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Atheism News

This page features links and in most cases summaries of articles on other websites. We have selected sites that we expect will be of interest to people not afflicted with religious beliefs. We hope you find this page useful. The lists of articles are updated frequently, check back at least once every day for the latest Atheism News.

The sites we have selected are primarily focused on atheism and critrical thinking, two closely related subjects.

Yahoo Atheist News


Analytic Thinking Can Promote Atheism
Deliberate analytical thinking can cause people to believe less in God, according to a new study.
26 Apr 2012 at 11:09am

Analytic thinking could promote atheism
Washington, April 27 (ANI): Analytic thinking can decrease religious belief, even in devout believers, says researchers.
26 Apr 2012 at 11:54pm

New Xulon Book Stands Up for Biblical Truth in a Radical Way
Koons addresses the theory of evolution from all perspectives, provides answersMaitland, FL (PRWEB) May 17, 2012 The mission of Dr. Bob Koons? new book, Evolution and Other Lies ($10.99, paperback, 978-1-61996-344-3; $17.99, hardcover, 978-1-61996-345-0; $5.49, e-book, 978-1-61996-346-7) is clearly to debunk the theory of evolution from a purely scientific viewpoint. With much care, the author ...
17 May 2012 at 12:24am

Older People Hold Stronger Belief in God
Across the world, people have varying levels of belief (and disbelief) in God, with some nations being more devout than others. But new research reveals one constant across parts of the globe: As people age, their belief in God seems to increase.
28 Apr 2012 at 2:24pm

Atheist Minister Releases Ordo Abchao, A Scripture for Non-Believers
@GreyEcologist, an atheist minister, has released on iTunes an iPad book application called Ordo Abchao, a scripture for non-believers. Ordo Abchao is a convergence between gaming and literature, using game mechanics to create an immersive reading experience.New York, NY (PRWEB) May 01, 2012 @GreyEcologist, an atheist minister, released on iTunes an iPad book application called Ordo Abchao ...
1 May 2012 at 2:03am

Are highly religious people less compassionate?
A new study suggests non-believers are more likely than the faithful to be generous when they see a stranger in need
2 May 2012 at 9:08am

How God lights up the brain
Using scanning technology on devout Christians, Danish researchers find that prayer lights up the same parts of the brain as when people are talking to friends and neighbours.
7 May 2012 at 2:30pm

In presidential bid, Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood moves to harder line on Islam...
CAIRO - At a campaign rally for the Muslim Brotherhood's candidate for president, a hardline cleric and TV preacher sang Mohammed Morsi's praises before thousands massed in the stadium of an industrial city in Egypt's Nile Delta.
16 May 2012 at 1:50pm

Penn, Rushdie, Fry attend Christopher Hitchens memorial
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Actors Sean Penn and Stephen Fry, novelist Salman Rushdie and dozens of other friends paid tribute to Christopher Hitchens on Friday in a New York memorial service held four months after his death. Vanity Fair magazine, for which the British-born journalist worked, said that popular songs of the 1960s and 1970s including "Both Sides Now" and "Like a Rolling Stone" were ...
20 Apr 2012 at 3:55pm

Egypt Brotherhood takes harder line in campaign
At a campaign rally for the Muslim Brotherhood's candidate for president, a hardline cleric and TV preacher sang Mohammed Morsi's praises before thousands massed in the stadium of an industrial city in Egypt's Nile Delta.
15 May 2012 at 10:36am

 

Freedom From Religion Foundation


FFRF calls for removal of Bradford County Ten Commandments
The Freedom From Religion Foundation urges the Bradford County, Fla., Commission to remove the recently placed Ten Commandments display from outside the County Courthouse. FFRF is a national state/church watchdog with over 18,000 members nationwide, including more than 850 in Florida. The Ten Commandments were unveiled at the courthouse on May 3, to celebrate a local National Day of Prayer event. The event was chock-full of Christian prayer and many attendees wore t-shirts that said "...
16 May 2012 at 10:20am

FFRF stands up for voter rights in North Carolina
The Freedom From Religion Foundation is contesting election-day abuses by North Carolina polling places. Last Tuesday, Devon Park United Methodist Church blatantly exploited its status as a polling place by erecting a special election day sign supporting Amendment One. The church advised voters: "A true marriage is male and female and God." FFRF Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor took issue with this "flagrant abuse" in a May 11 letter to New Hanover County Elections Director Marvin McF...
11 May 2012 at 2:32pm

Gubernatorial Colorado Day of Prayer proclamations unconstitutional
A unanimous three-judge panel of the Colorado Court of Appeals ruled today in favor of the Freedom From Religion Foundation’s challenge, originally filed in 2008, against gubernatorial proclamations of a Colorado Day of Prayer. Judge Steve Bernard, with concurrences by Judges Alan Loeb and Nancy Lichtenstein, overturned a lower court decision, ruling in favor of FFRF’s challenge of Colorado Day of Prayer proclamations: "A reasonable observer would conclude that these proclamations send the ...
10 May 2012 at 11:17am

FFRF?s ?Quit the Catholic Church? ad in today?s Washington Post
The Freedom From Religion Foundation’s full-page ad, “It’s Time to Quit the Catholic Church,” runs in today’s Washington Post (A-5 Main), urging liberal and nominal Roman Catholics to “quit” their church over its war against contraception. The provocative ad asks: “Will it be reproductive freedom, or back to the Dark Ages? Do you choose women and their rights, or Bishops and their wrongs?” The ad is similar to the full-page ad that appeared in The New York Times in March, which is still ...
8 May 2012 at 7:15am

FFRF announces fund to aid nonbelieving clergy
The Freedom From Religion Foundation is announcing the creation of a special fund to help ministers and priests who want to get out of the pulpit. FFRF, along with the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science, is a primary sponsor of The Clergy Project, created to help ministers, priests, rabbis and other clergy who no longer believe in the supernatural (atheists, agnostics, secular humanists) and are looking for an exit strategy to a secular life. The Clergy Project started in Ma...
7 May 2012 at 9:31am

FFRF: Mayors overstep bounds hosting prayer breakfasts
The Freedom From Religion Foundation is busy this week protesting all kinds of National Day of Prayer-related entanglements between government and religion, including violations occurring in two separate states involving mayoral-arranged prayer breakfasts observing the day of prayer. FFRF, which represents more than 18,000 nonreligious membership and is based in Madison, Wis., serves as a state/church watchdog. In addition to generally protesting the involvement of governors and mayors in ...
2 May 2012 at 1:37pm

Ask Obama to end National Day of Prayer
The Freedom From Religion Foundation is urging President Obama to protect freedom of conscience by ending the unconstitutional National Day of Prayer. In order to get its 'We the People' petition into the hands of the president, FFRF needs to gather 25,000 electronic signatures at the White House website by May 31. 'We the People' is set up by the White House to offer the public a way to petition the President. Each year by Congressional decree, the prayer day takes place on the first...
2 May 2012 at 8:16am

Join Facebook rebellion against Day of Prayer
Fed up with the annual government-sponsored National Day of Prayer? Indignant that your president, your governor, perhaps even your mayor, county executive . . . and dogcatcher, are exhorting you to pray, to set aside an entire day for prayer? Congress has designated the first Thursday in May "as a National Day of Prayer on which the people of the United States may turn to God in prayer and meditation at churches, in groups, and as individuals." Join the Freedom From Religion Foundation in...
30 Apr 2012 at 1:09pm

FFRF contests more Rhode Island religion
The Freedom From Religion Foundation sent a letter of complaint April 13 to Leo Fontaine, mayor of Woonsocket, R.I., about a Latin cross at city Fire Station No. 2 and religious postings on the Fire Department's website. The cross has been there since 1921 as part of a monument erected in memory of an American serviceman killed in France in World War I. The department's website has a rudimentary "memorial" page showing a guardian angel comforting a firefighter. The site also has a poem en...
24 Apr 2012 at 9:56am

Alabama city removes biblical signs
The Freedom From Religion Foundation has convinced the town of Sylvania, Ala., to remove four biblical welcome signs along heavily traveled city routes. Sylvania officials have confirmed that the signs will come down today. FFRF is a national state/church watchdog with over 17,500 members nationwide, including Alabama members and a state chapter, the Alabama Freethought Association. The "Welcome" signs contained a biblical quotation from Ephesians 4:5: "One Lord, One Faith, One Ba...
23 Apr 2012 at 12:21pm

 

The Friendly Atheist


Authoritarian Parenting, No True Scotsman, and Really Bad Poetry
I?d wager that most readers at the Friendly Atheist are at least familiar with the ?No True Scotsman? fallacy if they haven’t been on the receiving end of the argument at some point. The idea is that when someone doesn’t fit your stereotype of a particular group, instead of reassessing the stereotype, you just assume [...]
by amanda
20 May 2012 at 3:00am

Videos from the Global Atheist Convention
A few of the talks from the Global Atheist Convention in Melbourne are starting to come online — the highlights, at least, are worth a few minutes of your time. I love Dennett’s clip. Daniel Dennett: Ayaan Hirsi Ali: A C Grayling:
by Hemant Mehta
19 May 2012 at 7:00pm

God Is Unbelievable, Too
Here’s an interesting documentary project: Michael Wilson is an atheist from New Zealand and he’s heading out on a road trip: I will be test driving religions around my country of New Zealand (sometimes referred to as Godzone). I am planning to visit many groups who think theirs is the one true religion and everyone [...]
by Hemant Mehta
19 May 2012 at 3:00pm

Do Scientists Pray? Einstein Had a Response
Unlike the forwards you receive from your gullible older relatives, it turns out Albert Einstein did have something to say about religion, at least regarding prayer. In response to a young girl’s letter to him in which she asked, “Do scientists pray?” Einstein said this: Scientists believe that every occurrence, including the affairs of human [...]
by Hemant Mehta
19 May 2012 at 12:00pm

Advice for High School Graduates
My seniors graduate this week and I was compiling a list for them. After asking people on Twitter and Facebook for their ideas, here’s what I put together: Never buy textbooks. There are always places to find cheap (or free) versions. Don’t sign up for a credit card, no matter what “prize” they’re offering you. [...]
by Hemant Mehta
19 May 2012 at 9:00am

There?s An Openly Atheist President in Uruguay
In news that doesn’t seem to be getting a lot of American press, José Mujica, the President of Uruguay, made a reference to his own atheism this week when speaking about the ailing Hugo Chavez: Reader David Osorio was kind enough to translate: “I still have not been able to believe in God… if such [...]
by Hemant Mehta
19 May 2012 at 6:00am

Damon Fowler?s Legacy: No Prayer at His Former High School?s Graduation This ...
A year after atheist Damon Fowler fought a losing battle to get prayer out of his Louisiana high school graduation, there’s some great news to report: No moment of silence this year. No public prayer. And no controversy. Those are Damon’s efforts coming to fruition. Bastrop High School won’t thank him for what he did [...]
by Hemant Mehta
18 May 2012 at 11:10pm

Can Believers and Atheists Work Together?
I haven’t had a chance to listen to the full audio, but the Rationalist Society of Australia recently released a conversation between interfaith supporter/atheist Chris Stedman, his biggest critic PZ Myers, and ethicist Leslie Cannold in which they discussed the question “Can believers and atheist work together for the common good?” As always, if you [...]
by Hemant Mehta
18 May 2012 at 6:00pm

Atheists in Christian Workplaces (Part 3)
Continuing the conversations from here and here, I received this email from an atheist who teaches at a Christian school. If you’d like to share your experience as an atheist in a Christian workplace, please shoot me an email. … I met my husband in church. We had both been raised in fairly conservative, Bible-believing [...]
by Hemant Mehta
18 May 2012 at 1:00pm

When Someone Praises God on Facebook?
This is the first in a supposed “commercial” campaign by r/atheism. (Even if that’s not true, consider it a standalone ad.) ***Edit***: Commenters point out this video’s a joke. Glad to hear it. I still think this is a conversation worth having. I think the atheist’s message would’ve been more effective without the CAPS LOCK [...]
by Hemant Mehta
18 May 2012 at 12:00pm

 


About Agnosticism/Atheism


Focus on Religion: Dictionaries on the Definition of Religion
Every dictionary has a definition of religion, but not every definition is equally good. Some are decent, but others are horrible. Sometimes older dictionaries have better definitions than newer ones, ...

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19 May 2012 at 8:00am

Rep. Joe Barton Makes Up Bible Verses

Rep. Joe Barton (R-TX)
Photo: Alex Wong / Getty

Joe Barton (R-TX), infamous for apologizing to BP on the floor of the House of Representatives, has now tried to justify slashing funding for school lunches for poor kids by citing a non-existent Bible verse. It would be bad enough to cite a real Bible verse to justify a political policy -- especially one like this -- but citing a fake Bible verse just makes Barton look like an idiot.

Barton isn't the first or only conservative Christian to hav...


19 May 2012 at 5:00am

Increasing Divisions Within American Churches

A major split has developed between conservative and modernist religious visions in America. The conservative vision is anti-Enlightenment, anti-modernity, and anti-liberty. The modernist vision accommodates religion to the political, moral, and scientific insights which define modern society.

Read Article: Increasing Divisions Within American Churches


19 May 2012 at 1:00am

Do any atheists go to church? If so, why?

The idea of an atheist attending church services seems contradictory - doesn't that require belief in God? Isn't freedom on Sunday morning one of the benefits of atheism? Although most atheists don't count themselves as part of religions which require regular attendance at churches or other houses of worship, you can still find some who do...

Read Article: Do any atheists go to church? If so, why?


18 May 2012 at 8:00am

Catholic School Forfeits Rather than Play Against a Girl

Softball
Photo: Iconica / John Giustina

Our Lady of Sorrows is a fundamentalist Catholic school in Phoenix, Arizona, that was supposed to play Mesa Preparatory Academy for the state softball championship. That game didn't take place because the Catholic school refused to play. Why? Because one of the Mesa softball players is a girl, Paige Sultzbach.

And I'm sure it has nothing to do with the fact that Our Lady of Sorrows lost twice to Mesa Prep over the course of the regular season.

Read...


18 May 2012 at 5:00am

Atheists Trusted Less Than Rapists in America

It should be well known by now that distrust of atheists is high, but it's worse than you may realize: atheists are distrusted about as much, and perhaps a little more than, rapists. In studies that show a person doing something illegal and unethical, few will identify them as a Christian but lots are willing to identify them as a rapist or an atheist.

Read Article: Atheists Trusted Less Than Rapists in America


18 May 2012 at 1:00am

Who is Prejudiced Against Atheists? Who Attacks Godless Atheism, Liberalism?
It might be expected that conservative Christians would hold at least some animus towards atheists, and in fact hostility towards atheism is almost universal among 'born-again Christians.' Even non-Christians and ...

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17 May 2012 at 8:00am

Irrational Decision-Making May be Right

Logic has been around a long time. Probability theory has been around since the 17th century. Decision theory was developed in the 20th century. So we know how to make rational decisions and that we should prefer rational decisions, right? Well... maybe not.

For one thing, you make way too many decisions over the course of the average day to imagine for a second that you generally make those decisions based on sober, rational reflection. And this isn't just true about the "simple" decisions,...


17 May 2012 at 5:00am

Weekly Poll: Has Western Culture Become Atheistic and Irreligious?
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For a lot of Christians, 'atheist' is a label designed to denigrate, not describe. People who don't adhere faithfully to religious doctrines are 'practical atheists.' The broader culture is 'atheistic' because if fails to embody or enforce the religious dogmas which someone deems critical. Is any of this sensible or reasonable? Has the West become atheistic and irreligious simply because it no longer upholds Christian traditions like it used to?

In some ways, modern culture has become m...


17 May 2012 at 1:00am

Myth: After prayer was removed from schools, performance declined...

The purpose of the above argument it to try and claim that various social ills like crime, drug abuse, and teen pregnancy are all due to the fact that prayer and Bible reading have been removed. If only they had been kept, so the argument goes, then society would be much better off today. Unfortunately, they weren't - but we should reinstitute them now and save society from future grief.

Read Article: After prayer was removed from schools, performance declined...


16 May 2012 at 8:00am

Recovery from the Psychological Abuse of Christianity

Original Sin is one of the most essential doctrines of Christianity. Much, if not most, of the rest of Christianity depends on the premise that every human being is born sinful -- even born evil, depending on just how far you take the doctrine. Thus Christianity is founded on teaching people that they are bad -- so bad, that just by being born they deserve eternal torment as punishment.

How does this not qualify as psychological and emotional abuse? Considering how Christianity also teaches ...


16 May 2012 at 5:00am

Forum Discussion: Atheism is Neither a Belief or Religion

It would be difficult to find conservative Christians, and perhaps even Christians generally, who don't mischaracterize atheism as a belief or a religion. It's probably the most common misrepresentation out there and is the most fundamental misunderstanding of atheism possible.

How do you respond to that when you encounter it -- and you definitely encounter it if you discuss atheism at all.

Read Full Post

Forum Discussion: Atheism is Neither a Belief or Religion originally appeared on Abo...


16 May 2012 at 1:00am

Persecution of Witches: Under Torture, Accused Witches Would Confess to Almos...

Image Source:
Jupiter Images Confessions of witchcraft, extracted under torture or threat of torture, commonly came attached to denouncements of other possible witches, keeping the Inquisitors in business. In Spain, church records ...

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15 May 2012 at 8:00am


Bing Atheism News Search


Atheism is Beautiful. Yeah, I said it. - patheos.com
Explaining to a die-hard Christian that you are a ?friendly atheist? is sometimes equivalent to explaining you are a friendly murderer.   To them, atheists are evil soulless creatures condemned to hell. God made atheists, atheists.
18 May 2012 at 8:58am

Liberal or Literal? James Wood, Terry Eagleton, and the New Atheism - Religio...
Nancy Frankenberry is the John Phillips Professor of Religion at Dartmouth College. She has recently edited The Faith of Scientists: In Their Own Words Since we are already riding piggyback here, I will ignore Eagleton?s and Dawkins? books ...
19 May 2012 at 2:08am

Against a human-made religion: Atheism and Christianity - ABC Online
In the modern West, atheists have made a play for the high ground - to claim the coveted prizes of reason, truth and popularity. The implication of this approach is that in the name of reason and truth, all "irrationalisms", such as religion (or usually ...
10 May 2012 at 6:11pm

Our Father?s Not in Heaven: The New Black Atheism - Gawker
Several years ago, I pitched a freelance piece about black atheism to a prominent magazine geared toward African-Americans. The pitch was denied, but not for any real reason. "That one might be a bit, uh, hard," is all my editor said. I'd later come to ...
17 May 2012 at 1:16pm

Rabbi claims atheism is becoming religious - Examiner
While it's true that most of the articles in my Atlanta Atheism column focus primarily on Christianity, I've also had my momentary tangles with Jewish Rabbis.  Recently, I refuted the idea that the Reason Rally was an ill-conceived event (LINK)  Before ...
13 May 2012 at 2:04pm

Atheism?s new clout - Salon
Why would any organization or social change movement want to ally itself with a community that?s energetic, excited about activism, highly motivated, increasingly visible, good at fundraising, good at getting into the news, increasingly ...
11 May 2012 at 8:09am

Alain de Botton puts faith in temples for atheists - Daily Telegraph
Would people pray in the temple? ?No, no. People would probably behave as they would in a museum.? De Botton wants to reclaim atheism from strident anti-religion figures such as Richard Dawkins. While this is a laudable aim, I can?t help thinking ...
18 May 2012 at 6:27am

'Imagine No Religion' Canadian Atheist Convention Sells Out - Christian Post
Christopher DiCarlo of Freethought TV and Atheist Community of Austin president Matt Dillahunty will argue for atheism while philosopher Michael Horner and Dr. Paul Chamberlain of the Institute for Christian Apologetics at Trinity Western University will ...
17 May 2012 at 11:43am

Why Choose Agnostic? Ctd - Daily Beast
Dawkins and Tyson seem to be playing to a popular audience with their distinction between atheism and agnosticism - a distinction which cannot really be upheld in the scientific worldview. The default position for a scientist is to not believe something ...
7 May 2012 at 6:43pm

Islam and Christianity must renovate religion: Atheists have to stop trashing...
In an article he wrote in February for the New Statesman, Journalist Bryan Appleyard described how a ?neo-atheism? ? by which he means ?the conviction that science provides the only road to truth and that all religions are deluded ...
11 May 2012 at 3:08am

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