Mailbag: You Know God Exists
Sunday February 3, 2008
From: "Joe"
Subject: The Mind of the Atheist
While the never-ending mantra is "there is no god", deep down, the atheist knows all too well that God is real! The atheist, ... Read More
Punishment in Hell for the Deadly Sin of Lust: Smothered in Fire, Brimstone
Saturday February 2, 2008
Image Source:Jupiter Images
Lustful people, those guilty of committing the deadly sin of lust, will be punished in hell by being smothered in fire and brimstone. There doesn't appear to be ... Read More
Russia's Chief Rabbi: Militant Atheism Causes Genocide
Saturday February 2, 2008
Bigotry against atheists knows no religious or national boundaries. Although we are accustomed to seeing such bigotry from Christians in America, anti-atheist bigotry can be expressed by non-Christians elsewhere as ... Read More
Propaganda Poster: What Will it Take to Cause Christian Nationalism to Become Fully Fascist?
Saturday February 2, 2008
Image © Austin ClineOriginal Poster: Nazi Propaganda
Many are disturbed about far-right movements in America displaying too many characteristics of fascism. The central organizing ideology behind these groups is Christian Nationalism, ... Read More
Godless Science: Modern Science is Secular, Godless, Based On Naturalism
Friday February 1, 2008
A primary target of the Christian Right in America is secular, godless science. Modern science relies on methodological naturalism, which means that it doesn’t incorporate any supernatural or religious assumptions ... Read More
Church Using Sex on Billboards
Friday February 1, 2008
In Jacksonville, Florida, a church has been attracting a lot more attention and a lot more visitors because of a new billboard. It shows four bare feet sticking out from ... Read More
Power & Powerlessness: Religious Institutions Mask Political, Cultural Power
Friday February 1, 2008
Perhaps the best way for a group or person to exercise power in a manner that harms others is to convince people that one doesn't actually have any power to ... Read More