Posts Tagged ‘ Religion ’

Faith Fails; Use Skepticism To Appraise Religion, Find Truth

May 7, 2013
By
John Loftus

John Loftus

Believers Should Be Skeptical of Their Religion – And Worried, An Interview With John Loftus

Minister-turned-atheist and author John Loftus and I consider how to appraise religions skeptically and fairly. We talk about issues raised in his new book, The Outsider Test for Faith: How to Know Which Religion Is True. In the 1980s Loftus earned three masters degrees in theology and studied under the tutelage of prominent Christian apologist William Lane Craig. He spent 14 years in Christian ministry, and in the 1990s experienced a full-blown crisis of faith. In 2008 he published a book titled Why I Became an Atheist: A Former Preacher Rejects Christianity. After my discussion with Loftus I’ll refute some arguments I recently discovered while visiting Christian apologetic websites. These claims are directly related to Loftus’ book and our conversation. That is at the end of the podcast (at the 33:15 mark).

MP3 File
(43 minutes, 36 seconds, 20.93 MB)

Here are some links mentioned in this podcast:
Faith: ‘wishful thinking’? by Steve Wilkinson at the Christian Apologetics Alliance
Common Objection #19- “Why Won’t God Heal Amputees?” by Chad at Truthbomb Apologetics
Can Science Lead to Faith? by Gary Marcus at The New Yorker

Dan Barker Reveals a Busy 2013 for the FFRF (IRS Beware!)

February 19, 2013
By
Dan Barker

Dan Barker

Advocating for the Non-Religious Through Growing Pains & Good Humor

Dan Barker, co-president of the Freedom from Religion Foundation with Annie Laurie Gaylor, joins me for a humorous and informative interview. Barker discusses current church and state lawsuits, examines issues concerning nonbelievers, and reveals the foundation’s growing pains. We even share a few jokes. The foundation, based in Madison, Wisconsin, is a non-profit organization that advocates for non-theists, promotes separation of church and state, and educates the public on atheistic, agnostic and nontheistic issues. Barker is a contributing editor of Freethought Today, a newspaper published by the foundation, and is involved with the foundation’s state/church lawsuits. He regularly travels the country and the world giving lectures, performing concerts, and participating in debates with theists, many at college and university campuses. Both Barker and Gaylor co-host Freethought Radio, a national weekly talkshow on the Air America network.

MP3 File
(28 minutes, 53 seconds, 13.87 MB)

To read about the “parsonage exemption” lawsuit, click here. To read about the “religious electioneering” lawsuit, click here. To read about the lawsuit filed against the IRS by the American Atheists, please click here.

Chris Stedman Asks For Civility in Theist-Atheist Debate

February 4, 2013
By
Chris Stedman

Chris Stedman. Photo by Alex Dakoulas.

Assistant Humanist Chaplain’s Book ‘Faithiest’ Recounts Past Hurts & Future Hopes

Faithiest is the title of the recently published book by Chris Stedman, an assistant humanist chaplain at Harvard. The book is a well-written memoir of his life as a young Christian teen who realizes that he’s gay, and whose struggle with religious homophobia led him to the lowest point in his life. After discovering his journal and learning of his plight, Stedman’s mother took him to see a Christian pastor more accepting of his homosexuality. Despite the relief he felt, Stedman eventually became an atheist, whereupon he discovered a different kind of intolerance within the community of nonbelievers. The book is not just a memoir of Stedman’s struggle with his religious and sexual identity – it’s a call for civility in our discourse. The book has sparked conversation, comments and criticism. Stedman fields questions about his past as well as his hopes for the future.

MP3 File
(42 minutes, 33 seconds, 20.43 MB)

The Odds of an Evil God & The Truth of Moral Questions

January 15, 2013
By

Stephen Law

Stephen Law

Stephen Law Discusses His Interesting Thoughts on Morality, His “Evil God Hypothesis,” and His Views on Religion

Philosopher Stephen Law challenges theists to explain, “. . . why the hypothesis that there exists an omnipotent, omniscient and all-good god should be considered significantly more reasonable than the hypothesis that there exists an omnipotent, omniscient and all-evil god. Theists typically dismiss the evil god hypothesis out of hand because of the problem of good – there is surely too much good in the world for it to be the creation of such a being. But then why doesn’t the problem of evil provide equally good grounds for dismissing belief in a good god?” Law is the editor of the Royal Institute of Philosophy journal THINK. He has published several books and is senior lecturer in philosophy at Heythrop College, University of London. His books include Believing Bullshit, The Philosophy Gym, Humanism, A Very Short Introduction, and The War for Children’s Minds. During our conversation, Law shares his interesting views on morality, discusses how science relates to morality, and challenges both theists and non-theists to think.

Toxic Evangelism: Damaging Public Schools One Student at a Time

November 7, 2012
By

The Good News Club, The Christian Right’s Stealth Assault on America’s Children, by Katherine Stewart

Katherine Stewart

Author and journalist Katherine Stewart chronicles the toxic spread of Christianity by fundamentalist evangelical organizations in her 2012 book, The Good News Club, The Christian Right’s Stealth Assault on America’s Children. In it she describes the duplicitous tactics and divisive nature of these religious legal and educational groups. Intent on controlling – and even destroying – the public school system, these organizations peddle a destructive agenda with a goal of controlling American education, politics and culture. Before you sound the cry of “Alarmist!” listen to this podcast or read her book: Like a good student, Stewart has done her homework, and like a good journalist, she has done her footwork.

A Voice for the ‘Nones’ (Podcast)

August 15, 2012
By
Edwina Rogers

Edwina Rogers

Executive Director Edwina Rogers Discusses the Secular Coalition for America’s Lobbying Efforts

Despite the pervasive religious privilege and influence in American culture and politics, the secular community is growing. The PEW Research Center recently reported that 19 percent of Americans identify with no religion. The Secular Coalition for American lobbies for this constituency in Washington D.C., led by Executive Director Edwina Rogers, who was hired in May. Rogers discusses the coalition’s 50-state expansion goal, the current presidential race, and her republican party affiliation and past, among other topics.

It’s Right to Question Romney’s Mormon Faith

July 13, 2012
By

I’m away from my desk for the next several days. Even we professional gripers need to take a break once in awhile. I’ll be republishing a few posts from the previous year for the next week or so. This post was first published on Oct. 13, 2011. A Baptist minister, Robert…

Read more »

The Demons Never Came (Conclusion)

June 22, 2012
By

Deboarding the Jesus Train This is the conclusion of a multi-part series detailing my path from Christianity to non-belief. Click here to read the previous chapter, The Women-Hater’s Handbook. My previous post described the repugnance I felt while reading the Bible after more than 20 years since my devout Christian…

Read more »

The Demons Never Came (Part 3)

June 19, 2012
By

The Women-Hater’s Handbook This is the third of a multi-part series detailing my path from Christianity to non-belief. Click here to read the previous chapter, From Religious Credulity to Healthy Skepticism. My previous two posts detail my Christian past, and how I eventually began to question my beliefs after the…

Read more »

The Demons Never Came (Part 2)

June 15, 2012
By

From Religious Credulity to Healthy Skepticism This is the second of a multi-part series detailing my path from Christianity to non-belief. Click here to read the previous chapter, Why I Disliked the Family Dog. The Christian church comprised the bulk of my social life when I was young. When I…

Read more »

Next Podcast

Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Follow The MG

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Google+

Monthly Insolence

Click here to sign up for The MG's newsletter.

The Gambit's Twitter Feed