War on Religion

I made this thing the second I heard Jon Stewart say it because it's full of truth.

The Daily Show rules.

I still can't get over this idea that (religious) people think there's a war on religion in this country. Do they really think their right to practice whatever religion they want is being THREATENED?? Are you KIDDING me?? Just because we don't all subscribe to their beliefs and we don't want our lives and our rights to be dictated by those beliefs, we're waging WAR?? Just because we want ALL people to feel included in this country?

I don't believe in god, I don't believe in heaven or hell, I don't go to church, I don't pray. But I'm a good person. I am nice to strangers, I love my family, I work hard, I have fun with my friends and I want everyone to be happy and healthy. And I am an American. I'm sorry, but this country is NOT a Christian nation. It's a nation of differences. The country was not founded as a place for Christians, it was founded as a place to be free to practice whatever religion you choose and that includes NO religion. IT DOES. Accept it. My not believing has ABSOLUTELY NO BEARING on your believing. It doesn't affect you. If you don't want to marry a member of the opposite sex because it's against your religion, that's YOUR CHOICE. It is NOT your place to tell others what they can and cannot do. If I have a company and I want to include EVERYONE in my holiday wishes by saying "Happy Holidays" or by displaying decorations from multiple religions, that's a GOOD thing. It's being inclusive. It's say "hey, I recognise that we're not all the same and I want to make you all feel welcome in this holiday season."

And I definitely think the government SHOULD ALWAYS seek to include everyone. When the president acknowledged non-believers in is inauguration, that was a GOOD thing. It is not attacking you. I don't want to take away ANYONE'S right to practice whatever religion they want. Sure, I often want to try to convince people that they're religion makes no sense... haha But I would never, ever, ever suggest there should be laws restricting that. (Except, of course, if their laws harm another human being... no human sacrifices allowed.) And I will NOT accept any religion that DOES want to do that. Keep it to yourselves. Separation of church and state. This is one of the most important aspects of our government that needs to be preserved. The religious need to understand that this idea protects THEM TOO. What happens if this country DID have an official religion? Many religions would be furious. Sure, right now they all agree that gay marriage is bad, but if there was one religion in power that had views the others didn't, they'd be screwed.

Look, ultimately it comes down to this: What do you care?? I understand that you think you're helping all these lost souls. And if you want to run around waving pamphlets and trying to convince others the error or their ways, go right ahead. But to go as far as trying to make these things law, is NOT OKAY. And you don't have to worry about seeing all these awful sinners in heaven, anyway, right? God won't let 'em in. So why don't you just let them live their lives in peace and he'll take care of everything for you in the end.

Sound good?

I Gets Another Religious Blog Comment!

I haven't been keeping up with this. I know it, you know it, we ALL know it. I'm sorry! I know I don't have a TON of readers but it's pretty cool to have the amount that I do...or rather, DID. Unfortunately with the twitter and the tumblr, I just go straight there when I want to share something. This blog is definitely better for longer form posts and I have plenty of ideas for things I want to post, but... I just don't. (A big reason is that blogger is now blocked at my job so I can't post during lunch which I used to do.)

Anyway, I still get emails when I get a comment (which obviously isn't as often lately), and one of the posts I get a lot from is the "Kirk Cameron is an Idiot" post (one of my favourites)! And yesterday I got this comment that made me happy. haha Happy because I see comments like this on atheist blogs I read and it's just exciting to get one of my own. :) And it's not a cruel one, just a misguided one. So I thought I'd share it and my response. Let me know what you think!

 Anonymous said...

I feel so sorry for you Jennifer! You sound like a really lost soul! Apparently youve never lost someone that you love so much or believing in a God and a heaven that promises we will see our loved ones again wouldnt be so hard for you to accept! I will keep you in my prayers because not only is there a heaven, theres also a hell!

October 19, 2011 9:14 AM

 Jennifer Juniper said...

So let me get this straight. You feel bad for me because I HAVEN'T lost someone I really love? (Which is not true by the way.)

You seemed to be confused between WANTING there to be a god and an afterlife and whether or not there actually IS one. SURE it would be nice to know that when I die I will see the family & friends I've lost again, but that's just highly unlikely. Simply wanting it doesn't make it true.

Not only is there not a heaven, there's not a hell. Don't waste your time praying. Go out there and live the life you DO have to its fullest!

Oh the Rapture. LOLZ!

So yesterday came and went and nothing happened. SURPRISE! Not much to say, but I felt I had to post SOMEthing. Man, it's sad how gullible some people are. I mean, I KNOW I am at times, but THIS... THIS  is just insane. Anyway, here are a couple of my favourite post-Rapture related things I saw on facebook:

Why the Rapture didn't happen (posted by my friend Chris Giarrusso):

And this funny little video (posted by Truth-Saves.com):

So there you go. I'm sorry but I just don't feel bad laughing at these people. I do feel A LITTLE bad about those that spent their life savings trying to spread the word. Oh well. I HOPE they learned their lesson.


The End.

PS As an added bonus, my friend posted this little gem: The Onion strikes again! It's about some dumb people's reactions to an Onion article, b/c apparently they'd never heard of it. Come on, people! My PARENTS know what the Onion is!!! What's even more worrisome are these ideas about abortions... Condoms are silent abortions??!?!?!!? Yes. No wonder we have more people than can be fed in this world. Sigh.

The Book of Mormon!!

Trey Parker & Matt Stone have done it again!

As we're not allowed photos, this is all I've got.

Two nights ago I saw The Book of Mormon, a new Broadway show created by the South Park guys, Trey Parker & Matt Stone. To say I really liked this show would be an understatement. This was one of the best Broadway shows I've ever seen. It was as funny as you'd expect something by these guys to be and man, they really know how to make funny songs actually GOOD. It's no easy feat, but they've managed it time and again on South Park and this show is no exception. I'll be singing "Tomorrow is a Latter Day" and "Scary Hell Dream" for awhile to come. (And I'll be buying that soundtrack the MINUTE it's available!)

I don't want to give any of it away, but they do a good job of giving a condensed version of what Mormons believe (it's ridiculous, to say the least), with a narrative and without being TOO mean. (To be honest, I would've liked it to be a LITTLE meaner. haha) The cast is fantastic and likable and boy do they work hard. There is a LOT going on in this play. The sets are simply amazing as well. There really isn't anything bad I can say about this! There's also been many, MANY blogs about this, so I don't want to get repetitive, but I just wanted to make it known that I LOVE THIS SHOW! (I even read a blog by a Mormon who loved it and encourages other Mormons to go see it!) Honestly, there's a VERY good chance I will be seeing this again soon.

The only pic I dared to sneak before it started.

Tonight is opening night (I went to see it during previews month...it's cheaper. haha), and I have a feeling it's going to be sold out nightly, so I'd look into getting tickets as soon as possible. I PROMISE you will not regret it!!


The End. Tomorrow is a latter day.

I love Dawkins!!!

Also, I didn't know you could "renounce" your baptism... I should look into that... Though my mom might have a heart attack...


The End.

I Am Thirty

I keep saying it, hoping it will stop being scary. It doesn't.

haha I guess it's not so much that I feel OLD as that I'm that much closer to it being over! I know, I know, I have plenty of time (barring a terrible accident, which I like to avoid), but still. THIRTY YEARS HAVE PASSED. And it's not like it FELT like thirty years! I'm not like at this stage thinking, "Whoa, that took FOREVER, man, I got so many more of these years to get through!" That shit FLEW! It's crazy!

I know I'm not the only person in the world to think like this, I'm sure pretty much EVERYONE does. But that doesn't change the scariness for ME. ::sigh::

And yes, part of the scariness is that when it's over, THERE'S NOTHING. It's scary! It's impossible to imaging non-existence, which freaks me out! And before any of you religious-types says some dumbass thing about being right or whatever, here's this: Just because I'd LIKE there to be an after life (though, even that I'm not sure I want, all possible outcomes are kinda scary), that doesn't mean there IS one.

I think that's what's going on with a lot of religious people (I'm saying most or anything, but I know they're out there). They WANT there to be an afterlife, religion COMFORTS them, so they refuse to REALLY think about it for fear of convincing themselves it's not true. But I can't TRICK myself. I can't FORCE myself to believe something I don't. It's literally impossible! And if there WAS a god, wouldn't he be able to TELL that I was faking anyway??

So I guess that's kinda more why I'm scared of being 30. That's thirty years of a relatively short existence GONE. Don't get me wrong, I'm pretty happy where I've gotten myself in those thirty years. I don't think I've not done something by now that I should have. (Luckily I have ZERO desire for children, otherwise I'd be freaking out about THAT too.) I mean, I'd like to have more money and have been able to see more places in the world, but I've still got time for that.

I think this is also why I pack my days full of stuff to the point of exhaustion. I just don't want to waste what little time I have! I don't want to miss out on anything! I don't want to miss out on meeting amazing people and making new friends and doing fun things with all of them. Sure I'm tired all the time, but it's worth it. Though I'd really like some more time to just go home and play video games!! Too bad I have to work! ;-) But I am lucky to enjoy that as well. I'm relatively happy and that's a good thing. But...THIRTY! I seriously can't believe it!

Ah well...that ends THAT rant. Stay tuned for my SDCC post coming soon!


The End.

Oxymoron

Emphasis on the "moron." ;-)


Saw this downtown while walking with a friend. Just had to share... hahaha Pfft. "Science"!


The End.

I ♥ Tim Minchin!!! He's My Hero!

THIS is Tim Minchin.

He's like a comedic musician. I don't know TOO much about him yet, but you can bet I'm going to become an expert. I will be ordering his comedy albums very shortly. But he's obviously very smart. haha And I agree with his ideas. And he's an atheist. I love him.

But the reason for this post right now is due to this video on youtube. This gem is only the most recent wonderfulness I've found from the fantastic Tim Minchin:

How fucking awesome is that!? Man, I want a fucking MP3! So genius. And SO RIGHT! FUCK THE FUCKING POPE! Covering up child rape?! Are you fucking kidding me!? All the "good little Catholics" should be up in arms about this! They should be fucking pissed that it gives them such a bad name! ARGH... OK I'm going off topic...back to Minchin.

The first thing I ever found of his was this (also awesome, though not quite as serious a topic as the above):

If you don't love these, then I have no idea why you even bother to read this blog. ;-)

Hope you enjoy!

The End.

PS OK, you got me. I am also very, very attracted to his accent. Hrrrrrrr...... ;-)

PPS Buy his stuff! I'm sure going to!

PPPS The guy responsible for the animation in the fucking pope song, is Fraser Davidson, who is apparently really fucking talented!! See here:

EDIT: Here's the Pope Song lyrics! (Just in case you miss a few words - or you want to memorise them like I do! haha)

Fuck the motherfucker
Fuck the motherfucker
Fuck the motherfucker he’s a fucking motherfucker!
Fuck the motherfucker
Fuck the fucking fucker
Fuck the motherfucker he’s a total fucking fucker!
Fuck the motherfucker
Fuck the motherfucker
Fuck the motherfucker, fucking fuck the motherfucker!
Fuck the motherfucker
Fuck the motherfucking Pope!
Fuck the motherfucker, and fuck you, motherfucker
If you think that motherfucker is sacred.
If you cover for another motherfucker who’s a kiddy fucker
Fuck you, you’re no better than the motherfucking rapist.
And if you don’t like the swearing that this motherfucker forced from me
And reckon it shows moral or intellectual paucity
Then fuck you, motherfucker, this is language one employs
When one is fucking cross about fuckers fucking boys.
I don’t give a fuck if calling the Pope a motherfucker
Means you unthinkingly brand me an unthinking apostate.
This has nowt to do with other fucking godly motherfuckers
I’m not interested right now in fucking scriptural debate.
There are other fucking songs and there are other fucking ways
I’ll be a religious apologist on other fucking days.
But the fact remains that if you protect a single kiddy fucker
Then Pope or prince or plumber, you’re a fucking motherfucker!
You see I don’t give a fuck what any other motherfucker
Believes about Jesus and his motherfucking mother.
I’ve no problem with the spiritual beliefs of all these fuckers
While those beliefs don’t impact on the happiness of others.
But if you build your church on claims of fucking moral authority
And with threats of hell impose it on others in society
Then you, you motherfuckers, can expect some motherfucking wrath
When it turns out you’ve been fucking us in our motherfucking asses!
So fuck the motherfucker, and fuck you, motherfucker
If you’re still a motherfucking papist.
If he covered for a single motherfucker who’s a kiddy fucker
Fuck the motherfucker, he’s as evil as the rapist.
And if you look into your motherfucking heart and tell me true
If this motherfucking stupid fucking song offended you
With its filthy fucking language and its fucking disrespect
If it made you feel angry, go ahead and write a letter.
But if you find me more offensive than the fucking possibility
The Pope protected priests when they were getting fucking fiddly
Then listen to me motherfucker, this here is a fact:
You are just as morally misguided as that motherfucking power-hungry, self-aggrandised
Bigot in his stupid fucking hat.

Desktop Finds...

I like these posts, they're easy!

Anyway, as I troll the interwebs or even just from friends or my job, I find images that I like and I copy them to my desktop. And then they just sit there and clutter it up. So to make good use of them, here's what I found today when cleaning up:

AWESOME David Finch cover that I'm in love with. I think everyone here should tell him to give me the original for free because no one will appreciate it more...and I'm broke. :-P


Super cool drawing of me Chris Eliopoulos did for me after I whined for a drawing of me:


Super cool Terry Moore piece he drew and posted up on twitter this week:


Awesome Zombie Jesus I found on the Atheist Experience:


I don't remember where I found this, but I love it:


Looking for Delirium reference I came across this! So pretty!


And this. Apparently it was a limited print. I want one so badly. I really wish Mike Allred would make more...


One of my good friend Rob Steen's super cool little dudes:


Awesome. I forget where... Huffington Post article maybe...


Yeah, this was a Huffington Post article image. Lost their C... hehehe


And it wouldn't be me without a jab at religion! (I know, Zombie Jesus, but that was just cool, this is hilarious!) Don't remember where:



The End.

Yeah, God LOVES His Children

Another case of fanaticism harming children. These people would rather pray for the health of their child than actually getting him treatment. I'm just glad the judge had the sense to charge them for it (though if you ask me, 16 months is not enough time).

Faith Healer's Get 16 Months for Son's Death

OK, you know what? As an adult, if YOU are suffering from a curable disease, fine, pray your ass off and let yourself die, I don't care. But to do that to your kids?! Are you kidding me?! And your grandkids?! It's just disgusting. AND against the law. That's it! Just blame the law! God can't get mad at you for following the law, can he? I guess maybe he can, since clearly he's asking you to be a dumbass when it comes to the health of your children.

I don't get it! Why would "God" "bless" humans with the intelligence necessary to cure illnesses, only to tell you not to USE it?? Ugh. I guess it's for the same reason "He" "gives" us the desire to fornicate, only to tell us we shouldn't, or "creates" gay humans, only to tell them they're abominations and will go to hell if they act on their feelings.

Nothing short of DISGUSTING.

It's such a shame, I really don't think we'll EVER be rid of this backwards way of thinking. I just hope we can get less of them in positions of power... sigh.


The End.

Scientology Strikes Again!

Came across this on the interwebs: Scientologist's "heal" Haiti quake victims using touch

Yeah, you read that right. I'd say more, but I really don't have to. You'll see how stupid it is for yourself when you read it.

::sigh::


The End.

OK, I'm On a Tear Tonight...

Sorry, just catching up on a lot of blogs and stuff. I was reminded of the Brookstone firing incident where a man was fired for telling a lesbian co-worker that what she was doing — marrying another woman — was bad stuff. Of course HE sees her talking about her upcoming wedding as pushing her gay agenda in his face. It should be noted that when he thought he was marrying a man, he was interested in her wedding plans, so the argument that she shouldn't be talking about her personal life in the workplace doesn't fly.

You can read the full story here (a Google search will give you the same story told from gay-friendly as well as many anti-gay perspectives, but the video they're getting it from is always the same).

I recommend reading the comments. There's some nicely worded rebuttals to the religious, anti-gay nutcases.

And speaking of them...this guy took the cake in the comments section and I had to just bring it to the forefront:

Wade

November 16th, 2009 at 2:06 pm

This man is not a bigot and was not judging the woman. Please get your facts straight before posting comments. This woman knew she was offending her Christian coworker by talking about her homosexual relations. This is sexual harrassment and intolerance on her part. This man went and prayed before gently, out of Christian love for all and in a non-judmental way, trying to inform the woman of what she might not know – that homosexuality is a sin against God and no man-made laws can or will ever change that. He did this out of a desire for this woman to have happiness and the abundant life God wants for all people, but that this woman will never have as long as she continues in this sin. We are all sinners, but should be striving to not sin – not embracing the sin. Regardless of any who reads this believes or does not believe, this woman will continue to be punished by God because of the sin of homosexuality until she begins striving to end this sin in her life. And, she will only be alble to achieve this with God’s help. This Christian man was doing his Godly duty to attempt to help this woman even he had to put his job at risk. Satan in the world will always fight back against Christians who stand up for God and he will use those who are weak in God like the supervisor who fired this Christian man. This man is a hero!

This really just...well it's just horrifying. THIS is why I hate religion. I know, I know, religious people are not ALL like this (I know religious people who are not, but they are not literally following their religion to the letter)...but this is what religion breeds. ::sigh:: I think I'm going to bed now. Maybe I'm getting so angry because I'm cranky... Nah, I'd be this angry no matter what time it was! :-P

The End.

Funny Religion-Related Things Found on Internet

Just a couple funny religion-related images I found on the internet! (Wow! Just as the title suggests! :-P)

Found this on Blag Hag (one of my new favourite blogs by a fellow atheist Jennifer!):


This was twittered by the same Jennifer and found here:


Sent to me by my co-worker (here's the link):


I can't remember where I got this, think I found it on twitter...hilarious!


The End.

Kirk Cameron Is An Idiot

Mike Seaver, say it ain't so!

Check this shit out (found on this site via twitter follower). Kirk Cameron and that idiot Ray Comfort will be handing out free copies of Origin of the Species, with a "special" introduction by Ray himself, hoping to give college students an opposing viewpoint to evolution. I'm hoping most of these students will read it and laugh. I kinda want one myself. You know, as a novelty item.



There are many problems with this video, but I'll only just mention a few. Firstly, our liberties are not GOD-given, thank you very much. If that were the case, we'd have practically none. ESPECIALLY women (which is amusing since he says some shit about Darwin's hatred for women). Another pile of bullshit is that NO ONE is telling ANY children that they can't read bibles in school (assuming it's not DURING class). If there's private reading time, or maybe during lunch, that a child decides to use reading the bible, that's FINE. They're not allowed to pray?! Get the fuck out of here. The only thing that's not allowed is that the SCHOOL and/or TEACHERS can't MAKE them pray or read bibles. ::sigh:: I'm getting all worked up here.

Either way, my first thought was what would Kirk say if atheists started going to churches and handing out free copies of the bible with all its contradictions and HATRED OF WOMEN and all its bullshit pointed out printed in a special intro at the front. He'd have a fucking shit-fit, saying how DISRESPECTFUL to their religion it was. It's funny b/c he claims that these students at these colleges are BRAIN-WASHED by atheist teachers and not given an opposing point of view. But what do you think the parents of Christian children are doing?! (I know, I know, not ALL of them. But I'm generalising the way Kirk does.) Creationist-believing parents do not offer their children the Bible and Origin of the Species and say, "Use your heads kids, decide which you think sounds more logical."

Ugh. If you watch the second video in the link at the top, you'll see a girl ripping this video apart, she has many of the same ideas as I have. She also brought up a good point that she (and I agree) doesn't think Kirk would be too happy with free Korans being handed out in schools.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, all this crap is summed up with what our government is SUPPOSEDLY based on: SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE. Man, how HARD is that to understand?!?!

Argh!


The End.

PS Haha This kinda goes against what I said about praying being allowed in schools (and it is, on the students OWN time), but I still like this quote from who knows where:


[EDIT: This guy basically says what I said, only better. He actually references specific laws...haha]

Random Images

Here are some random images I've found on my desktop (I'm trying to clean it up), saved just because I liked them:

OK...these are just retarded cute:




Well...if you know me at all... haha:




This one speaks for itself:


The following I found on Joshua Middleton's blog. He's one of my favourite comic artists. Aren't these gorgeous?



My good pal, Chris Giarrusso's comic G-Man: Cape Crisis! This is the cover to issue #1 (ON SALE NOW! GET IT!). Princess Roja on there is AWESOME! ;-)


Evolution of Link!! What's not to love!


Hahahahaha This makes me laugh every time!


Oh and here are the manga avatars of myself I've made. These things are fun!

The first two are made with Manga.com - Avatar Face Maker and the last one is from Face Your Manga! Both fun!




The End.

Good Questions!

Found on The Atheist Experience blog comments. Funny...in a not-so-funny way. But really?! This is basically what "god" does!

(The commenter saw found these question somewhere on the World Wide Web. Edit: Tyler was the commentor and he's provided the link for the "quiz"! Thanks!)

1)You are a product tester and frequently bring your work home. Yesterday, while dressed in a flame resistant suit (up to 3,000 degrees) and carrying the latest model fire extinguisher, you discover your neighbor's house is on fire. As the flames quickly spread, you stand and watch your neighbor's new baby burn to death. Which of the following best describes your behavior?

1. All-powerful
2. All-knowing
3. All-loving
4. Mysterious


2)A great sadness has come into your life which you feel you cannot bear. A friend informs you of a free counseling service which has never failed to aid and comfort many others. You call the counselor; the phone rings and rings with no answer; you finally hang up. What is the most likely explanation?

1. The counselor is sitting by the phone but not answering in order to test your faith in him
2. The counselor always stands ready to hear your pleas for help, but sometimes the answer is "no"
3. The counselor will not answer because he wants you to profit by the spiritual strength that only comes through suffering
4. The counselor is not home


::sigh::
The End.

Hehe Funny Religious Humour!

Found on RichardDawkins.net:




The End.

Never Gets Old

Wish I had been atheist longer so I could've appreciated this man more before he died. GOD I love him. (hehe)




The End.

Re-Post from The Atheist Experience

I'm just re-posting something I read on a blog I've been regularly following for the past few months (and will DEFINITELY continue to follow), The Atheist Experience. This was posted in January, but I'm only reading it now. I'm re-posting it because it says better than I could (though I agree with ALL of it) why religion makes me so angry. I've said before, I'm fairly new to atheism, but once I finally admitted it to myself, I've become so angry about religion and I can't help but get all worked up when someone talks about it in a positive light.

Anyway, the full post (found here) is responding to someone's list of questions they would ask an atheist if given the chance. Posted by Martin Wagner, he addresses each one. This is the first question, I haven't even read the rest yet, but his answer is perfect and I just wanted to share. If you are religious and reading this, please try not to get defensive and just read his response (I know it's hard to do, I get defensive about my views as well), it might help you understand where I'm (and other atheists are) coming from.

Here it is, question first, followed by response:

Apologist Mike Licona: "What turns you off about Christianity? Irrespective of one's worldview, many experience periods of doubt. Do you ever doubt your atheism and, if so, what is it about theism or Christianity that is most troubling to your atheism?"

I'm glad this question came first, as it's actually the first time I've heard a question phrased this way from any Christian. Notice Licona doesn't ask why I don't believe, he asks why Christianity is a turnoff. Which is quite a different matter. Licona has noticed that, apart from disbelief, there is something about religion in particular that rubs atheists the wrong way. Very astute, Mike. (Except, of course, for slipping in the mistaken attempt at equivocation with the ever-popular Christian weasel word "worldview." Atheism is not a "worldview." It is merely the disbelief in gods.)

I'll take the final question first. When credible evidence for a deity comes to light — a thing theists have singly been incapable of providing — then I will doubt my atheism. This does not mean I have a closed mind towards the idea. Even when I say, with full confidence, that I don't believe in any gods, I'm not making a dogmatic proclamation of absolute knowledge. But here, it's like the question of leprechauns. Would I believe in leprechauns if evidence for them ever made it sensible to do so? Sure. But in the absence of such evidence, I'm quite confident in maintaining my disbelief in leprechauns. Ditto gods.

There's nothing about Christianity troubling to my atheism, per se, so much as troubling to my humanism and ideas about goodness and decency. What turns me off about Christianity is that I consider it morally confused at best, and morally bankrupt at worst. Indeed, the Doctrine of Hell alone forever disqualifies Christianity as a moral belief system of any kind. Put bluntly, any religion that not only uses threats of eternal torture and punishment to enforce compliance, let alone considers eternal torture morally acceptable in the first place, simply for the "crime" of not being Christian, can only be considered not merely immoral but evil. Let us, for the sake of argument, say God exists. Am I to understand that this deity — said to be omniscient, omnipotent, omnific — is so insecure in his rule over his creation that he would find it necessary to consign me to eternity in hell merely for using my reasoning capacities (which he presumably gave me) to doubt his existence, especially when this God has deliberately chosen to refuse to reveal his existence unambiguously? Am I supposed to consider such a being worthy of my admiration, let alone my love and, most incredibly, my worship?

I often ask people who call the television show to imagine an abusive spouse, who tells his wife the following: "Honey, I love you with all my heart. But I swear, if you ever leave me, if I ever even think you're looking at another man or thinking about breaking up with me, so help me, I'll break your neck!" Now, is this a man you'd introduce your lady friends to? Is this someone you'd consider, not only a good man, but the best and most moral kind of man possible? No? But look closely. This man is your God. Don't worship him to his satisfaction, don't accept the divine love he so generously offers you, and go directly to hell, boom, no passing "Go" or collecting the proverbial two Benjamins.

Honestly, can you really be so clueless as to why Christianity turns atheists off, when it offers such an appalling deity for our devotion?

The immorality of Christianity doesn't stop there. This is a religion that preaches "love one another," and yet encourages the most virulent forms of hate. True, Islam does this to a degree Christianity can only dream of, but Christianity is still pretty objectionable. It is Christianity that inspires essentially 100% of the homophobia that is practiced in this country, and it informs most of its racism as well. You could say that this activity is merely bad people misinterpreting Christianity to their own ends. But it's hard to sell that excuse when passages in Leviticus calling for the execution of gays, and similarly hateful passages in Romans exist.

And why do so many racist groups openly identify themselves as Christian, giving themselves such pompous names as "World Church of the Creator"? This, I'd say, is perhaps not something particular to Christianity as it is to the very nature of religion itself: religion has historically been a tool for people to justify violence, atrocities, bigotry, oppression, even outright murder by giving such activity the divine stamp of approval. Todd Rundgren comments eloquently on this in his song "God Said," in which he imagines God replying to the prayers of a desperate and insecure believer.

You are not serving me, you're serving something else
Cause I don't need to be pleased, just get over yourself
You can't suck up to me, I know you all too well
But I don't dwell upon you, so get over yourself
Cause you're not praying to me, you're praying to yourself
And you're not worshiping me, you're worshiping yourself
And you will kill in my name and heaven knows what else
When you can't prove I exist, so get over yourself

You might say, again, that religiously-inspired hate and violence is man misusing religion, and doesn't come from God. But outside of Rundgren's song, I don't see God doing much to put a stop to such activity in his name. And when you consider, as I (and Todd) have, that what people call God is pretty much always simply their own idealized self-image, projected upon the universe, is it any wonder that religiosity has so often taken such an ugly form?

Another thing that turns me off about religion in general and Christianity in particular is the way such beliefs encourage delusion and bankrupt knowledge. I could go on (and have) at length about the way Christian fundamentalists in America are engaged in an all-out war on science education, specifically the study of a subject — evolutionary biology — that is vital to the understanding of our health and of our ability to treat disease. And the roster of scientific all-stars suppressed (Galileo) or just plain murdered outright (Giordano Bruno) by the Church is a stain you'll never wash off. But this post is going to be long enough as it is, so I'll move on.

The End.

Funny Stuff

Just a quickie post to show you some funny things!

This is a t-shirt available at Snorg.com. While I don't think I'd wear it (not b/c of what it says, I just don't think it looks that nice...), I think it's hilarious!


And this is a cartoon I found at 1 2 3 Religious Comics (which is more Atheist comics...). Enjoy!



Hopefully tomorrow I'll finally post about my friend's show I went to on Sunday that I thoroughly enjoyed. Just gotta remember to upload the photos... :-P


The End.