Updated Articles and Resources
- Religion in Public Schools - Role & Place of Religion in Public Scho…Created: 2009-11-17 @ 13:22:26 EST
The presence and extent of religion in public schools is one of the most difficult and contentious issues when it comes to the separation of church and state. On the one hand are those who sincerel… - School Vouchers - Vouchers for Private, Religious Schools…Created: 2009-11-17 @ 11:59:23 EST
Voucher supporters argue that with all the failing schools in America, vouchers are necessary in order for kids to receive the best possible education. Vouchers introduce competition, and parents w… - Arguments Against Vouchers - Private, Religious School Vouchers are …Created: 2009-11-17 @ 11:55:57 EST
Defenders of strict church/state separation and secular government also defend secular public education by opposing schemes to use vouchers to funnel public funds to private, religious schools. Sec… - Arguments For Vouchers - Defending Vouchers for Private, Religious S…Created: 2009-11-17 @ 11:35:13 EST Updated: 2009-11-17 @ 11:38:15 EST
Although voucher programs don't receive quite as much attention in the early 21st century as they did in the late 20th century, the Christian Right hasn't given up on their desire to use private, r… - School Prayers - Status of Prayers in Public Schools…Created: 2009-11-17 @ 10:57:36 EST
Prayer in public schools is a contentious issue, arousing the most anger and passion among people on both sides of the table. Can kids pray in school? Should kids pray in school? What role can or s… - Separation of Church and State 101Created: 2009-11-12 @ 15:18:11 EST
What is the separation of church and state? What does it mean for religion, religious organizations and the government? Does it really mean anything for people personally, or is it only a function … - James Madison's Memorial and RemonstranceCreated: 2009-11-12 @ 15:07:12 EST
There is a lot of disagreement and debate in America over the meaning and value of the separation of church and state. Some hold it to be inviolate while others deny that it does or should exist. I… - Memorial & Remonstrance - History of James Madison's Memorial & Remo…Created: 2009-11-12 @ 15:00:46 EST
As the author of the First Amendment, James Madison's views on religious freedom and church/state separation are as important as those of Thomas Jefferson. Madison's Memorial and Remonstrance was h… - What is the Separation of Church and State?Created: 2009-11-12 @ 11:48:45 EST
What is the separation of church and state? What does it mean for religion, religious organizations and the government? Does it really mean anything for people personally, or is it only a function … - Who's Who in the Separation of Church and State?…Created: 2009-11-12 @ 11:37:12 EST
The debate over separating church and state often proceeds as if there were only two sides - those who favor it and those who oppose it. In reality the debate involves a broad spectrum of possible … - Religion and the Public Square - Religion's Role in the Public Squar…Created: 2009-11-12 @ 11:27:23 EST
Does a 'naked public square' end up demeaning religion and discriminate against religious believers? No, because strict separation of church and state does not demean or discriminate against religi… - Memorial & Remonstrance - Full Text of James Madison's Memorial & Re…Created: 2009-11-09 @ 15:40:53 EST
James Madison believed firmly that, under the Constitution, 'there is not a shadow of right in the general government to intermeddle with religion' and that 'this subject is, for the honor of Ameri… - Patrick Henry's Bill Establishing A Provision for Teachers of the Ch…Created: 2009-11-09 @ 11:10:06 EST
The climax of the conflict between James Madison and Patrick Henry was the 1784-1785 struggle over Henry's Assessment Bill. This tax for the support of religion at first singled out a one sect for … - Thomas Jefferson's Virginia Act for Establishing Religious FreedomCreated: 2009-11-09 @ 11:04:25 EST
In 1779 as a member of the General Assembly, James Madison supported Thomas Jefferson's historic Bill for Establishing Religious Freedom; after Jefferson left for diplomatic duties in Europe in 178… - Redefining Religious Freedom - What is Religious Freedom?…Created: 2009-11-05 @ 15:14:46 EST
Religious conservatives are anxious to expand the power of religious organizations in America, even if that means undermining basic principles of religious freedom. Instead of treating religious fr… - Boerne v. Flores (1997) - Supreme Court Decision in Boerne v. FloresCreated: 2009-11-05 @ 11:49:11 EST
Should the government give special rights to religious believers and religious institutions which no atheist or secular institution can have access to? That's what the Congress did with the Religio… - Sherbert v. Verner (1963) - Supreme Court Decision in Sherbert v. Ve…Created: 2009-11-05 @ 11:31:19 EST
Employers find it easy to accommodate the religious practices of majority faiths, but the different practices of minority faiths require extra thought. Apparently, it's too much thought and effort … - Employment Division, Department of Human Resources of Oregon v. Smit…Created: 2009-11-05 @ 10:54:18 EST
Should religious groups be able to ignore generally applicable laws? If religious believers think that they have religious reasons for some activity that is otherwise illegal, should they be allowe… - School Prayer Cases - Court Rulings on Prayer in Public Schools…Created: 2009-11-03 @ 13:58:31 EST
To what extent, if any, may the government allow prayers at the graduation ceremonies of public schools? The answer is simple, although difficult to apply in practice: if the government has any say… - Santa Fe Independent School District v. Doe (2000)Created: 2009-11-03 @ 13:51:32 EST
One tactics used by conservative Christians to introduce more official prayers into schools is to get students to vote on prayers. In communities where one sort of Christianity dominates, the outco… - Cole v. Oroville Union High School (1999)Created: 2009-11-03 @ 13:28:01 EST
Are speeches given by students during graduation ceremonies fully private speech, protected by the First Amendment, or are they in some fashion also government-approved speeches, thus restricted by… - Religious Freedom Amendment - Does Religious Freedom Need Amending?Created: 2009-11-03 @ 13:12:01 EST
The Religious Freedom Amendment was defeated 224-203 in 1998, 61 votes short of the necessary 2/3 majority to change America's Constitution. The RFA was a dangerous manifestation of religious bigot… - Rise of a Theo-Libertarian State? Theo-Libertarianism in AmericaCreated: 2009-11-03 @ 12:35:01 EST
A libertarian state is one where the state is severely constrained in how it can act; a theocratic state is one where the laws are all based around religion. If some Christians have their way, Amer… - Jones v. Clear Creek School District (1992)Created: 2009-10-29 @ 12:23:46 EDT
If government officials do not have the authority to write prayers for public school students or even to encourage and endorse prayers, can they allow the students themselves vote on whether or not… - ACLU v. Black Horse Regional Board of Education (1995)Created: 2009-10-29 @ 12:20:41 EDT
Religious invocations, including sectarian prayer, are popular components of high school graduation ceremonies across America. Many Christians expect their religion to be part of graduation ceremon… - Wallace v. Jaffree (1985)Created: 2009-10-29 @ 12:15:32 EDT
Can public schools endorse or encourage prayer if they do so in the context of endorsing and encouraging 'silent meditation' as well? Some Christians thought this would be a good way to smuggle off… - Abington School District v. Schempp & Murray v. Curlett (1963)Created: 2009-10-29 @ 12:11:21 EDT
Do public school officials have the authority to pick a particular version or translation of the Christian Bible and have children read passages from that Bible every day? There was a time when suc… - Religious Freedom Restoration Act - RFRAs Redefine Religious FreedomCreated: 2009-10-27 @ 12:12:31 EDT
Does everyone remember the Religious Freedom Restoration Act? Enacted by the US Congress in 1993 and quickly signed into law by President Clinton it was ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court … - RLUIPA - Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons ActCreated: 2009-10-27 @ 11:53:10 EDT
Have you heard of the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA)? Not many are familiar with the RLUIPA, but everyone who cares about church/state separation needs to be familiar… - RLUIPA Origins - Origins of the RLUIPACreated: 2009-10-27 @ 11:23:28 EDT
Why was the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA) passed? A number of justifications have been offered, but none of them ring very true. Although the stated motivations behi… - RLUIPA Problems - Problems with the RLUIPACreated: 2009-10-27 @ 10:58:38 EDT
The Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA) is a bad law, through-and-through. Preventing government regulation from creating undue burdens on religious exercise is good, but … - RLUIPA Effects - The Effects of the RLUIPACreated: 2009-10-27 @ 10:41:32 EDT
The Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA) creates major changes in how the rule of law is balanced against religious liberty. Because of the RLUIPA, local governments may be… - Ten Commandments - Law, Religion, Politics and the Ten Commandments…Created: 2009-10-21 @ 15:43:45 EDT
The Ten Commandments have a lot of religious significance for Jews, Christians, and even Muslims. In America, though, they also have a lot of legal significance - not because they are the basis for… - Ten Commandments & Law: Social, Political, and Legal Issues…Created: 2009-10-21 @ 15:08:37 EDT
The Ten Commandants are first and foremost a religious document, describing a covenental relationship between the Jews and their god. It is, however, a religious document with many social and relig… - Ten Commandments: Religious Issues, Religious Debates…Created: 2009-10-21 @ 15:01:53 EDT
Because the Ten Commandments establish a covenant between the Jews and their god, it must be approached first and foremost as a religious document. Because Judaism is an important basis for both Ch… - Court Decisions on the Ten CommandmentsCreated: 2009-10-20 @ 20:57:15 EDT
Should displays of the Ten Commandments be allowed in public buildings? Should large monuments be erected on the grounds of courthouses or legislative buildings? Should there be posters of the Ten … - Graduation Prayers in Public Schools - Case Law on Graduation PrayersCreated: 2009-10-20 @ 20:49:00 EDT
Questions about the constitutionality of graduation and commencement prayers are difficult to answer because the case law varies across the nation. The Supreme Court hasn't had a lot to say about g… - Secularism 101 - History, Nature, Importance of Secularism…Created: 2009-10-13 @ 14:37:00 EDT
Secularism is one of the most important movements in the history of the modern West, helping differentiate the West not only from the Middle Ages and more ancient eras, but also from other cultural… - Secularism & Secularization - Importance for Secularism & Seculariza…Created: 2009-10-13 @ 14:15:22 EDT
Supporters of secularism and secularization can best rebut attacks from religious critics by emphasizing how the two are vital for democracy, personal liberty, and even religious freedom. Secularis… - Religious Holidays & Symbols - Can the State Endorse Religious Holid…Created: 2009-10-13 @ 11:50:12 EDT
Can the government take religious holidays and make official state holidays out of them? Is it an establishment of religion when a religious holy day becomes an official state holiday? Because Amer… - Blue Laws & Sabbatarianism - American Blue Laws Past & Present…Created: 2009-10-13 @ 11:40:20 EDT
Should the government try to keep certain businesses and activities 'off limits' on the sabbath of any particular religion? Is there a 'secular purpose' to mandating one particular day off which ju… - Blue Laws Today - Blue Laws & Sabbatarianism in Modern AmericaCreated: 2009-10-13 @ 11:27:05 EDT
Legal enforcement of a 'day of rest' was dormant until recent years, but cat-calls from the choir have been increasing. There is a subtext of anti-civil liberty ideology in defenses of blue laws. E… - Blue Laws - Origins of Blue Laws in AmericaCreated: 2009-10-13 @ 11:04:27 EDT
Blue laws, or sabbath laws, are attempts by some Christians to enforce a traditional Christian sabbath as a legally mandated day of rest for everyone. Courts have permitted this, but it violates ch… - Government Observances of Good Friday & Easter…Created: 2009-10-11 @ 17:58:11 EDT
Although making Christian holy days like Good Friday an official government holiday is a practice often accepted as a matter of course in the past, recently more and more people have begun to objec… - Good Friday & the Law - State of the Law for Good Friday HolidaysCreated: 2009-10-08 @ 15:49:30 EDT
Where does the law currently stand with regards to official government observances of the Christian holy days of Good Friday and Easter? What are governments allowed and not allowed to do? What are… - Good Friday & Easter - Should Government Observe Good Friday & Easte…Created: 2009-10-08 @ 14:47:49 EDT
Do state and local laws or policies which create holidays on Good Friday violate the separation of church and state? Is making Good Friday a public or school holiday is unconstitutional, or can the… - Church/State Myths - Myths About the Separation of Church & State…Created: 2009-10-08 @ 13:32:23 EDT
When discussing the separation of church and state, it quickly becomes apparent that there is a lot of misinformation, misunderstandings, and myths floating around which distort people's perception… - American Law & Government - Myths about American Law & Government…Created: 2009-10-08 @ 13:25:30 EDT
In order to argue against the legitimacy of separating church and state in America, many accommodationists make a variety of false claims about the nature of America's laws and government. The goal… - Government Chaplains - Are Official Government Chaplains Constitutio…Created: 2009-10-08 @ 13:13:15 EDT
Public funding of chaplains in the military, Congress, and other areas like prisons and the police creates a challenge for church/state separation. The existence of government chaplains doesn't pro… - Christmas Symbols & Holidays - Constitutional Problems with Christma…Created: 2009-10-06 @ 14:11:33 EDT
The latter part of the year in the United States is affectionately known as the "holiday season" and less affectionately known as the "silly season." This is the time of year wh… - Principle of Separation - Myths About the Principle of Church/State …Created: 2009-10-01 @ 14:31:16 EDT
The very idea of separating church and state continues to be controversial, despite how well it has worked for churches, governments, and citizens over so many years. Opponents of church/state sepa… - Constitutional Myths - Myths about United States Constitution…Created: 2009-10-01 @ 14:07:07 EDT
Lawsuits over violations of the separation of church and state rely on arguing that these are violations of people's constitutional rights. This means that confusing people with myths about what th… - Religion & Government - Myths About Relationship Between Religion & …Created: 2009-10-01 @ 13:35:16 EDT
In arguing against church/state separation, Christian Nationalists promote myths, misconceptions, and even lies about the relationship between religion and government. Confusing people about how re… - School Prayer Myths - Myths About Prayer in Public Schools…Created: 2009-10-01 @ 13:19:10 EDT
The status of religion generally and prayer in particular are very important for America's Christian Right. Many see public schools as a site of indoctrination: they think kids are already being in… - National Day of Prayer - Can the Government Encourage Prayer?Created: 2009-09-29 @ 14:05:14 EDT
Every year we have state-sanctioned, state-encouraged praying in the form of a 'National Day of Prayer' (NDP). This official recognition of prayer was crated in 1952, around the time that 'under Go… - Separation is Unbiblical - Is Church/State Separation Contrary to th…Created: 2009-09-29 @ 13:35:45 EDT
Most arguments against church/state separation are secular - philosophical, political, historical, etc. Sometimes, though, opponents of church/state separation use theological and religious argumen… - Separation is Anti-Religion - Is Church/State Separation Anti-Religi…Created: 2009-09-29 @ 13:30:41 EDT
One tactic against church/state separation is to portray separation as anti-religious. Because the American government cannot be hostile towards religion, it is argued that church/state separation … - Communist Church/State Separation - Is Church/State Separation a Com…Created: 2009-09-29 @ 13:22:51 EDT
Arguing that the concept of a 'separation of church and state' is an attempt by communists to control the United States used to be more common during the Cold War, but it still gets trotted out occ… - First Amendment & Federalism - Does First Amendment Apply to State G…Created: 2009-09-24 @ 12:27:52 EDT
Many opponents of church/state separation try to defend actions by state and local governments that promote or endorse religion by arguing that the First Amendment doesn't apply to them. These acco… - Thanksgiving Proclamations - Are Religious Proclamations of Thanksgi…Created: 2009-09-24 @ 12:10:56 EDT
Presidents have, at various times, called upon the nation to observe days of thanksgiving, fasting and/or prayer, but is this an indication that they did not believe in church/state separation? Or … - In God We Trust - Trusting in God as a National MottoCreated: 2009-09-24 @ 11:32:43 EDT
Opponents to church/state separation cite the national motto, 'In God We Trust,' as evidence that there is not and should not be a strict separation of church and state and that America is supposed… - School Prayers - Are Prayers Allowed in School?Created: 2009-09-22 @ 09:36:59 EDT
That's right, students should be allowed to pray in school - and they are! Some people act and argue as though students were not permitted to pray in school, but there is no truth to this. At best,… - School Prayer & Bible Reading - How Common were Prayer & Bible Readi…Created: 2009-09-22 @ 09:36:35 EDT
In their defense of state-sponsored Bible readings and state-written prayers, opponents of church/state separation sometimes argue that Supreme Court decisions which struck down those activities st… - America a Christian Nation - Is the United States a Christian Nation?Created: 2009-09-20 @ 16:18:32 EDT
Even some ostensible supporters of church/state separation think America is or was founded as a Christian Nation and this belief is very poplar among Christian Nationalists, Christian Supremacists … - Northwest Ordinance vs Separation - Northwest Ordinance & Teaching C…Created: 2009-09-20 @ 16:11:59 EDT
Opponents of church/state separation cite the Northwest Ordinance to prove that the authors of the Constitution didn't believe in strict separation of church and state. Enacted in 1787 under the Ar… - Jefferson & the Danbury Baptists - Jefferson's Letter to the Danbury…Created: 2009-09-17 @ 16:16:15 EDT
One tactic used by opponents of church/state separation is to discredit the origin of the phrase 'wall of separation,' as if that would be very relevant to the importance and value of the principle… - America, a Christian Nation - Supreme Court Ruled America is a Chris…Created: 2009-09-17 @ 15:55:09 EDT
There are many Christians who sincerely and even vociferously believe that America is a Christian Nation. One argument they offer on behalf of this is that the Supreme Court has official declared A… - Secular Humanism & Religion - Is Secular Humanism a Religion?Created: 2009-09-17 @ 12:28:07 EDT
Apologists for theocracy sometimes argue that not only is Secular Humanism a religion, but in fact that the Supreme Court has officially ruled that Secular Humanism is a religion. They then proceed… - Religion & Good Government - Is Religion Needed for Good Government?Created: 2009-09-17 @ 12:10:57 EDT
Many opponents of church/state separation offer an argument which also seems to be a motivation behind their efforts to blend church and state: good government isn't possible without religion and r… - One Way Separation - Does Church/State Separation Only Go One Way?Created: 2009-09-17 @ 11:39:39 EDT
One popular tactic of opponents of church/state separation is to pretend to accept that separation exists, but then to ague that separation church and state only works one way: the state is prevent… - Prayer & School Performance - Did School Performance Decline Without…Created: 2009-09-13 @ 16:40:02 EDT
Many opponents of church/state separation allege that any growth in social ills like crime, drug abuse, and teen pregnancy are all due to the removal of government-sponsored prayer and Bible readin… - Sundays Excepted Clause - Christian Sabbath & the Sundays Excepted C…Created: 2009-09-13 @ 16:30:57 EDT
Article I, section 7 of the Constitution is the 'Sundays Excepted Clause' and is sometimes used by opponents of church/state separation to argue that the Constitution was designed to reinforce Chri… - Constitution & Jesus - Jesus is Not in the ConstitutionCreated: 2009-09-13 @ 15:23:27 EDT
Accommodationists and others opposed to the separation of church and state sometimes argue that government support and defense of Christianity is justified because the American Constitution refers … - Christianity vs. The Constitution - Christian Principles in the Cons…Created: 2009-09-10 @ 18:50:43 EDT
Opponents of church/state separation sometimes claim that the Constitution embodies or reflects fundamental Christian morals and principles. Their point seems to be that we should regard the Consti… - Leonardo Da Vinci - Profile & Biography of Leonardo Da VinciCreated: 2009-09-08 @ 15:26:25 EDT
Leonardo Da Vinci is usually thought of first and foremost as an artist but he was also a very important humanist, scientist, and naturalist in the Renaissance. These aspects of Leonardo's life and… - Evolution Chronology - Chronology of Events in Evolutionary TheoryCreated: 2009-09-01 @ 12:08:24 EDT
The development and events surrounding the theory of evolution can be as interesting as the progress of evolution itself. From the life of Charles Darwin to the various legal battles in America ove… - Virtual Child Pornography - Should Virtual Child Porn Be Banned?Created: 2009-09-01 @ 09:42:10 EDT
The Christian Right's war on pornography and any sexuality that deviates from their standards creates a lot of collateral damage, including free speech. No one is likely to defend child pornography… - Evidence for Evolution - Is There Evidence for Evolution?Created: 2009-08-25 @ 16:09:57 EDT
In debates over evolution and creationism, it is common for creationists' to demand for "proof" of evolution (common descent). Science doesn't deal in absolute proofs, though. Scientific … - Evidence of Creationism - Is There Evidence for Creationism?Created: 2009-08-25 @ 15:57:20 EDT
Is there evidence that supports the 'theory' of (fundamentalist) creationism? Because creation theory in general does not have specified boundaries, just about anything could be considered 'evidenc… - Direct Evidence for Evolution - Evidence for Evolutionary TheoryCreated: 2009-08-25 @ 11:21:46 EDT
The direct evidence for common descent and evolution are enabling evidences. They demonstrate that common descent is possible and maybe even likely. However, they don't conclusively show that commo… - Observation & Evidence for Evolution - What We Observe of EvolutionCreated: 2009-08-25 @ 11:09:04 EDT
Creationists like to argue that evolution can't be science because we can't directly observe evolution in action — and since science requires direct observation, evolution is necessarily exclu… - Technology and Religion, Technology as ReligionCreated: 2009-08-24 @ 21:51:14 EDT
Many secularists and nonbelievers of various sorts tend to regard religion and science as fundamentally incompatible. This incompatibility is also imagined to extend to the relationship between rel… - Evolution & Public Schools - History of Teaching Evolution in Public…Created: 2009-08-23 @ 16:18:43 EDT
Evolution is the only area of science that courts have to render decisions on. No one initiates lawsuits over the teaching of gravity, physics, chemistry, or any other part of the science curriculu… - Evolution and Creationism in Public SchoolsCreated: 2009-08-23 @ 16:11:33 EDT
Should schools be able to teach scientific creationism? Should schools teach about evolution? Is evolution a religion? These are some of the questions courts at all levels have had to wrestle with … - Evolution & Creationism Court Cases - History of Evolution Court Cas…Created: 2009-08-23 @ 15:56:24 EDT
In addition to usually losing political fights, creation science supporters also lose in the courts as well. Regardless of what arguments they try to use, the courts inevitably find that teaching c… - Inferential Evidence for Evolution - Evidence for Inferring EvolutionCreated: 2009-08-23 @ 12:14:35 EDT
Inferential evidence for evolution is evidence that does not involve direct observation of evolution but from which we can infer that evolution has occurred. The three main kinds of inferential evi… - Usefulness of Evolution - How is Evolution Useful?Created: 2009-08-23 @ 11:51:57 EDT
Theodosius Dobzhansky, one of the 20th century's most eminent evolutionary biologists, had it right when he said, 'Nothing in biology makes sense except in light of evolution.' Evolution is the con… - Observing Evolution - How Evolution Has Been ObservedCreated: 2009-08-23 @ 11:42:41 EDT
The most basic direct evidence of evolution is our direct observation of evolution occurring. This is also the most basic lie which creationists tell about evolution because they constantly claim t… - Genetics & Mutations - How Genetic Mutations Drive EvolutionCreated: 2009-08-23 @ 10:54:24 EDT
The basic definition of evolution is a change in the gene pool of a population of organisms over time. All of evolution is based on genetic change. Scientists still have a lot to learn about the wo… - Homologies & Evolution - Homologies as Inferential Evidence for Evol…Created: 2009-08-23 @ 10:12:43 EDT
Homology has a specific meaning in evolution, but I will not be using that to avoid circular reasoning - we can't 'prove' evolution using terms that assume evolution. I will use a more general mean… - Fossils & Evolution - Fossil Evidence Supports EvolutionCreated: 2009-08-23 @ 10:08:07 EDT
When you hear talk of evidence for evolution, the first thing that frequently comes to mind for most people are fossils. The fossil record has one important, unique characteristic: it is our only a… - Hierarchy of Life - How the Hierarchy of Life Points to EvolutionCreated: 2009-08-23 @ 09:44:25 EDT
The many homologies between living organisms offer powerful evidence for evolution in and of themselves. However, there is another way of looking at the data that ties the various homologies togeth… - Junk DNA - Junk DNA & EvolutionCreated: 2009-08-22 @ 09:34:47 EDT
The most interesting genetic homologies are in junk DNA. Often called "noncoding DNA," junk DNA has no apparent function or produce no protein but may help regulate the gene. When DNA is … - Genetic & Protein Homologies - How Genetic & Protein Homologies Prov…Created: 2009-08-22 @ 09:29:06 EDT
Biochemical homologies provide some of the strongest evidence for evolution - partly because of the level of detail they provide and partly because the nature of some of the homologies makes any ex… - Embryonic Homologies - How Embryonic Homologies Support EvolutionCreated: 2009-08-22 @ 09:22:59 EDT
Most anatomical homologies, whether active or vestigial, are present in the adult members of a species. A few anatomical homologies, however, only appear briefly during the embryonic stage of an an… - Vestigial Organs - What Vestigial Organs Say about EvolutionCreated: 2009-08-22 @ 09:18:34 EDT
Most of the obvious anatomical homologies are between anatomical structures which are in active use by the species in question, but some anatomical homologies involve structures which are no longer… - Anatomical Homologies - Anatomical Homologies and EvolutionCreated: 2009-08-22 @ 09:14:58 EDT
Anatomical homologies are morphological or physiological similarities between different species of plants or animals. Comparative anatomy, which is the study of anatomical homologies, is the source… - Evolution is a Scientific Theory - Evolution Meets the Criteria for …Created: 2009-08-21 @ 08:15:37 EDT
Creationists frequently complain that evolution isn't valid or genuine science, but exactly the opposite is the case: evolution meets the criteria generally accepted by scientists as defining scien… - Evolution & Creationism in Kansas - Kansas' Role in Evolution DenialCreated: 2009-08-19 @ 21:13:55 EDT
The debate over evolution grabs political headlines every so often, but more often in Kansas than elsewhere. Evolution is unique among scientific subjects in that it seems to be the only one which … - Biogeography & Evolution - How Biogeography Supports EvolutionCreated: 2009-08-19 @ 21:06:37 EDT
Biogeography is the study of the the distribution of life forms over geographical areas. Biogeography not only provides significant inferential evidence for evolution and common descent, but it als… - Evolution Textbook Disclaimers: Should Biology Texts Have Disclaimer…Created: 2009-08-19 @ 17:25:35 EDT
In recent years a popular tactic among creationists has been to get 'disclaimers' put in school science texts. Because creationist efforts to have creationism taught alongside evolution have failed… - Scopes Monkey Trial - History, Trial, and Aftermath of the Scopes Mo…Created: 2009-08-19 @ 17:20:21 EDT
The Scopes Monkey Trial is one of the most (in)famous and celebrated legal cases in American history. It is one of the earliest cases labeled "trial of the century," applied so often that… - Scopes Monkey Trial Aftermath - What the Scopes Monkey Trial MeantCreated: 2009-08-19 @ 09:13:21 EDT
John Scopes lost the Scopes Monkey Trial, but many have incorrectly perceived it as a victory for evolution, science, and rationalism. It did put a spotlight on fundamentalism, holding it up to rid… - Scopes Monkey Trial: Myth vs. History of the Scopes Monkey TrialCreated: 2009-08-19 @ 09:05:26 EDT
The so-called 'Scopes Monkey Trial' began July 10, 1925, in Dayton, Tennessee, when high school biology teacher John T. Scopes (1900-70), faced court proceedings on the charge of having taught evol… - Scopes Monkey Trial Background - Context of the Scopes Monkey TrialCreated: 2009-08-19 @ 09:00:30 EDT
Darwin's publications initially met great resistance in Victorian England because they were widely regarded as an immediate threat to many traditional doctrines of Christianity. Even many scientist… - Intelligent Design Creationism - What is Intelligent Design?Created: 2009-08-17 @ 21:31:57 EDT Updated: 2009-08-18 @ 09:21:38 EDT
Intelligent Design is the most recent form of creationism, but its roots are very old. Intelligent Design is based upon the idea that we can deduce the existence of God from the existence of design… - Transitional Fossils & Evolution - What Are Transitional Fossils?Created: 2009-08-17 @ 20:43:49 EDT
Fossils that show intermediate characteristics are called transitional fossils - they have characteristics that are intermediate in nature to organisms that existed both prior to it and after it. T… - Evolution & Law - Why Care About Laws on Teaching Evolution?Created: 2009-08-17 @ 20:22:02 EDT
Does it really matter if legislatures try to limit or eliminate the teaching of evolution? Is it all that important when school boards try to force science teachers to include non-scientific theori… - Evolution & Religion - The Relationship Between Evolution & ReligionCreated: 2009-08-13 @ 14:43:30 EDT
Very often, it seems as though evolution and religion must be locked in a desperate struggle of life and death - and for some religious beliefs, perhaps that impression is accurate. However, the fa… - Life - How Did It Get Here? Jehovah's Witnesses on EvolutionCreated: 2009-08-13 @ 14:25:43 EDT
Published by the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, the book Life: How did it get here? By evolution or by creation? is the standard reference work on evolution and creationism for Jehovah's Witne… - Evolution & Atheism - Does Evolution Require Atheism?Created: 2009-08-13 @ 13:39:40 EDT
One thing which seems to cause many people to be inclined to reject evolution is the idea, perpetuated by fundamentalists and creationists, that evolution and atheism are deeply intertwined. Accord… - Evolution vs. Religion - Does Evolution Contradict Religion?Created: 2009-08-13 @ 13:34:07 EDT
Evolution is a scientific subject, but sometimes it seems to be the subject of more non-scientific debate than genuine scientific discussion. The most fundamental debate over evolution is arguably … - Evolution vs. Creationism - Does Evolution Contradict Creationism?Created: 2009-08-13 @ 13:27:44 EDT
Debates about evolution in America typically take the form of a contest or conflict between two competing ideas, evolutionary theory and creationism. Because of this, it is generally assumed that t… - Evolution vs Christianity - Does Evolution Contradict Christianity?Created: 2009-08-13 @ 13:23:13 EDT Updated: 2009-08-13 @ 13:28:17 EDT
It seems like Christianity should be compatible with evolutionary theory - after all, many churches (including the Catholic Church) and many Christians accept evolution as scientifically accurate. … - Astrology: Who Cares?Updated: 2009-12-09 @ 17:30:54 EST
Who cares about astrology? Does it really matter if astrology is fake? What is the point of criticizing it?… - Atheism & Anti-Theism: What's the Difference? What is Anti-Theism? A…Updated: 2009-12-07 @ 16:11:12 EST
Atheism and anti-theism so often occur together at the same time and in the same person that it's understandable if many people fail to realize that they aren't the same. Making note of the differe… - Mike Huckabee on America's Secular Constitution: Amending the Consti…Updated: 2009-11-24 @ 15:38:26 EST
Republican Mike Huckabee openly advocates amending the U.S. Constitution to transform it from a secular document designed to create a secular, civil government into a religious document designed to… - Astrology FAQ: CritiquesUpdated: 2009-11-13 @ 11:21:31 EST
Critiques of Astrology: some astrologers claim that there are statistical correlations between celestial groupings and personality traits - but is that true and, if so, does it mean anything?… - Atheism for Beginners - The Very Basic Facts About Atheism for Begin…Updated: 2009-10-06 @ 13:45:59 EDT
There are a lot of resources here about atheism for beginners: what atheism is, what it isn't, and refutations of many popular myths about atheism. I've discovered, though, that it isn't always eas… - Creches & Nativity Displays - Are Public Creches & Nativity Displays…Updated: 2009-10-06 @ 09:10:48 EDT
Surely the most obvious and divisive of the holiday questions is that of religious displays in public. These generate the most discussion, the most debate, and of course the most lawsuits - includi… - Schools and Religious Holidays - How Can Schools Recognize Holidays?Updated: 2009-10-06 @ 09:01:33 EDT
Traditionally, public schools in America have been very explicit in their celebration of the holiday season - for students, it was a Christmas holiday season, a Christmas break, and celebratory eve… - Naked Public Square - What Is Religion's Place in the Public Square?Updated: 2009-10-06 @ 08:50:49 EDT
Quite often, debates about the appropriate relationship between religion and government involved the appropriate place of religion in the so-called 'Public Square.' This public square might be mean… - Hostility to Religion - Do Secularism & Separation Express Hostility…Updated: 2009-10-06 @ 08:44:40 EDT
One of the common arguments raised by those who object to the limitations placed upon how the government accommodates religious beliefs is that such limitations are an expression of hostility. Norm… - Religious vs. Secular Christmas - Is Christmas a Religious or Secula…Updated: 2009-10-06 @ 08:44:31 EDT
Americans all over the country in all walks of life look forward to getting a day off on December 25, a day which has traditionally (and almost certainly erroneously) been celebrated as the birth d… - Myth: Militant Atheists are Atheist Fundamentalists, a New Atheism -…Updated: 2009-10-03 @ 08:06:30 EDT
There seems to be an increasing number of people responding to atheist critiques of religion or theism by labeling the person a "fundamentalist" atheist. The label is problematic because … - Phoenician Alphabet: Language, Writing, Alphabets Reveal Cultural Co…Updated: 2009-09-27 @ 19:41:24 EDT
In the above image, just a piece of a larger chart, standard Egyptian hieroglyphs appear to the left and next to them is Hieratic, a cursive script derived from the hieroglyphs. Next to that is Pho… - Columns of Greek Temples: Secular and Religious Meanings - Doric, Io…Updated: 2009-09-27 @ 19:38:27 EDT
One of the most prominent features of Greek temples is their columns - although columns appear in architecture all around the world, they appear here in an especially significant form. The ancient … - Leonardo Da Vinci: Last Supper, painting by Leonardo Da Vinci, 1498,…Updated: 2009-09-27 @ 19:32:23 EDT
One interesting claim made by Dan Brown and followers of his ideas is that there is no cup in Leonardo Da Vinci's Last Supper. They use this as evidence for the idea that the 'real' Holy Gail wasn'… - Self Portrait of Leonardo Da Vinci: Who Was Leonardo Da Vinci? Leona…Updated: 2009-09-27 @ 19:26:30 EDT
Leonardo Da Vinci, born in the village of Vinci in Tuscany, Italy, on April 15, 1452, was one of the most important artistic figures of the Renaissance. While people may realize that he as an impor… - Pledge of Allegiance & God: Linking Patriotism with Piety (Church/St…Updated: 2009-09-24 @ 12:34:58 EDT
Because of the words "under God," many regard the Pledge of Allegiance not simply as an expression of patriotism, but also as an expression of religious piety. Furthermore, it has been us… - Establishment of a National Church: Does the First Amendment Only Pr…Updated: 2009-09-24 @ 12:33:55 EDT
This myth relies on one of two misunderstandings. The first is that the First Amendment guarantee of religious liberty is only about preventing the government from setting up some particular church… - Freedom From Religion vs. Freedom of Religion Myth: You Have Freedom…Updated: 2009-09-24 @ 12:33:22 EDT
This claim is common, but it rests on a misunderstanding of what real freedom of religion entails. The most important thing to remember is that freedom of religion, if it is going to apply to every… - Separation of Church and State: Is It In The Constitution? If It's N…Updated: 2009-09-24 @ 12:31:02 EDT
It is true that the phrase ‘separation of church and state‘ does not actually appear anywhere in the Constitution. There is a problem, however, in that some people draw incorrect conclusi… - Declaration of Independence & Christianity Myth: Does the Declaratio…Updated: 2009-09-22 @ 09:38:54 EDT
Many have argued against the separation of church and state by pointing to the Declaration of Independence. They believe that the text of this document supports the position that the United States … - God in Public School - Was God Expelled from Public Schools?Updated: 2009-09-22 @ 09:37:22 EDT
Many opponents to church/state separation try to claim that God was 'kicked out of schools' back in the 1960s - that God was somehow a part of the standard school day in the 1950s and earlier, but … - Madalyn Murray O?Hair and School Prayer Myth: Did an Atheist Get Bib…Updated: 2009-09-22 @ 09:36:15 EDT
An outspoken atheist, Madalyn Murray O'Hair has long been an object of hatred and fear for the Religious Right. It is thus not surprising that they placed the blame on her alone for the elimination… - Lebanon & Ancient Phoenicia: Photos & Images of Religion, Culture, H…Updated: 2009-09-22 @ 09:05:41 EDT
Lebanon is often in the news today in the context of political and religious conflicts throughout the region. Not everyone is aware, however, of the fact that this same area has played an important… - Torture & Sexual Repression: How the Torture of Witches Revealed the…Updated: 2009-09-13 @ 17:44:33 EDT
Interrogations of witches followed many standard Inquisition procedures, but with some added bonuses. Accused witches were all stripped naked, had all of their body hair shaved of, and then pricked… - Atheism vs. Agnosticism: What's the Difference? Are they Alternative…Updated: 2009-09-13 @ 17:30:36 EDT
Many people who adopt the label of agnostic reject the label of atheist - there is a common perception that agnosticism is a more "reasonable" position while atheism is more "dogmati… - Responses to Nihilism: Despair vs. Embrace in Postmodern NihilismUpdated: 2009-09-08 @ 10:07:44 EDT
Many of the most common responses to the basic premises of nihilism come down to despair: despair over the loss of God, despair over the loss of objective and absolute values, and/or despair over t… - Religious Authority vs. Secular Authority: Religious Authority and C…Updated: 2009-08-26 @ 16:56:14 EDT
One issue which faces all systems of religious authority is how to structure their relationship with the rest of civil society. Even when the form of government is theocratic and therefore controll… - Atheism & Disbelief - What Does it Mean that Atheists Disbelieve in …Updated: 2009-08-21 @ 21:41:34 EDT
Atheists who try to explain what atheism is and is not encounter significant hurdles created by the failure of so many people to understand basic terms like belief, disbelief, knowledge, and faith… - Types of Creationism - What Types of Creationism Exist?Updated: 2009-08-18 @ 09:22:52 EDT
Like evolution, creationism can have more than one meaning. At its most basic, creationism is the belief that the universe was created by a deity of some sort - but after that, there is quite a lot… - Image Gallery: Leonardo Da Vinci, Dan Brown's The Da Vinici Code, Ch…Updated: 2007-05-15 @ 12:45:08 EDT
The popularity of Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code book is enormous; unfortunately, its errors and deceptiveness are equally enormous. Some defend it by saying that it's a work of fiction, which is tr… - Persecuting Witches & Witchcraft: Christian Persecution of Witches, …Updated: 2006-09-12 @ 13:35:21 EDT
Witches have long been feared and hated in Christian circles. Even today, pagans and Wiccans remain a target of Christian persecution -- especially in America. It seems that they long ago took on a…