Office of religious freedom now established
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- Created on Wednesday, 20 February 2013 06:05
- Published on Wednesday, 20 February 2013 06:05
- Written by John Draper
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In April 2011, Stephen Harper announced that Canada would set up an Office of Religious Freedom. Today, he introduced the man appointed to head up that office: Andrew Bennett, currently Dean at the Christian Augustine College. Although he is a Catholic, Bennett said that even those who choose not to have a faith would be protected. How a bureaucrat in Canada can protect an atheist in Somalia or Iran was not explained but at least he's saying the right things. When the idea was announced, there were two main concerns:
- That it was a cynical ploy to win votes from Muslims - this was not contradicted by the fact that Harper chose a mosque to make the announcement.
- That it would be biased to favour Christians. Although the announcement in the mosque was meant to counter that accusation, the appointment of a strong Catholic currently employed at a Christian institution does not alleviate that fear.
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Mormons - a short (but entertaining) history
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- Created on Monday, 18 February 2013 07:00
- Published on Monday, 18 February 2013 07:00
- Written by William Hopper
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If you don't like history, and you think the history of religions is even more boring, you should read the Heathen's Guide to World religions by William Hopper. One of his gems is his account of the Mormons - he once told me he worries about what the Muslims will do to him for what he says - he's lucky that Mormons are fairly peaceful! This is an excerpt that he's published on his site.
Joseph Smith II was born in Vermont in 1805. Until he was fifteen, he was basically a nobody like the rest of us. Then things got a little weird.
It seems that while wandering around the backwoods of Vermont, young Joseph came across two “personages whose brightness and glory defy all description.” In a rare twist in this kind of tale, it wasn’t JC and it wasn’t angels. It was Mormoni and his father, Mormon. Don’t worry if you never heard of them from the Bible. They aren’t in it. These two are an entirely new addition to the tale.
Religious Schools and Universities
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- Created on Saturday, 16 February 2013 06:25
- Published on Saturday, 16 February 2013 06:25
- Written by John Draper
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Why do Churches want to have their own schools and Universities? The obvious answer is that they want to protect their children from losing their faith. But why is there a danger of losing your faith at a secular school? Some answers are obvious and others not so much. If teachers teach that all religions are much the same, that any of them can get you "saved", then the kids might start to look around. A school or University run by a single religion would avoid that risk. But the biggest risk is that secular schools might teach you to think for yourself - about anything and everything. Then faith is likely to give way to reason and the indoctrination up to that point could be destroyed.
A Spiritual Atheist?
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- Created on Thursday, 14 February 2013 06:56
- Published on Thursday, 14 February 2013 06:56
- Written by John Draper
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What exactly do we mean by Spiritual? It does not mean religious - that would mean belonging to a religion and having certain beliefs. It certainly does not by itself mean theist - belief in a god. I would say that it at least means to do with a soul or the supernatural. But atheists don't generally believe in the supernatural or a soul that lives after death so how can an atheist be described as spiritual? Buddhists and Hindus don't believe in the same kind of god that Abrahamic religions do - in fact, you can be a Hindu and still be an atheist. Yet Hindus are very spiritual - they focus on the essence of a person; the part which makes them an individual and which allows abstract thinking. In the sense that this is not yet quantifiable by science, this is mystical and supernatural. This essence could be defined as a soul. Perhaps all higher animals have such a soul and are therefore spiritual?
Time for a better Pope
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- Created on Tuesday, 12 February 2013 06:57
- Published on Tuesday, 12 February 2013 06:57
- Written by John Draper
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Why should I care? Because contrary to reason, as many as 1 to 2 billion people accept what their pope says as factual. So if he says "never any abortions" or "Priest abusers should be simply moved", that's what Catholics do. But isn't a Pope by definition "good"? Well no, he's just a man - never a woman - and just like Jesus Christ, quite fallible and a product of his time and upbringing. But was Ratzinger (Benedict XVI) better or worse than others? There were certainly worse Popes - many in the middle ages and earlier were barbarous murderers and even Pius XII is thought to have been less than outspoken against Nazi atrocities. But Ratzinger was no saint; let's look at his record as reported on Cobourg Atheist.
What makes us change beliefs?
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- Created on Friday, 08 February 2013 07:02
- Published on Friday, 08 February 2013 07:02
- Written by John Draper
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Many of us would like to think that we change our behaviour and our beliefs because of logic or rational thinking. But is that really true? If someone comes up to me and says point blank - you're wrong - my immediate reaction will be emotional. I'll say "No - I'm right" - then perhaps "What are you talking about? What did I say that you think is wrong?". If I say to a religious person "I'm an atheist" - I'm implying that I think their beliefs are wrong so they will immediately go into defensive mode. Emotionally, people know they are right. Let's not fool ourselves - first reactions are emotional, not rational. There can be exceptions. If we know someone really well, if we have an emotional attachment to them - maybe even love them - and they tell us we are wrong, our emotional reaction is to be hurt, disappointed, concerned or surprised or all of these. But we are more likely to accept what they say.
God or higher power
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- Created on Sunday, 10 February 2013 06:37
- Published on Sunday, 10 February 2013 06:37
- Written by John Draper
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Atheists reject all gods, not just those of the Judeo-Christian and Muslim religions. If you look at many of the so-called "new atheist" blogs and their posts, they give very good reasons why Christianity or Islam are just plain wrong. These religions don't make sense, they are not logical or rational. Many Christians will even admit that and talk about the need for faith and something outside reason. But most of the believers I know really only believe in a "higher power"; even many who are Church-goers and nominally Christian. They like to hear all the good things said in sermons and bible readings and dismiss most of the irrational nonsense - yet they still cling to the notion that there is a need for a higher power, a creator of some kind. This higher power has a more limited definition and although his/her attributes vary a lot depending on the individual, they can be summarized as follows:
Why Thank God for Human Actions?
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- Created on Wednesday, 06 February 2013 06:41
- Published on Wednesday, 06 February 2013 06:41
- Written by John Draper
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Why do Christians say grace before meals? Why thank god when you survive a plane crash? Why thank god that a loved one survived a medical emergency or an operation? First, we know why atheists don't - there's no one to thank. But assuming for the moment that there is an almighty all-powerful god who listens to what his "creations" say, it still does not make sense. Let's take these one at a time. When I was growing up, my parents would sometimes remember to say a prayer before a meal. Even today, I have adult friends who do the same thing. The prayer would thank god for "providing". But he didn't provide - someone earned money that paid for it; someone also cooked it and put it on the table. About all God did was not stop this happening. He didn't make it easy or hard to earn the money or do the cooking. He didn't help with shopping at the supermarket. I can see some thanks being needed when you grew your own food - maybe he managed the weather so helped the crop be good. Maybe he stopped a flood or fire that could have wiped you out. I think grace is a relic and now is just a way a Christian has of talking to their god regularly. A reminder to god that the Christian accepts that he's subservient and dependent.
