#4 of 10 Reasons You Should Never Have a Religion
While consciously pursuing your spiritual development is commendable, joining an established religion such as Christianity, Islam, or Hinduism is one of the worst ways to go about it. In this article I’ll share 10 reasons why you must eventually abandon the baggage of organized religion if you wish to pursue conscious living in earnest.
Since Christianity is currently the world’s most popular religion, I’ll slant this article towards Christianity’s ubiquitous failings. However, you’ll find that most of these points apply equally well to other major religions (yes, even Buddhism).
4. Toilet-bowl time management.
If you devote serious time to the practice of religion, it’s safe to say you practice toilet-bowl time management, flushing much of your precious life down the drain with little or nothing to show for it.
First, you’ll waste a lot of time filling your head with useless nonsense. This includes reading some of the worst fiction ever written. Then there are various rules, laws, and practices to learn.
Seriously, if you have insomnia, try reading religious texts before bedtime. You’ll be asleep faster than you can say Methuselah. Why do you think hotels put Bibles next to the bed? It’s the greatest sedative known to man. I have to give props to the Scientologists for at least incorporating space aliens into their stories. It’s a shame Gene Roddenberry didn’t formally invent his own religion; Stovokor sounds like a lot of fun.
Once you finally realize your head has been filled with utter nonsense, you must then purge such garbage from your mind if you want your brain to be functional again. That can take considerably longer, assuming you succeed at all. It’s like trying to uninstall AOL from your hard drive.
Next, you can expect to waste even more time on repetitive ritual and ceremony, such as attending mass, learning prayers, and practicing unproductive meditations.
If I add up the time I attended mass and Sunday school, studied religion in school as if it were a serious subject, and memorized various prayers, I count thousands of hours of my life I’d love to have back. I did, however, learn some important lessons, many of which are being shared in this article.
I especially remember listening to a lot of bad sermons; most priests are hideously poor speakers. Maybe it’s because they drink alcohol while on duty.
Now if you really go overboard and throw in learning a dead language for good measure, you can kiss years of your life goodbye.
The more time you devote to religious practice, the more you waste your life on pointless, dead-end pursuits… and the more you’ll want to delude yourself with a phony “Hehe, I meant to do that” attitude.
…
Complete article at:
http://tinyurl.com/3t6qcc (www.stevepavlina.com)
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Shifting Focus, Anti-Abortion Groups Oppose Contraception
Source: The Capital Times (Madison, Wisconsin), June 6, 2008
On June 7, the anti-abortion groups American Life League (ALL) and Pharmacists for Life launched a new national campaign called “Protest the Pill Day 08: The Pill Kills Babies.” Their goal is to convince American women to stop using oral contraceptives, which they believe kill people. June 7 marks the anniversary of the landmark 1965 Supreme Court ruling Griswold v. Connecticut, which made it legal for married couples to use contraceptives. The shift to opposing contraceptives significantly broadens the agenda of anti-abortion groups. ALL also opposes use of intrauterine devices, emergency contraception and health insurance coverage of contraceptives. The group plans to organize protests in 18 states.
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PRO-CHOICERS COULD SWING THE ELECTION
By Booman
McCain’s hardline anti-abortion stance may alienate key supporters.
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/reproductivejustice/88537/
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MAN FALLS WHILE RECIEVING THE HOLY SPIRIT, SUES CHURCH
By Lindsay Beyerstein, AlterNet
Blessing turns to curse when church “catchers” fumble.
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/peek/88416/
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King David – Family Values
By Michael
The Bible states that he had 14 children, 2 of his sons tried to usurp his power, one of those committed murder and another raped his half-sister. If that is not a definition of dysfunctional family, I don’t know what is. …
http://theologynow.net/2008/06/king-david—family-values.html
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Action Alert: Halt Tax Funding of Religious Schools
On Tuesday, the House Appropriations Committee will vote whether to renew funding for the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program (OSP).
OSP allows parents in the District of Columbia to send their children to religious schools with tuition vouchers funded by American taxpayers. On Tuesday, June 17th, the House Financial Services Appropriations Subcommittee voted to continue funding OSP. The Appropriations Committee will review the funding next, with a vote expected Tuesday the 24th.
Since September, 2005 the Secular Coalition for America and its allies have lobbied against the continuation of this program and others like it. Public schools offer many more alternatives for students seeking a secular education, while schools accepting the D.C. vouchers are primarily religious. Moreover, a study released this week by the Department of Education found that – for the second year in a row – D.C. students using private school vouchers are scoring no better on standardized tests than their public school counterparts.
Take action now.
Best wishes,
Lori Lipman Brown, Director
Secular Coalition for America
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CFI Action Alert! – Help the Louisiana Coalition for Science Defeat Anti-Science Bill; Protect the Integrity of Science Education
Implore Governor Jindal to veto bill SB 733, LA Science Education Act
The Louisiana Senate has passed SB 733, a bill that creationists can use to force their sectarian views into public school science classes. The bill provides that, upon the request of a local school board, the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) must permit appropriate supplementary instructional materials in science classes, but gives no guidance about the criteria BESE should use in approving such supplementary materials. Effectively, the legislation provides a means for creationists to promote their pseudo-scientific views in the classroom. The LA Coalition for Science (LCFS), a group of concerned parents, teachers and scientists, has called on Gov. Jindal to veto the bill through an open letter on its website at
http://lasciencecoalition.org .
“This bill doesn’t help teachers. It allows local school boards to open the doors of public school science classrooms to creationism with the blessing of the state,” explains LCFS member Barbara Forrest, a professor of philosophy at Southeastern Louisiana University. “Governor Jindal surely knows that evolution is not controversial in the mainstream scientific community. He majored in biology at Brown University, and he belongs to a church that considers evolution to be established science and approves of its being taught in its own parochial schools. The LA Family Forum is pushing this bill over the objections of scientists and teachers across the state. The governor has a moral responsibility to Louisiana children to veto this bill.”
Paul Kurtz, CFI’s Chair, has stated that “SB 733 poses a serious threat to science education and represents yet another attempt by creationists to insinuate their religious doctrine into the classroom under the guise of promoting critical reasoning.”
We have reached the point at which the only possible measure we have left is to raise an outcry from around the country that Gov. Jindal has to hear. What is happening in Louisiana has national implications, much to the delight of proponents of “intelligent design.”
Please contact everyone you know and ask them to contact the governor’s office and ask him to veto the bill. Louisiana will be only the beginning. Your state could be next.
Here are the talking points:
Point 1: The Louisiana law, SB 733, the LA Science Education Act, has national implications. So far, this legislation has failed in every other state where it was proposed, except in Michigan, where it remains in committee. By passing SB 733, Louisiana has set a dangerous precedent that will benefit the Discovery Institute and other creationists by helping them to advance their strategy to get intelligent design creationism into public schools. Louisiana is only the beginning. Other states will now be encouraged to pass such legislation, and the Discovery Institute has already said that they will continue their push to get such legislation passed.
Point 2: Gov. Jindal’s failure to oppose the teaching of ID clearly helped to get this bill passed in the first place. His decision to veto it will stick if he lets the legislature know that he wants it to stick.
Point 3: Simply allowing the bill to become law without his signature, which is one of the governor’s options, does not absolve him of the responsibility for protecting the public school science classes of Louisiana. He must veto the bill to show that he is serious about improving Louisiana by improving education. Anything less than a veto means that the governor is giving a green light to creationists to undermine the education of Louisiana children.
TAKE ACTION NOW! TELL GOV. BOBBY JINDAL TO VETO SB 733
Contact Information:
E-mail: http://www.gov.la.gov/index.cfm?md=form&tmp=email_governor
Phone: 225-342-7015 or 866-366-1121 (Toll Free)
Fax: 225-342-7099
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WHAT HAPPENS WHEN A SCHOOL BOARD OF RELIGIOUS ZEALOTS WILL ‘LIE FOR JESUS’?
By Onnesha Roychoudhuri, AlterNet
Lauri Lebo, author of “Devil in Dover”, gives an insider’s account of a historic court battle about dogma and Darwin in small-town America.
http://www.alternet.org/mediaculture/87876/
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JEB BUSH AND HIS CRONIES HAVE BIG PLANS FOR GOVT.-FUNDED RELIGIOUS SCHOOLS IN FLORIDA
By Joseph L. Conn, Church & State Magazine
Religious school scheme backed by the former Fla. governor has provoked a church-state showdown with national ramifications.
http://www.alternet.org/rights/88949/
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Americans United Files Lawsuit Challenging South Carolina’s ‘I Believe’ License Plate
June 19, 2008
Religious Liberty Watchdog Group Says License Plate Violates Constitution By Giving Preference To Christianity
Americans United for Separation of Church and State today filed a lawsuit in federal district court on behalf of several religious leaders and a religious organization whose First Amendment rights are violated by South Carolina’s “I Believe” license plate.
The new plate features the words, “I Believe,” accompanied by a depiction of a large, bright-yellow Christian cross superimposed on a multicolored stained glass church window.
Plaintiffs in the case include four South Carolina clergy the Rev. Dr. Thomas A. Summers, Rabbi Sanford T. Marcus, the Rev. Dr. Robert M. Knight and the Rev. Dr. Neal Jones as well as the Hindu American Foundation.
The Summers v. Adams lawsuit charges that the Christian plate gives preferential government treatment to one faith. It asks the court to prevent South Carolina officials from producing the plates.
“The state has clearly given preferential treatment to Christianity with this license plate,” said the Rev. Barry W. Lynn, Americans United executive director. “I can’t think of a more flagrant violation of the First Amendment’s promise of equal treatment for all faiths. I believe these plates will not see the light of day.”
The South Carolina legislature unanimously passed legislation to produce the license plate, and South Carolina Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer said he is willing to put up the required $4,000 to produce the plate, with the money to be reimbursed by the state later. The legislature has not proposed or made available a similar specialty plate for any other faith.
Gov. Mark Sanford allowed the bill to become law without his signature.
In South Carolina, an individual can apply for a vanity plate less than seven characters long, but symbols and emblems are not permitted. Other specialty plates are created either by DMV approval or through the legislature. Plates approved by the DMV are subject to signification regulations, including “no slogans, names or other text.”
The Americans United lawsuit says the Christian license plate violates the separation of church and state as well as freedom of speech. It notes that other religions will not be able to get similar license plates expressing differing viewpoints, nor can a comparable “I Don’t Believe” license plate be issued.
The lawsuit was filed in Columbia, S.C., in the U.S. District Court for South Carolina.
“The state has made believers of non-Christian faiths feel that they are second-class citizens,” Lynn said. “Under our Constitution, that’s impermissible.”
Attorneys working on the case include AU Legal Director Ayesha N. Khan, AU Litigation Counsel Heather Weaver and AU Madison Fellow Nancy Leong. Aaron J. Kozloski of Capitol Counsel, a Columbia, S.C. law firm, is serving as local counsel.
Americans United is a religious liberty watchdog group based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1947, the organization educates Americans about the importance of church-state separation in safeguarding religious freedom.
Americans United for Separation of Church and State www.au.org
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Americans United, ACLU File Brief Objecting To Government Promotion Of Prayer In Texas’ ‘Moment-Of-Silence’ Law
June 9, 2008
Promotion Of Religion Is Not Legislators’ Job, Say Civil Liberties Groups
Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Texas submitted a friend-of-the-court brief today to a federal appeals court urging the court to rule against a religiously motivated 2003 amendment to Texas’ “moment-of-silence” statute. The amendment added “pray” to the statute’s list of activities for students during the moment of silence.
“Students were already allowed to pray, meditate, or reflect under the statute before it was amended,” said the Rev. Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State. “The addition of the word ‘pray’ where it wasn’t needed clearly shows that legislators intended to promote religion, and that’s not their job.”
In 2003, the Texas legislature enacted amendments to Section 25.082 of the Education Code, making the moment of silence mandatory and changing the list of designated options for students during the moment of silence from “reflect or meditate” to “reflect, pray, meditate, or engage in any other silent activity that is not likely to interfere with or distract another student.”
In 2006, David and Shannon Croft, acting on behalf of their children, unsuccessfully sought an order in federal district court preventing the enforcement of the amended “moment-of-silence” statute and declaring it unconstitutional under the First Amendment. The Crofts sued Governor Rick Perry and the Carrollton-Farmers Branch Independent School District, where their children attended school. The Crofts are now asking the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to overturn the district court’s decision upholding the amendment.
“Given the breadth of the old statute, this amendment serves only one unmistakable, unconstitutional aim: to encourage prayer during the moment of silence,” said T. Jeremy Gunn, director of the ACLU Program on Freedom of Religion and Belief. “The state and its public schools should not be in the business of endorsing religious practices.”
“Just as the Constitution generally protects students’ right to pray, it prohibits the state from pushing them to do so,” said Lisa Graybill, legal director for the ACLU of Texas. “Parents don’t want the public schools teaching their children someone else’s religion, and the Constitution doesn’t allow it.”
The brief was written by Americans United Madison Fellow Nancy Leong, in consultation with Americans United Legal Director Ayesha N. Khan, Americans United Senior Litigation Counsel Alex J. Luchenitser, Daniel Mach, director of litigation for the ACLU Program on Freedom of Religion and Belief, and ACLU of Texas attorneys Graybill and Fleming Terrell.
Americans United is a religious liberty watchdog group based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1947, the organization educates Americans about the importance of church-state separation in safeguarding religious freedom.
Americans United for Separation of Church and State www.au.org
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Religious Right Organization Tries to Intimidate Professor; Shamelessly Misleads Its Own Supporters
PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
June 12, 2008
Contact: Nathan Bupp
Phone: (716) 636-4869 x. 218
E-mail: nbupp@centerforinquiry.net
Religious Right Organization Tries to Intimidate Professor; Shamelessly Misleads Its Own Supporters
(Amherst, New York) –The American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ) has recently boasted of a “victory” in protecting a college student’s rights to religious freedom. In postings on its website and in a radio broadcast on June 4, 2008, the ACLJ has trumpeted the claim that a demand letter one of its staff attorneys sent to Suffolk County Community College prevented a Christian student from receiving a failing grade from a professor who wanted to penalize her because of her religious beliefs.
Nothing could be further from the truth. “The ACLJ’s spurious claim of a legal ‘victory’ is just slightly less outrageous than its brazen attempt to intimidate a philosophy professor from doing his job—which is to get students to think critically,” commented Ronald A. Lindsay, Executive Director of the Council of Secular Humanism, who has talked to the allegedly biased professor. “As far as I can tell,” observed Lindsay, “the ACLJ’s letter accomplished nothing other than providing an excuse for soliciting donations.”
The scholar that the ACLJ falsely accused of bias is a longtime philosophy professor, Dr. Philip Pecorino, who has taught more than 13,000 students over a period of thirty-six years. He has a well-deserved reputation for fairness, and has served as President of the American Association of Philosophy Teachers and as an officer in many other organizations. Although the ACLJ’s radio broadcast alleged that Professor Pecorino “hates” the very idea of Christians, Professor Pecorino has taught students of many different faiths, and no faith, over the years, all without incident until the ACLJ’s campaign of vilification. Indeed, after the ACLJ made its baseless accusations, students in Pecorino’s class, including religious students, defended him, stating that he does not pass judgment on students because of their beliefs, but simply challenges them to examine all beliefs critically, including their own. His students have stated that they cannot identify Pecorino’s own views based either on the course materials or the textbook authored for the class by Pecorino, and he does not pressure them to adopt any particular position.
“I would not be doing my job as a philosophy professor,” explained Pecorino, “if I did not require students to think about their beliefs and provide reasons in support of their beliefs— not my beliefs or anyone else’s beliefs. Critical examination of beliefs, including one’s own beliefs, and training in reasoning are among the primary objectives of a philosophy course, and of a liberal education in general. Only professors who are negligent or indifferent allow students to earn good grades simply by providing as a reason for an assertion ‘well, this is what I believe’.”
Dr. Pecorino will not discuss in detail his interaction with Gina, the student who complained to the ACLJ about him, because he does not believe it is appropriate to share the details of a student’s coursework with the outside world. However, he does have a right to defend himself against false accusations. The core of the ACLJ’s claim is that Gina was in danger of failing the class because of Pecorino’s religious bias before the ACLJ intervened. “That claim is preposterous,” according to Pecorino. “At no time did I tell her she was in danger of failing. When I had to project a grade for her earlier in the semester, I projected a ‘C’ and that was when she was most resistant to providing any reasoning to support her assertions. She was not open to examining her own beliefs or to entering into the dialectical process of inquiry in community because, according to her, she already had all the answers.” And what of the ACLJ’s claim that Gina had a failing grade average of 54 prior to the ACLJ’s intervention? “That is a misleading use of information. I use a cumulative point system in grading,” explained Pecorino. “In other words, as students progress during the semester, they earn points for each assignment, with a possible total of 100 points by the end of the semester. Gina at one point probably did have 54 points, but that in no way indicates she was in danger of failing. She had 54 points, not a failing grade average of 54. All students start the semester with 0 points, so by the ACLJ’s logic, all students are in danger of failing.”
And did the ACLJ’s letter influence Pecorino, either directly or indirectly through pressure from college administrators? “Absolutely not,” Pecorino states. “I received no pressure form my college administrators, only support, and although I was a bit bothered by all the hate emails and other communications that resulted from the ACLJ’s campaign against me, I did not let that affect my grading of Gina. I take my responsibilities as an educator too seriously for that to happen. Gina received a ‘B’ because she earned a ‘B,’ no more and no less.”
The ACLJ’s campaign against Pecorino cannot be dismissed as insignificant. As Dr. Pecorino observes, “Essentially, the ACLJ is claiming a religious exemption from the obligation of students in public colleges to engage in critical thinking, and this claim strikes at the core of higher education. If permitted to go unchallenged, this claim will weaken our democratic and pluralistic society.” Lindsay agrees, adding, “For a democracy to succeed, we need citizens who can provide reasons to support their beliefs. We cannot reason together if all we have are groups of individuals who adamantly insist they have all the answers because of some supernatural revelation and who are unwilling to consider opposing viewpoints. The ACLJ is a very slick, very well-funded organization, and its animosity toward critical thinking is even more troubling than its willingness to distort the facts.”
The Center for Inquiry is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit educational organization, comprising the Council for Secular Humanism, the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI), and the Committee for the Scientific Examination of Religion (CSER). Headquartered in Amherst, New York, the Center for Inquiry strives to promote rational thinking in all aspects of life. The organization’s Web site can be found at www.centerforinquiry.net .
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New Sex Abuse Lawsuit Against Priest-News Conference Today … and more
A monsignor in the Rockford Diocese has been accused of child sex abuse over 30 years ago.
http://www.wifr.com/news/headlines/20009534.html
Sexual predators in our midst
Florida Baptist Witness – Jacksonville,FL,USA
The arrest of a minister who allegedly took advantage of his sacred dutiesto satisfy his basest desires is just the latest case of sexual abuse by a …
http://www.floridabaptistwitness.com/8988.article
Sex abuse records on priest who served in Arlington and Bedford …
Fort Worth Star Telegram – Fort Worth,TX,USA
In court documents, Pennington has argued that the priest’s repeated kissing of the sisters, even if true, was unacceptable conduct, not sexual abuse. …
http://www.star-telegram.com/northeast/story/713985.html
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three thousand words
JEFF SWENSON: why life isn’t fair
http://humaniststudies.org/~funnies/freethunk/sf20080611.gif
Cectic: holy cow! an atheist billboard
http://cectic.com/comics/159.png
ReverendFun: ONE OF THESE DAYS WE’LL BE PAVING OUR ROADS WITH THIS STUFF
http://www.reverendfun.com/add_toon_info.php?date=20080620&language=en
