For many young Christians, the belief in the literal resurrection of Jesus has become their primary justification for belief in the entire Christian system. One argument they use in particular is that they don’t believe that the apostles would have died for a lie. These particular Christians often tell me how many of the apostles […]
Filed under: delusion, Die for a Lie, Religion | 2 Comments »
Christians often tell me that as an atheist I must believe in nothing. This couldn’t be further from the truth. Atheism refers to what I don’t believe in, but doesn’t say anything about I do believe in. So when asked, tell them that I believe in Star Wars. Today is Star Wars Day. On May […]
Filed under: Alternative Worldview, humanism, Star wars | 1 Comment »
Usually I discuss religion with Christians since Christianity is the majority religion in America however from time to time I get drawn into a conversation/debate with someone from one of the other Abrahamic religions. Interestingly enough, the arguments aren’t any different. Last year for example, I got into a pretty lengthy religious conversation with my […]
Filed under: conversation, discussion, islam, Religion, Religious Manipulation | 1 Comment »
Professor Stephen Hawking recently stated that aliens almost certainly exist and that it is probably unwise for humans to attempt to contact them at this time. Sure, in the context of his Discovery Channel television series such a statement seems innocent enough, but what the smartest man on the planet didn’t foresee was that every […]
Filed under: culture war, Current Events, ignorance, palin, Religion, The Future | 9 Comments »
One of the main reasons why the Catholic Church attempted to cover up the abuses that their priests where engaged in was because it would ultimately impact on the Church’s bottom line. The Catholic Church is after all a business. I read an article the other day which talked about how a lot of accused […]
Filed under: Catholics, morality, Religion | 3 Comments »
Last weekend two young Jehovah’s Witnesses knocked on my door. While most people would probably slam the door in their faces, I was happy to engage them in conversation. These two young women were probably college aged and they were happy to talk about their religion. When they asked if they could talk to me […]
Filed under: conversation, Jehovah's Witness, Preaching, Religion | 13 Comments »
A lot of discussions that I have with religious believers (usually Christians) all come back to the same really obvious and central problem that I have with religious belief. I really just don’t get it. Let’s face facts here, religion tells some pretty fanciful stories. If any rational person (even religious person) heard these stories […]
Filed under: delusion, logic, Religion | 9 Comments »
On a level playing field, good ideas are accepted and bad ideas are rejected. However, the world is still filled with bad ideas. If the premise is true and the conclusion is true, then we must assume that there isn’t always a level playing field in the free market of ideas. We know that the […]
Filed under: anti-intellectualism, culture war, Decline of Religion, logic, Religion | 4 Comments »
Society has been so dominated by Judeo-Christian beliefs that even people who don’t believe in a god are still brainwashed into using God language. How many times have you said, “God bless you” after someone sneezes? “God Bless you” is just one example and many non-religious people have started to use other phrases instead of […]
Filed under: atheism, culture war, language, People of Reason, Religious Manipulation | 14 Comments »
Atheism is on the rise in America and the world and as such we have become a bigger target for religionists. Many religious people attempt to make it seem like being a vocal atheist is something new and militant but the fact is that there is nothing new, mean, or hateful about criticizing ridiculous ideas. […]
Filed under: atheism, Atheism NOT Religion, censorship, culture war, Decline of Religion, People of Reason, Religion | 5 Comments »
When it comes to science, so many Christians are quick to point out how scientists don’t know everything or how science gets it all wrong. They push to put their Creationist beliefs into science classes, argue against scientific research on stem-cells, and on global climate change. They just seem to hate science. Of course, not […]
Filed under: anti-intellectualism, culture war, faith, global climate change, miracles, Religion, science | 10 Comments »
Back in the day, there was a popular religious phrase that people used. People didn’t ask whether someone believed in God but rather asked if you were a “God fearing” individual. In the age of public relations and individual empowerment, theists no longer use this phrase. Today, people don’t like to be afraid. When most […]
Filed under: God Fearing, Religion | 11 Comments »
One of the big issues that I often have with fundamentalist religious people is that more often than not they will make wild accusations about atheists and sometimes these accusations even come in the form of a question. These questions often have implied answers which are not true and are just mean spirited toward atheists. […]
Filed under: atheism, conversation, Hope, Religion | 9 Comments »
A number of years ago, when I was doing the Dangerous Talk radio show on WCUR 91.7 FM in West Chester, I had a fundamentalist Christian preacher on. This particular preacher would travel to different Universities and tell everyone that they were going to Hell… even the other fundamentalists Christians. In any case, I invited […]
Filed under: blood sacrifice, morality, Religion, the bible | 10 Comments »
Yesterday, two of my favorite authors verbally attacked each other on the interweb pages of foreignpolicy.com. Sam Harris and Karen Armstrong have both written outstanding books. As an atheist, I frequently recommend Armstrong’s The History of God and The Bible: A Biography to Christians. I also recommend Harris’s Letter to a Christian Nation. Armstrong asserts […]
Filed under: atheism, education, People of Reason, Religion, Vague Higher Power | 5 Comments »
Over the break, I got a lot of e-mails asking me about my de-conversion story. To be honest, my story isn’t that interesting. I was never a fundamentalist nor did I have a lot of family pressure to stay religious. But it’s a new year, so I guess I’ll tell the story. First, it is […]
Filed under: atheism, conversation, de-conversion, Religion, Religious Manipulation | 6 Comments »
Today I have heard probably the single worst argument for the existence of God that I have ever heard. This argument is so stupid that it amazes me what lengths people go with mental gymnastics in order to justify their imaginary friend. If people are indoctrinated into belief in God and people are manipulated by […]
Filed under: god, image of god, Ontological Argument, Projection, Religion | 9 Comments »
There have been quite a few people who have told me that valued friends and family members have defriended them on one of the many social networking sites like facebook or myspace because they posted atheistic opinions. While I am pretty open about my lack of belief in ancient superstitions, I do have some theistic […]
Filed under: conversation, discussion, facebook, People of Reason, Religion, responsibility | 16 Comments »
Thanksgiving can be a difficult time of year for many in the greater atheist community who have to sit and interact with our usually more religious family members. In such settings, the topic of religion is almost certainly going to come up. Every atheist is in a different situation on this holiday. Some have pretty […]
Filed under: conversation, People of Reason, Religion, thanksgiving | 4 Comments »
Last week, I got a nasty e-mail from a fellow atheist about one of my blogs. This atheist didn’t agree with my approach to religion and thinks that we ought not to offend the religious in any way. He claimed that my view of atheism reflects negatively on all atheists. I wonder, does that mean […]
Filed under: atheism, Atheism NOT Religion, Religion | 7 Comments »
Fundamentalist Christians constantly say that God has been banned from public school. That is a lie. God has not been “banned” from public schools at all. If a child wants to pray to God, Jesus, Allah, Xenu, or Ringo Star before, during, or even after a test, they are absolutely free to do so. While […]
Filed under: culture war, education, free speech, prayer, Preaching, Religion | 28 Comments »
After 9-11, some people started to realize that the terrorist attacks were faith based initiatives. Many of those same people then realized that America responded with faith rather than reason. As a result, atheists started to speak up and many became much more vocal about their lack of belief and their criticism of belief. The […]
Filed under: atheism, People of Reason, Religion | 15 Comments »
Yesterday, I posted an article on Examiner about near-death experiences. As it turns out, science can explain the experiences that many people have in this regard which tends to lead many people to believe in an afterlife and God. This article got a conversation going with a few people who wrote to me telling me […]
Filed under: death, god of the gaps, Religion | 8 Comments »
Theists always ask me why I don’t believe in God. I usually rattle off any number of reasons why I think that the whole idea of God is ridiculous, silly, and illogical. Somehow, that doesn’t seem to convince them since they tend to ask me the same question again at a later time. I guess […]
Filed under: conversation, discussion, god, missionaries, Religion | 14 Comments »
Just like all cults, fundamentalist Christianity seems to have its own vocabulary. There are certain terms that seem to have pretty standard meanings, but when used in the fundamentalist Christian context they tend to mean almost the exact opposite. The most overused term I hear is “Truth” with a capital “T.” To most people, something […]
Filed under: 1984, conversation, discussion, Religion | 3 Comments »
Many theists complain to me that I shouldn’t criticize religion because it makes them happy. They accuse me of “trying to take away their happiness.” I find this accusation to be a sad attempt at a conversation stopper. For starters, I don’t think I am trying to take anyone’s happiness away any more than drug […]
Filed under: atheism, de-conversion, Evils of Christianity, god, morality, Religion, the bible | 7 Comments »
If someone owed you a hundred dollars and handed you 10 cents insisting that it was a hundred dollars, what would you do? Would it be considered proselytizing to inform them of reality? Would you claim that they are entitled to their belief? What if someone told you that they sincerely believed Elvis was still […]
Filed under: atheism, Atheism NOT Religion, delusion, Religion | 20 Comments »
We live in a world that is dominated by religious belief. Often times, well meaning people insert their religious belief into casual conversation. This is socially acceptable behavior in our society. When this happens, an atheist is put in an awkward position. We don’t want to send the message that it is acceptable for religious […]
Filed under: conversation, discussion, Preaching, Religion | 11 Comments »
A recent conversation I had reminded me of one of my favorite YouTube videos by God Is Imaginary. But before I post that video, I want to talk about these bubbles a little bit. I find that most Christians think that they have the only correct answer to the religion question. Not only do most […]
Filed under: delusion, Real Christians, Religion | 11 Comments »
Are religious believers stupid? I get this question all the time ironically enough I get it the most from religious believers. My answer to this question is almost always the same. “Smart people can believe stupid things.” There is no doubt that the belief in the all-powerful god as described in the Torah/Bible/Koran based off […]
Filed under: atheism, de-conversion, god of the gaps, Religion, Religious Manipulation | 28 Comments »
