Is Christianity Dying? ... and Ninety-Nine Other Best Blogs

I have a new book available on Kindle!

Only 99 cents!

How can you go wrong? From the preface:

"Who would have guessed back in June of 2008 that I'd be writing my five hundredth blog with no end in sight? And I never expected The Religion Virus to be in the top ten religion books on Amazon.com's Kindle bestsellers list, as well as bouncing around between first and fifth in agnosticism and religious history. (Religious history? That's unexpected!)

"So why should you buy a collection of ninety-nine blogs that you can get for free on my web site? Because it's just a penny per blog, and we sorted the wheat from the chaff for you. You get to read the good stuff without having to wade through the blogs that should have been used to wrap fish. How can you beat that? (And there is actually one original never-before-published blog in here!)

"Like most bloggers, I don't hit one out of the park every day. But every now and then I write something pretty good. Some of these became very popular and pegged my traffic meter. Those were fun. But the ones I like best are the ones that evoked thoughtful responses, rebuttals and questions from my readers. When someone takes the time to argue with me, I know I'm making a difference."

New readers will find this a handy way to read the best of these blogs. Or if you're one of my faithful loyalists,

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

Christian Foster Parents Nailed for Teaching Homophobia

Those poor Christians in England. They're a persecuted minority! It seems the British courts (which must be overloaded with atheists and pagans) seem to have a "special animosity" towards Christians.

Or so you'd think if you trusted the uber-conservative WorldNetDaily "News" site. WND has a story about a Christian couple who wants nothing more than to be good foster parents and help little children. Alas, they've become the target of a vicious persecution campaign by the United Kingdom's anti-Christian legal system!

"... Christians who want to provide foster care for needy children must promote homosexuality to them, and that there is only a "qualified" right to exercise their Christian beliefs." [emphasis added]

Got that? They're required by the court to promote homosexuality, in violation of their Christian beliefs!

Nothing could be further from the truth. Like just about everything the nutcase WorldNetDaily.com "news" organization reports, it's a distortion of the facts. They're deliberately hiding the truth. These foster parents were breaking both the law and their commitment to the children under their care.

The real truth is that when you become a foster parent, one of your most important duties

Why does this keep happening? Virginia school district posts Ten Commandments

Are these people living in the dark ages? Don't they have newspapers and the Internet?

A Virginia school district is restoring the Ten Commandments to their classroom walls in spite of being told by their own lawyers that it's illegal.

There are so many aspects of this that baffle me that it's hard to know where to begin.

Do they really think this is going to convince their children to believe in God and stay in their faith? Is their regular Sunday (and often Wednesday) church not enough?

Don't they have better ways to spend their money ... like on the kids' educations? This is certain to spark a lawsuit

"Sovereign Citizens" think they're above our laws

I just have time for a short blog this morning, so I'll point you to a disturbing new trend:

'Screw with Their Faith and They Will Kill You': The Strange, Obsessively Anti-Government Sovereign Citizen Movement Makes a Comeback

It seems there's been an underground movement called "sovereign citizens" who reject the authority of our government. With the election of a Black man who is also a Democrat, these people are gaining adherents.

They don't believe in taxes, social security numbers, or even that our laws apply to them. They're "sovereign" in their own eyes. Scary stuff.

How Christian Were the Founders?

Were the Founders Christians or not? Was the United States supposed to be a Christian Nation, or not? Evangelical and conservative Christians say yes, Atheists say no, and historians say it's more complex than that. But in my opinion, they all miss the simple truth, which is that there are two different questions that they're trying to mix together.

Burqas: When Human Rights and Religion Collide

How do you feel about the proposed ban on full veils (burqas) for women in France?

I confess I have mixed feelings. Sex and religion are the two most controversial topics in the world, and when they mix, it's always an explosive topic. When you throw in the oppression of a minority (which seems to get mixed up with religion anyway), it's like dropping a match into the mix.

Years ago, my youngest son had a school teacher who wore Muslim garb and kept her head covered. Not a veil, but still she was covered from head to foot all the time. I found it sad. She was an African American, so was very likely a convert from a Christian upbringing, and I respect the fact that many African Americans are turning away from Christianity since it is so strongly associated with slavery in America. Yet, I found it sad that this woman, who represented two of the most oppressed minorities in America, would voluntarily wear clothing that represents the oppression of women.

On the one hand, I subscribe to the ideal set forth in our Constitution, that Congress shall make no law prohibiting the free exercise of religion. I've written about separation of church and state many times. France has similar laws, but theirs have provisions for public safety, and those provisions are being used to justify the proposed ban on burqas.

On the other hand ... The burqa came from a culture that oppresses and degrades women, where women are treated as property. It is supposed to allow for modesty, and the claim is that modern women wear it voluntarily. But I don't buy that argument.

I believe the truth is that most women who wear a burqa are under the control of a strict man (at best), or possibly in an abusive relationship. These women are not modest, they're property.

And on top of the religious and sexual aspects of the burqa, there is the issue of public safety. We humans are extremely good at detecting threatening or abnormal behavior simply by looking at one another. The burqa can easily become a terrorist tool, where women, or even men, load themselves with bombs, then mask their faces so that nobody can see that they're nervous (or that the person is really a man).

I don't see any clear answer to this one. If the world were a simpler place, with less violence, the freedom to wear a burqa would be no problem. But the reality is far more complex.

Here's one more link in closing, an imam in Paris who agrees with the ban.

Christian Judges and Lawers - Constitutional Idiots

Instead wasting the Supreme Court's valuable time, let me see if I can explain this clearly to the Christians: DISCRIMINATION SUCKS, and you DON'T have right to force others to support your ancient, outdated "morality."

The Christian Legal Society (CLS), a group of Christian lawyers and judges, bans gays from becoming voting members or officers. The problem is, they're not satisfied just discriminating – they want to force Hasting College to endorse their anti-gay policy by making CLS an official college group.

Now I'd be the first to defend CLS's right to discriminate, based on any criteria they like. A lot of people think discrimination is illegal in all circumstances, but it's not. I'm perfectly free to ban anyone I like from my own home for any reason at all, be it race, religion or the color of their hair. You and I can form a club and be as hateful as we like, ban anyone we want for any reason, however despicable, and it's nobody else's business.

But what we can't do is force someone else to share our bigotry, and that's exactly what these Christian judges and lawyers are trying to do. They want to discriminate against gays, and they also think Hastings College should be forced to support their discrimination, with money and official recognition.

According to CLS's press release:

"Public universities shouldn't single out Christian student groups for discrimination. ... It's completely unreasonable–and unconstitutional–for a public university to disrupt the purposes of private student groups by forcing them to accept as members and officers those who oppose the very ideas they advocate."

Do these guys think the Supreme Court justices are stupid? Nobody is forcing the CLS to do anything. They're free to discriminate all they like, as long as they do it within their own organization. It's the CLS that is trying to force Hastings to violate its own ethical standards.

I have faith in our United States Supreme Court, and I predict that the Christian Legal Society's case will be thrown out, as it should be.

And the Christian Legal Society should be ashamed of itself for demonstrating such an egregious misunderstanding of the United States Constitution.

Forcing Christ on Little Jewish Schoolkids

Here's another misguided Christian who wants to force her religion on everyone. Ms. Merry Susan Hyatt (yes, that's really her name, Merry) and her brother have started yet another petition to put Christianity back in California schools, specifically, to require the state to let Christmas carols in schools!

It's laughable, and would never pass even the first court challenge by the most conservative judge in the state. Unfortunately, laughable or not, it's going to cause trouble. Ms. Hyatt's initiative will get the attention of the news media, they'll hype the whole issue, and conservative Christians will once again cry "persecution!" If the measure somehow passes, the state will waste a bunch of time, energy and money in court battles to rescind this ignorant woman's anti-American baloney. Ms. Hyatt is yet another misguided American who believes we are a Christian nation, which is flat-out wrong.

If my child were in Ms. Hyatt's class, I'd insist on a transfer. The woman is a bigot. When asked how non-Christian children would feel about being excluded and sent off to study hall, she said, "I don’t think I’ve ever had a Jewish child in one of my classes. If so they never said anything.” I've got news for you Ms. Hyatt. You've had LOTS of children who were Jewish, Muslim, atheist, and probably many other faiths. They were just intimidated by you and knew better than to speak up. Your so-called Christian love is nothing more than bigotry and intolerance, wrapped in a layer of Christian hypocrisy.

Maybe I'll start a petition to require kids to sing John Lennon's Imagine in class, starting in kindergarten.

Scientology Conviction: Why Not Here in the USA Too?

Finally, Scientology is convicted in France for its crimes: The courts say it's just a good old con game. The French courts saw through their religion ruse. According to the French court's verdict, they're guilty of organized fraud, and the court fined the church $600,000 for its criminal activities. For the first time, the church itself (in addition to a number of individuals) has been convicted of a crime.

This was only possible in France because Scientology couldn't hide behind the special protection that religion gets in the United States. Here, the church can claim all sorts of immunity from discovery, and when prosecutors do go after the Scientologists, they scream persecution. But in France, Scientology is classified as a cult, not a religion.

This conviction leads me to wonder: Why should churches get any special consideration under United States law? If the Constitution says Congress shall make "no law" about religion, doesn't that mean churches have to be treated just like any other nonprofit organization?

Let's say that some other non-profit like Greenpeace, or maybe Mother's Against Drunk Driving, were tricking their members into turning over thousands of dollars to participate in purification rituals and to buy vitamins that can be bought over the counter for a few dollars. Wouldn't we expect the government to press charges? Why is it that by claiming to be a religion, the criminal nature of such fraudulent activities evaporates?

If religion is to be truly free of government interference, then they should be subject to the exact same laws as any other organization. Their books should be subject to auditing, their communications should be subject to discovery during legal proceedings, and their leaders should be accountable in the eyes of the law.

After all, if the services they offer are legitimate, they shouldn't be afraid of scrutiny. Only hucksters need to hide.

Amish Civil Disobedience Leads to Drugs, Polygamy and Murder?

When does religion exempt you from secular law? The Amish apparently think they're exempt from building codes:

Attorneys acting on behalf of the Amish argue they have a constitutional right to religious freedom. They don't have to conform to building regulations that require them to use architectural drawings, smoke detectors, quality-graded lumber and inspections, Steve Ballan, an assistant public defender assigned to the Amish in Morristown wrote in court documents. "They should be allowed to practice their religion and their religious traditions without interference from the government," he said in an interview.

On the one hand, I do empathize somewhat with the Amish – I think their beliefs are misguided, but they're sincere and honest, and I respect that.

But where does it end? If you make this exception, how can you refuse the next group of religious fanatics?

• Should we allow hallucinogens for anyone who claims them as part of their religion?
• Should parents be allowed to withhold lifesaving medical treatment for their young children?
• Should we allow polygamy?
• Should we allow 60 year old men to "marry" 12 year old girls?
• Should we allow human sacrifice?
• Should we allow mass suicide?

It's the classic "slippery slope." Once you decide that the Amish are exempt from the rule of law, you can't make any rational argument to ban any of the other activities in the list above. And these aren't hypothetical, as we all know!

We're either a nation of laws, or we're not.

Tags: amish law rights building-codes christian atheist atheism

More anti-atheist discrimination in the courtroom

My local newspaper had a new example of unequal rights for Atheists. A local policemen, Officer Bessant, was tragically shot and killed by gang members, mostly to increase their "street cred", their stature in the gang community. The murder was a despicable setup, a cowardly assassination.

The main witness against the murders is also a gang member who testified that he repeatedly lied to police, and to his parents. This witness also admitted shooting at other gang members in a gunfight with rival gang members. This is not a man you'd normally want to trust.

Yet, this lying criminal was magically transformed into the prosecuter's star witness, for the simple reason that he started reading the Bible. He found God. He decided to repent. Jail made him realize the error of his ways, and he turned to religion. By merely declaring that he was now reformed, following the teachings of Jesus, all that lying and attempted murder was forgotten (literally – he was given immunity), and he became a credible witness.

Now the man may in fact be telling the truth; that's for the jury to decide. But how is this discrimination against Atheists? I'm glad you asked.

Imagine that the "reform" was reversed, that he'd been a Christian gang member, lied to everyone, and participated in a gunbattle with a rival gang. After being caught, and spending some time in prison, our hypothetical witness realized his mistake – Christianity had led him astray.

"Yes, your honor, I realized that it was the illogical rules, the stories of genocide, and the undecipherable mythology in the Bible that confused me. I finally realized that Humanist morals made a lot more sense. As a Humanist, I have to actually think about my life, and the mistakes I've made. And your Honor, I now can see the error of my ways. I know I have to be truthful and honest, because that's the Humanist thing to do. I've repented, and stand before you as a new man, one who has rejected God and all Christian mythology."

Does anyone in these United States think an Christian-turned-Atheist would be able to get the same forgiveness that this criminal is receiving? Does anyone think that an Atheist would be believed by the prosecutor, the judge, and the jury?

Case closed.