Christian Apologist: Skepticism Caused by Hurt from Church

Christian apologists just can't stand the idea that we skeptics actually have good reasons to not believe their mythology. To them, Christian theology is so obviously true that anyone who doesn't believe must have some other reason. If someone is a non-believer, then they must have been beaten by a nun, molested by a priest, shunned for homosexuality, or hurt in some other dastardly fashion by a Christian or by the church.

It just can't be, they say, that someone actually rejects Christianity itself.

The latest salvo of this nature comes from Christian apologist and author Dr. Alex McFarland, whose new book, 10 Answers for Skeptics, purports to have statistics showing that most skeptics were driven away from their faith by bad experiences. In an interview with the Christian Post, McFarland said,

"Through nearly a year of research and numerous personal interviews, my goal was to really get 'inside the mind of the skeptic.' The most common type of skeptics I meet are wounded skeptics. They have been hurt by church, religion, or by another Christian."

The problem with Dr. McFarland's statement is that like so much of Christian apologetics, it uses flawed logic. McFarland makes the reader think that bad experiences caused the skepticism. More importantly, McFarland seems to think that if you can cure the hurt and heal the damage, the ex-Christian skeptics will all come flooding back to their former faith.

McFarland is implying that skeptics are really Christians in their hearts, and it's only the hurt and their pride that have separated them from God.

This is completely wrong.

These ex-Christian skeptics have had their eyes opened. The hurt they suffered

Egyptian Christian/Muslim Conflict was Inevitable

What happens when parents of fighting children just tell them to shut up and behave rather than helping them work out their differences? The first time the parents leave the kids alone, the kids get into a fist fight. Instead of teaching them how to solve problems before they boil over, the parents put a lid on the pot so that the anger boils over and explodes.

What happens when a brutal dictatorship suppresses all dissent and prevents ethnic and religious groups from working out their differences, and then is overthrown by those same groups in a revolution? They attack each other (AP photo story) ... with deadly results.

My first (and still strong) reaction to the stories coming out of Egypt was, "This is why we need to get rid of religion!" How can anyone look at bloody rioters carrying crosses and throwing stones and not be

Candidate Cain: Constitution Allows Anti-Islam Discrimination!

I've seen politicians twist the Constitution before, but this one takes the cake:

"Our Constitution guarantees the separation of church and state. Islam combines church and state. They're using the church part of our First Amendment to infuse their morals in that community ... [The communities] objected to the fact that Islam is both a religion and a set of laws. ... They have a right to [ban a Mosque]"

Wow. Mr. Cain says we all have a constitutional right to free speech, freedom of assembly and the freedom to worship as we please ... but all these rights evaporate if our religion tries to inject its beliefs into government!

Mr. Cain has conveniently forgotten that this is exactly the same thing that America's evangelical Christians believe.

Let's start with Cain's opponent, Mitt Romney, who said:

"Freedom requires religion just as religion requires freedom... Freedom and religion endure together, or perish alone."

Hmmm, that sounds like combining church and state to me, Mr. Cain. So Romney's out. What about Mike Huckabee, another front runner?

"[Some of my opponents] do not want to change the Constitution, but I believe it's a lot easier to change the constitution than it would be to change the word of the living God, and that's what we need to do is to amend the Constitution so it's in God's standards rather than try to change God's standards."

Gosh, we're not getting anywhere, are we Mr. Cain? It seems those darned Christians are no better than the Muslims you despise!

What about Michele Bachmann, another Republican candidate? Oh yeah, she's the one whose family runs a "clinic" that "cures" gays of their homosexuality using prayer and Christian practices. And she also

Woman Kuwaiti Politician: Legalize Sex Slaves

This almost needs no comment. It's Salwa Al-Mutairi, a former candidate for the Kuwaiti Parliament.

I asked (a Saudi mufti): What is the law with regard to slave girls?

The mufti told me that this law requires there to a Muslim country raiding a Christian country - sorry, a non-Muslim country - and taking PoWs. I asked him whether it was forbidden (to turn them into slaves), and he said that Islam does not prohibit having slave girls. On the contrary.

The law pertaining to slave girls is not the same as for free women. Free women must cover their bodies, except for their hands and faces. The slave girl must cover up from the bellybutton down. There is a big difference between slave girls and free women. With a free woman, the man must make a marriage contract, but with a slave girl - all he has to do is buy her. It's as if he married her. So there's a difference between slave girls and free women.

Here in Kuwait too, I asked religious scholars and experts about this, and they said that for the average, good religious man, the only way to avoid forbidden relations with women is to purchase slave girls.

I very much hope that such a law is legislated. Just like they allow servants, they should allow slave girls, and legislate a proper law in this regard. We don't want our children to fall into the abyss of fornication and similar filth, God forbid. Allah willing, things will work out.

There are countries like Chechnya, which are at war with another country. In such a case, there must be PoWs, so why not go and buy those prisoners? Is it better for them to be slaughtered over there? Go and buy them, and sell them to traders here in Kuwait.

One has to wonder: what goes on in this woman's house and in her mosque? What have the men in her life done to her? Does she really think that men are such animals that they need a stable of

Piss off the Christians: Live Forever

What's the best way to cure the world of religion? Cure it of death first!

Have you ever considered what would happen to religion if death was no longer a certainty? Or if death became unusual? There are many reasons people believe in gods and an afterlife, but death is by far the most powerful. The thought that you cease to exist is unsettling to most people, and religions have provided an alternative.

So what will happen to all of those fire-and-brimstone preachers when death is defeated?

According to Aubrey de Grey, the first person to live to 150 is probably already alive today ... and it could be you or me. And according to Dr. de Grey, the children being born today may live to be 1000 years old or more ... possibly forever.

The Strategies for Engineered Negligible Senescence Foundation (SENS), where de Grey is the chief science officer, is dedicated to "curing" aging. Scientists originally hoped to find an "aging gene" that could be turned off. That would have been simple given our modern understanding of genetics. But it turns out that aging has many components, each of which has to be independently solved. The initial optimism for a quick solution has turned into a long-term research effort.

But now there is real progress. With the incredible recent advances in genetics, drug design, biology, chemistry, computers and diagnostic instruments, hope is growing rapidly. Immortality is within reach.

The only question remaining is, "When?" Will I live to 150 or even longer? Or will it be my

Muslims Lose in Dutch Free Speech Case

There's some good news from Amsterdam: Muslims lost in a bid to censor an obnoxious right-wing politician, Geert Wilders, who is known for his harsh criticism of Islam.

But under this small victory is something much more sinister: a new trick that makes censorship seem OK.

Geert Wilder's case was dismissed on a highly-technical "escape clause" in the law. The judge ruled that Wilders' remarks were directed at Islam (the religion), not at Muslims (the people). That meant his remarks didn't constitute hate speech. Apparently in The Netherlands you can hate a thing but not a person. It's disturbing that the case was thrown out on such a thin technical issue.

This is a small victory for free speech in a modern country where free speech shouldn't even be a question. I'm frankly shocked by this case. Is it really possible that free speech is disappearing in a modern democracy?

Apparently so. Consider this story from Denmark:

Lars Hedegaard, Islamic expert and president of the International Free Press Society, was found guilty of racism today by Denmark’s Eastern High Court. He was fined about $1,000. He will appeal.

The charges stemmed from what Hedegaard says were factual statements made about the higher-than-average incidence of family rape in the Muslim world.

But under Denmark's racism law, Article 266b, it doesn't matter if what you said was true. It only matters that a group was insulted.

Got that? Telling the truth can be illegal.

European Muslims have discovered a very clever Orwellian trick. Instead of being for censorship,

14-Year-Old Girl Lashed to Death for Adultery After Being Raped

Here is another horrifying story about a young girl being blamed and punished for her own rape.

Hena Akhter was a fourteen-year-old Bangaladeshi girl who caught the eye of Mahbub Khan, a married neighbor (who was also her cousin). Khan started harassing Hena on her way to school. Hena's father complained, and Khan was fined, though he never paid the fine. Several months later, in January of this year, Khan waited outside Hena's home until she came outside to use the outdoor toilet. He gagged, raped and beat her.

Khan's wife heard the commotion, came outside and caught her husband raping Hena. Instead of saving the young girl, she dragged Hena into her house, beat her some more and trampled her on the floor.

Who got punished for this? Hena and Khan were convicted of adultery! They were both sentenced

Bin Laden Burial Illustrates Why Religion Sucks

In one concise phrase, The Huffington post summed up the core problem of religion. In an article about Osama bin Laden's burial, they wrote (emphasis added):

Although there appears to be some room for debate over the burial – as with many issues within the faith – a wide range of senior Islamic scholars interpreted it as a humiliating disregard for the standard Muslim practice of placing the body in a grave with the head pointed toward the holy city of Mecca.

Religious people claim that their Bible, Torah or Qur'an contain the answers to all questions of morality and law. They say we poor humans are incapable of knowing right from wrong, so God has provided us with all of the answers.

If that's true, then why is it so hard to figure out how to bury Osama bin Laden's body?

If God was so clever and wrote everything down for us in black and white, why does every question have a dozen "scholars" with a dozen different opinions? It seems to me that the rituals

Never Forget: bin Laden was a Product of Religion

I rarely celebrate anyone's death, but today I'll make an exception. Osama bin Laden was a terrible person. He was the ultimate vandal, destroying everything around him purely for his own ego gratification and the joy of destruction. I don't believe for a moment that bin Laden believed his own propaganda about jihad and Islam. He was nothing more than a sick, murderous sociopath, and religion was nothing more than an excuse.

So today I'll make an exception and join America and the world in celebrating the death of this evil man. Congratulations to the Navy Seals who did an incredible job carrying out their mission. Congratulations to our intelligence professionals who found bin Laden and made the mission possible. And congratulations to the President and his generals, who showed restraint and wisdom. Their leadership ensured that the appropriate amount of force was used and that no civilians were killed.

But as we dance in the streets and celebrate, let's not lose sight of the real problem: religion-fueled terrorism. Osama bin Laden may be dead, but

Koran Burning Preacher Wants to Protest Muslims - With a Gun in his Pocket?

The news about Terry Jones, the Qur'an-burning Baptist preacher, just gets better and better: now there's a "gun incident" for our amusement. Except that Jones isn't a very amusing guy.

This morning, Terry Jones was in court in Dearborn, Michigan trying to convince a judge and jury that the city of Dearborn should be forced to give Jones a permit to protest Sharia law outside a local Muslim mosque.

Can you imagine what the judge and jury will think when Jones tells them the "gun incident" isn't important?

Gun incident?? What gun incident? Why, the one where

Muslim Women Not Allowed to Question Veils -- In Britain!

We're quick to criticize Muslim men in the Middle East for their terrible oppression of women. Women are denied educations, forced into marriages, not allowed to work, and occasionally even murdered with no consequences. In the most conservative Islamic countries, women aren't even allowed to be seen by any man but their husband.

But that's only in third-world countries far, far away, right? Surely Muslims in America and Britain don't subscribe to such sexist, oppressive nonsense. Right?

Wrong.

The Muslim Council of Britain has stated women must wear veils. Better yet, they're not even allowed to debate it. It is a "shortcoming" for a woman to show her uncovered face, and any Muslim who disagrees is rejecting Islam.

The Council cites a statement from the Holy Qur'an:

Koran Burning: What are Muslim Extremists Afraid Of?

Yesterday I called Pastor Terry Jones a coward and jerk. Jones is the one whose Qur'an burning in Florida triggered violent protests and more than sixteen deaths. Today I want to get to the truly guilty parties in these murders: the Muslims who rioted and killed those people.

I really don't understand this. How is it that a two-bit Baptist preacher in Florida is taken seriously by Muslims? This guy can barely scrape up enough money to maintain a small church and a pitiful congregation. If it weren't for the Muslim reaction, this guy would be nothing but a passing joke, another loser that could barely make the back page of the newspaper on his best day.

One of the things I've learned in life is that we give power to people who make us angry. When someone tries to hurt me, the worst thing I can do to that person is to not even notice. If someone launches a nasty attack on me, my best response is, "I'm sorry, did you say something? I wasn't paying attention."

On the other hand, if I respond to my attacker with a vigorous defense and counterattack, then my attacker knows that I've been hurt. He knows I actually care

Gingrich: Fears Secular Atheist Country ... Dominated by Islamic Fundamentalists???

Is this for real? Newt Gingrich, who is working up to announcing his presidential candidacy, actually said this:

I am convinced that if we do not decisively win the struggle over the nature of America, by the time [my grandchildren are] my age they will be in a secular atheist country, potentially one dominated by radical Islamists..."

Wait a second, Mr. Gingrich. Radical Islamic secular atheists? Did I hear that right?

Mr. Gingrich, maybe someone forgot to explain to you that Muslims believe in Allah. That means they're not atheists. Get it?

By the way, Gingrich made these remarks at the Cornerstone Church, a prominent evangelical congregation that's led by the pastor John Hage ... the same guy who said Hitler was fulfilling God's will when he murdered seven million Jews, because it hastened their return to Israel. Good move, Mr. Gingrich.

Religious Fraud Scandal: $34 Billion Stolen, Only $31 Billion Spent on Global Missions

For once, I find myself rooting for the Christians, Jews and Muslims. They've got a real scandal on their hands and are actually taking a hard look at themselves.

The Christian Headlines Blog is courageously breaking the news that financial fraud is rampant in religious institutions worldwide. In 2011, more money will be stolen in the name of Jesus than will be spent on missions worldwide!

The January 2011 issue of the International Bulletin of Missionary Research reported that Christian religious leaders will commit an estimated $34 billion in financial fraud in 2011 while only $31 billion will be spent on global missions. Researchers from the Center for the Study of Global Christianity estimate that Christian religious leaders will commit $90 million in financial crimes daily and the fraud is growing at a rate of 5.97% each year. If the researchers are correct, religious financial fraud among Christians will almost double in 14 years to $60 billion annually by 2025.

... Barrett and Johnson in the reference book “World Christian Trends” reported, “Probably 80% of all cases are kept private or swept under the carpet, but each year a rash of megathefts (over $1 million each) is uncovered and publicized in the secular media.”

The Christian Headlines Blog is pulling the covers off this scandal with a series of insightful blogs that starts today.

When someone embezzles from a bank, it's no big deal. Willie Sutton, the depression-era bank robber, was asked why he kept robbing banks and famously replied, "Because that's where the money is." We expect thieves to be attracted to banks.

But thieves are attracted to money and don't much care where it is. Anywhere money flows

Mix Government and Religion, Women Lose

There's a great article in the New York Times that once again illustrates why government and religion should never mix.

In Pakistan, anyone who advocates equal rights for women can be, and often is, accused of blasphemy. And that, my friends, is a capital crime! Gloria Steinem, watch out! You'd get the death penalty if you tried your feminism stuff in Pakistan!

Women's rights are almost nonexistent in this religion-dominated country, just as they were in America and Europe when religion was in charge. But Pakistan seems to be even worse: a woman who is raped can't go to the police because she'll be accused and convicted of infidelity.

In most countries, civil rights violations spawn citizen protests. India threw off British rule, Martin Luther King inspired America's Blacks to demand their civil rights,

Why Islamic Extremists Kill Their Critics

The other day I was seriously wondering how Taliban leaders including Osama bin Laden have been able to hide in Pakistan for so long. The Taliban are waging war on Pakistan, trying to overthrow the legitimate government, so why do the Pakistanis support and hide them?

Well, today I got my answer. This is the same country that imposes the death penalty for blasphemy. The Taliban supporters put Islam first, and their country second.

Any country that has a law imposing the death penalty for blasphemy is still in the dark ages. Their Muslim fundamentalism is so extreme that they are blinded to what's happening. They'd rather foster terrorism than make their country a civilized place. They'd rather have war and murder than let some random nobody say something bad about their religion.

I really don't understand how anyone can care about blasphemy. If some random guy I've never met before stopped me on the street and told me "You're ugly!", I'd just walk on by. Why do I care what he thinks? The guy is nobody.

If instead I took his insult seriously, I'd be doing two stupid things. First, I would be showing him that I cared about his opinion. And second, I'd be lending credibility to his authority to make such a claim.

Oklahoma Needs a Civics Lesson: Sharia Law Ban Exposes Constitutional Ignorance

On Monday a federal judge blocked the Oklahoma "Save our State" constitutional amendment because it singled out Sharia law for special mention. The Court ruled that by banning Sharia law from Oklahoma courts but not mentioning other religions, the amendment was effectively endorsing Judeo-Christian laws. That is plainly illegal under the First Amendment (as extended to the states by the Fourteenth Amendment), and the judge ruled correctly.

But to hear the conservatives' howls, you'd think the judge had allowed Sharia law into the Oklahoma law books! Here's what one conservative news site had to say

Silly Christian Morals

In a blog last week I wrote that "modern adults realize that Christian 'morals' are a bit silly." Those are strong words. I should have realized that this would offend many people, and I started to think maybe I should retract it.

But on reflection, I can't retract it. I know it's offensive to Christians (and Jews and Muslims, because I'll add them to the mix), but I stand by this assertion. What I will do is amplify so that it's clear exactly what I mean.

Christians are for the most part a moral group. But their morals can be divided into two parts: The morals that all people share, and the morals that are uniquely Christian.

The morals that Christians share with all civilized people are not silly. Be faithful to your mate. Don't murder. Follow the golden rule. Don't steal. Protect children. Honor our parents. These are good morals that all civilized people share. But these are not Christian morals. They are human morals that arise from nature. Jewish, Christian and Muslim authors merely incorporated these into their holy scriptures thousands of years ago. This isn't unique; every civilization does this. Christians can't make some claim to exclusivity on these universal morals. (See Atheism IS Where Morality Originates.)

What about "Christian morals," the ones that are unique to the Christian faith?

Christianity Dying Faster Than Expected?

America's churches seem to be under siege and losing ground faster than anyone expected. This week was particularly bad: Christian news web sites are full of economic disaster stories right alongside stories about young people leaving churches in droves.

Here is just a sample of the top headlines at one Christian news site this morning:

• Crystal Cathedral vendors and what they're owed
• Megachurch Crystal Cathedral Ministries seeks bankruptcy protection
• Top 400 charities see billions less in donations
• Walking away from church ["...conservative politics is a turnoff to more and more young adults"]

These seem to be reflecting a theme that's getting stronger.

The Scandal of Atheism

Atheists are facing a grave scandal today that threatens the very roots of atheism.

It is almost identical to the one that enveloped philosophy itself around the end of the nineteenth century. Back in the early 1900s, the question was this: How do I know that you really exist? Maybe you're just a dream of mine, maybe the whole world is a dream. I claim the external world doesn't exist. You say you're real, not just my dream? Prove it!

And so you try ... and it turns out to be impossible. No matter what you say, I can counter by pointing out that in my dream, that's what you'd be likely to say, that it's just my own mind dreaming up answers to my questions.

To most people, it seems like a silly question, but philosophers were very perplexed. Immanuel Kant famously called it "the scandal of philosophy" that philosophers couldn't even prove the existence of the external world.

But the great philosopher Martin Heidegger saw this "scandal" for what it was: a made-up problem. He famously wrote:

The 'scandal of philosophy' is not that this proof has yet to be given, but that such proofs are expected and attempted again and again.

Heidegger's view was that the question was essentially useless (not his words, but that's the idea) – one can make up all sorts of impossible questions, and the only scandal is when you take them seriously and waste whole careers, decades and centuries trying to find answers.

Atheism faces an almost identical scandal today. We've been sucked into a silly argument that has no answer,