Category: Religion
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Religionistas Don’t Believe IN God, They Believe They ARE God
I blame monotheism. Anything that puts the voice of the creator of everything into a person’s head is playing with fire. Take your average “religionista” (be they Christian fundamentalist, evangelical or other True Believer). They’ll tell you proudly: they have a personal relationship with God that you probably don’t. That means when God talks, they…
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I’m Grateful To Hebrew School For Making Me An Atheist
Let me stretch that out a bit: I have always been grateful to Hebrew School for making me the atheist I am today. Now, in all fairness, I suspect I was an atheist when I dropped from the womb. Hebrew School didn’t make me an atheist. But, it did close the deal. Whatever lingering doubts…
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How To Argue With Conservatives
In America, if you’re not conservative, it means you’re probably arguing with one. As anyone who’s argued with conservatives knows, it’s a slog. Not even remotely fun, informative, educational or, frankly, worth the time. Conservatives never bring receipts; they think their feelings are receipts. And, while they mock progressives for being “elite”, conservatives judge from…
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Religious Institutions & Sex Scandals Go Together Like S & M
Today we learned that the Mormon church faces yet another sex scandal. Maybe it’s just how it is. Religious institutions and sex scandals go together. As the AP reported: “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was hit with several lawsuits Monday for allegedly covering up decades of sexual abuse among Boy Scout troops in…
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The Ravages Of Magical Thinking
Think magical thinking isn’t potent? Magical thinking is threatening our democracy in real time! Left unchecked, it will bring down the greatest experiment ever in human self government. To be fair, magical thinking now threatens lots of the world. Maybe it just feels like the bulk of its focus is here. Right wingers don’t look…
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Every Christian I Know Is Paul On The Road To Damascus
Yesterday, as the Supreme Court closed out a session historical for its radical Christian lurch backwards toward an America that was, We The People got reminded (harshly) that extreme religiosity and democracy are mutually exclusive propositions. From abortion to guns to clean air, the religious extremists on the court (and how the bloody hell did…
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All Opinions Are NOT Created Equal
Everyone has an opinion. In America, we believe everyone has that right – to hold an opinion that’s uniquely theirs (no matter how goofy). It’s a wonderful thing! But just having an opinion doesn’t make that opinion correct. It’s entirely possible to hold an opinion completely formed by feelings with not an iota of fact…
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America’s Founders Would Find Contemporary American Christianity Shocking
While the majority of America’s founders were Christians, they weren’t Christian the way most Americans – and especially most American Christians – understand Christianity today. “The majority of the Founders were religious rationalists or Unitarians.” Unitarianism is “a liberal Christian theological movement known for its belief in the unitary nature of God, and for its…