h/t: MoveOn.org
MARRIAGE EQUALITY: Marriage Became A Basic Civil Right 45 Years Ago
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Category Archives: Christianity
SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE: Louisiana Lunacy: Tens of Millions to be Spent on Faith-based Education
SCHOOLS run along faith guidelines have hit the jackpot big time following Louisiana’s decision to siphon tens of millions of tax dollars out public schools and into religious institutions where only creationism will be taught.
In what is described here as “the nation’s boldest experiment in privatizing public education”, the state will pay private industry, businesses owners and church pastors to educate children.
Starting this fall, thousands of poor and middle-class kids will get vouchers covering the full cost of tuition at more than 120 private schools across Louisiana, including small, Bible-based church schools.
Said Governor Bobby Jindal, a Republican who muscled the plan through the legislature this spring over fierce objections from Democrats and teachers unions:
“We are changing the way we deliver education. We are letting [some of the most notoriously uneducated] parents [in the country] decide what’s best for their children, not government.”
Jindal is a [converted] devout Catholic, and this is what he believes:
“As Christians, we’re secure in the knowledge that in the Book of Life, our God wins. He gets off that cross. He beats Satan. We’re not called to be despondent. We are called to be salt and light and to be planting the seeds of the gospel.”
SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE: Zinnia Jones / “Governor Bryant, There Is No “Non-Denominational” School Prayer”
“Without school-sponsored prayer, students are still free to pray on their own while in school. But where school prayer is mandated, students from all walks of life have often been required to acknowledge an “Almighty God” or “Heavenly Father”, whether through regulation or just social pressure. Such an arrangement is clearly antithetical to genuine religious freedom in schools.”
Video transcript: http://freethoughtblogs.com/zinniajones/2012/06/governor-bryant-there-is-no-n…
Related articles
- Mississippi Governor on school prayer: “It is what we should continue to do” (secularnewsdaily.com)
- Mississippi Governor touts ‘non-denominational’ prayer in public schools (secularnewsdaily.com)
- Mississippi Governor Endorses School Prayer (msatheists.org)
- Zinnia Jones: Gov. Bryant, There Is No ‘Non-Denominational’ School Prayer (huffingtonpost.com)
- Congressional support for school prayer? (secularnewsdaily.com)
CHRISTIAN BIGOTRY: Hagee Tells Atheists to Leave the Country
PHILOSOPHY: Sam Harris / “Death and the Present Moment”
SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE: Film / “In God We Teach”
A film by Vic Losick, “In God We Teach” tells the story of a high school student who secretly recorded his history teacher in class, and accused him of proselytizing for Jesus. The teacher, in danger of losing his job strenuously denied it. The specifics of the controversy lead directly to the church & state arguments that are in the news this election year. With Stephen Colbert, Alan Dershowitz, Neil deGrasse Tyson and others.
LOGIC: Is Homosexuality Unnatural?
CHRISTIAN BIGOTRY: Lawrence M. Krauss / Does Religious Liberty Equal Freedom to Discriminate?
[…]
. . . [T]he right to marry, . . . is a secular legal issue. Even if the state were to recognize same-sex marriages, churches, mosques or synagogues or other places of worship would not be required to hold wedding ceremonies within them or sanction such marriages because the no legal standing is attributed to such ceremonies or sanctions. Where is the attack on liberty?
[…]
. . . [T]he banner of ‘religious liberty’ is effectively more akin to the ‘right to discriminate.’ For the state to treat organized religious groups differently than it does other organizations implies special rights for these groups to behave differently than others. But this requires such religious groups to determine who is in the “in’ group, and who is in the ‘out’ group, and because religious doctrine guides moral behavior, it provides an opportunity for members of the group to condemn the behavior of those not in the group.
[…]
. . . [W]hen organized religious groups gain power of any form, power over the state, power over women, or power over children, the results inevitably lead to restrictions on liberty based on discrimination [bigotry].
Related articles
CATHOLICISM: Catholic Cardinal Says Church Is Willing To Let Poor People Starve In Protest Of Contraception Mandate (MUST WATCH VIDEO)
Cardinal Timothy Dolan has made it very clear that he doesn’t like President Obama’s contraception mandate. And apparently, he and the Catholic Church are prepared to let poor people starve to death if President Obama doesn’t give in to their demands.
In an appearance on Martin Bashir on MSNBC on Tuesday, Dolan said that the Church would abandon Jesus’ effort to help the sick and feed the poor in protest of the contraception mandate that only applies to insurance companies and not the Church itself.
“If these mandates kick in, we’re going to find ourselves faced with a terribly difficult decision as to whether or not we can continue to operate,” Dolan said. “As part of our religion — it’s part of our faith that we feed the hungry, that we educate the kids, that we take care of the sick. We’d have to give it up, because we’re unable to fit the description and the definition of a church given by — guess who — the federal government.”
Bashir then pointed out that the Catholic Church had taken a staggering $2.9 billion from the federal government to pay for the charitable efforts the Church provides. “They don’t seem to bristle at the hand of government when it comes to money, do they,” Bashir commented.
HUMOR: Eve’s First Prayer
“Lord, I have a problem.”
“What’s the problem, Eve?”
“I’m bored. I know that you provided me with this beautiful garden, and all of these wonderful animals, as well as that hilarious comedic snake, but I’m just not happy.”
“And why is that Eve?”
“Lord, I think I’m lonely, and I’m sick to death of apples.”
“Well, Eve, in that case, I shall create a man for you.”
“What’s a man, Lord?”
“A flawed creature, to be sure. He will have many bad traits: he’ll lie, cheat and be vain; all in all, he’ll give you a hard time. And he’ll be bigger, faster. But he will will like to hunt and kill things for you to eat along with the veggies I’ve provided. And I’ll create him in such a way that he will satisfy your physical needs – sometimes. He will be witless and will revel in childish things like fighting and kicking and throwing balls about – sometimes using sticks. He won’t be as smart as you, so he will also need your advice to think properly.”
“Sounds OK, I guess” says Eve, with ironically raised eyebrows.
“Well, you can have one then, but only on one condition.”
“And what’s that Lord?”
“As I said, he’ll be proud, arrogant and self-admiring . . . so you’ll have to let him believe that I made him before you. And that will have to stay our little secret — woman to woman.”
Source: The Atheism News Magazine
Always Question Authority 