Remember this video? I didn’t know what their message was, but now it looks like it’s actually a series of ads targeting atheists. Their latest one includes a banner that accuses Swedish kids or murdering others for candy. Presumably, the fact that they are atheists explains why they would so trivially kill another human being. Of course, no one has ever killed another human being because of their religion, so all conflicts must be the result of losing faith in a supreme being! Doesn’t that just make you want to suddenly start believing that a 2000 year old Jewish guy, who had the weird habit of cursing fig trees for not giving him fruit, was a God?

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Anti-abortionists scare me. Sure, most of them are fairly harmless, but their zeal and conviction often invite violent individuals into their ranks. It’s inevitable that certain people, who feel that their actions are justified by their God, will commit violent acts against doctors and nurses that provide this medical service. Dr. George Tiller was shot and killed today during church, and although the details of the investigation is sketchy, it’s clear that the motivation behind the murder is Tiller’s work at the clinic.

This isn’t the first time he’s been targeted. Back in 1986 the clinic was bombed, although luckily no one was hurt. No one was ever arrested for the crime.

The anti-abortion group “Operation Rescue” stated on their website that they:

worked for years through peaceful, legal means, and through the proper channels to see him brought to justice. We denounce vigilantism and the cowardly act that took place this morning. We pray for Mr. Tiller’s family that they will find comfort and healing that can only be found in Jesus Christ.

I don’t want to suggest that the group played a direct role in the murder since all the facts haven’t yet come to light. Consider, however, that the group used to be based in California before moving to Kansas, specifically to target Tiller. Their slogan, “If you believe abortion is murder, act like it’s murder” is an invitation to violence. The organization has been working for years to dismantle, harass, and interfere with Tiller’s clinic.

What are we supposed to think when something like this happens? The organization is playing damage control and trying desperately to distance themselves from this incident, but I wouldn’t be surprised to find that the murderers were at least in some way affiliated with them. What else can you expect? These guys take abortion very seriously, and as far as they are concerned, it’s murder. We can’t be surprised when religiously motivated simpletons use violence to get their way. Anyone who thinks anti-abortion groups use only peaceful methods are living in a fantasy land.

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It was inevitable that the Vatican would say something both offensive and wrong in regards to the debacle in Ireland over the Ryan report, which chronicled decades of sexual, physical and emotional abuse at the hands of Catholic priests and nuns. Cardinal Antonio Canizares recently said that abortion is worst than child abuse. Here is his direct quote:

What happened in some schools cannot be compared with the millions of lives that have been destroyed by abortion.It (abortion) has legally destroyed 40 million human lives.

This is the typical response you can expect from an institution which systematically covered up centuries of abuse by the Catholic church. It is only recently in the past few decades that we have been able to demonstrate the extend of their evil, but the Catholic Church has known for a long time that pedophiles make up a significant percentage of their employees. There is such a strong culture of abuse that I wouldn’t be surprised if they somehow felt it was a mere inconvenience rather than an actual problem. Father Bad-touch apparently isn’t the bad guy; the real villain in the story wears a lab coat, folks!

In any case, if they feel that abortions are so wrong, they might want to read up on miscarriages. Roughly 1/4 of early pregnancies result in a spontaneous abortion. This makes God the biggest abortionist of all time. I don’t see many people in the church freaking out about all this baby killing, though. I can understand why the Catholic Church is so upset about abortions though. I mean, think about how many nubile young boys and girls aren’t being born? That’s 40 million kids they could have molested!

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I’ve read enough articles, editorial and op-ed pieces to realize, at least superficially, that being both and atheist and black is not an easy thing. African Americans have a long history of relying on the church for support. Abandoning religion often means abandoning the culture. As the secular movement gains momentum, however, more and more in the community are speaking out about this, especially in the light of so many black voters voting Proposition 8 in California.

Sikivu Hutchinson is an eloquent and passionate woman who cares about the truth. She’s written an article about how African American women who wish to abandon their beliefs are often stigmatized by others in the community. Women are seen as the protectors and purveyors of black culture, and religion is seen as an inextricable part of it.

Images of black women faithfully shuttling their children to church and socializing them into Christianity are a prominent part of mainstream black culture. If being black and being Christian are synonymous, then being black, female and religious (whatever the denomination) is practically compulsory. Black women with children who don’t fall in line, who raise their children as atheists, may find their race credentials revoked.

I have to wonder how many black men and women secretly reject religion for the sake of political convenience. It’s just another example of why “coming out” as an atheist is still incredibly difficult for some, and even impossible for others. If you think it’s easy being an atheist, you obviously have never been part of a highly religious community.

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I never believed in God, nor was I really taught any of the nonsense of the Bible, or any other religious text for that matter. I am ill equipped, therefore, to fully comprehend how difficult it must be to abandon beliefs that were once deeply cherished. Here’s a great article detailing 20 very good reasons to abandon Christianity if you haven’t already done so. Here are a few highlights:

It is absolutely irrational to continue to believe archaic teaching with the amount of knowledge we’ve gained through science and technology. The Bible reads like a book of primitive folklore, not divinely inspired insight into our true reason for existence.

My main reason for not believing in Christianity is a lot simpler; why would God create such a gigantic universe, then populate an insignificant blue planet on the edges of an unremarkable galaxy only to perpetually torment them with floods, destructive “swords of the Lords” and constant plagues? Are we some kind of stinkin’ ant farm or something? Not an impressive explanation as to the origins of the Universe, guys.

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