Christianity/Jesus

Well, I shouldn't have made fun of Harold Camping, Christian evangelical, after his prediction that the Rapture (basically, the second coming of Jesus) would happen a week ago, on May 21. It turns out that Camping was right about the Rapture. But it was an invisible judgment day, not physical. So says Harold Camping, a seemingly reliable source about all things Camping'ish. I have to believe him, in the same sense that I have to believe the Bible, because it says in the Bible "believe the Bible." Anyway, I'm not worried about the Rapture. I was baptized Catholic and had…

My wife and I barely survived watching Survivor: Redemption Island. There was so much irritating God-talk from Matt Elrod and his fellow Christians, we felt like we were going to overdose on religious absurdity. Our greatest fear was that some "Praise God, it's all His will!" contestant would win this reality show. Thankfully, pleasingly duplicitous (and seemingly non-religious) Boston Rob came through, finally becoming the Sole Survivor after four tries. Not surprisingly, the Christian Post loved Matt. The guy kept saying that God was keeping him going during his extended stay on Redemption Island, where he had to win duel…

Some influential Christians are starting to say "Perhaps there is no hell." Others hold firm to a belief in heaven's antithesis. Recently I got together with a friend, Patricia Herron. She's both philosophically and artistically minded. During our chat she gave me a copy of a poem, introduced with some prose, that she wrote. It's a dialogue between a believer and nonbeliever in hell. The nonbeliever gets to say the most, probably because Patricia, like me, doesn't put much stock in all of this hell talk. Have a read. And then, add a comment if you like. As Patricia says…

It's a tragedy when four Americans on a yacht are killed by Somali pirates. But when I heard about them being taken hostage, I thought, "Who would be crazy enough to sail by themselves into such a dangerous area, given all the other well-publicized hijackings in that part of the Indian Ocean?" Then I learned that one of the couples had been distributing Bibles around the world. My suspicion is that they felt they were under God's protection. Mistaken feeling, obviously. However, I've little doubt that countless Christians are now saying, "It was God's will that they were killed." I…

Thanks to one of my favorite blasphemous blogs, Pharyngula, I got to watch the new version of the Story of Suzie. I found it especially enjoyable because Christians are upset that the video depicts them as delusional. Well, to me Suzie accurately reflects the craziness of Christianity. Have a look and see if you agree.

I sure am glad that I don't live in Alabama. It'd drive me crazier than I already am if I had to listen regularly to the fundamentalist crap spouted by recently elected Governor Robert Bentley. "Anybody here today who has not accepted Jesus Christ as their savior, I'm telling you, you're not my brother and you're not my sister, and I want to be your brother." Hmmmm. So non-Christians in Alabama aren't going to be fully represented or respected  by the governor of their state? Here's a great argument for keeping religion out of politics -- the bigotry practiced by…

It's Christmas Eve, 2010. This is the day when exclamations of "Merry Christmas!" become even more common than before December 24. But I haven't uttered those words once, even though my wife and I were out and about in several stores earlier today. My preference is to reply "Same to you" when someone says "Merry Christmas" to me. Understand: I'm not a Christmas grinch. I enjoy the holiday season. Occasionally I even will pop out with a Merry Christmas myself. I just have a good reason for saying those words as infrequently as possible. Christ. I don't believe in him.…

I love it.

One of the most annoying aspects of Christianity is how this religion feels a necessity to try to convert people. Not every religion does. For example, by and large Judaism and Hinduism are content to let their faith speak for itself. So it's enjoyable when the tables are turned and a missionary finds himself deconverted by those who he sought to turn into Christians. Yesterday I learned about a You Tube video, "Christian missionary deconverted by tribe." (Thanks for the email, Clare.) Around the seven minute mark, Daniel Everett speaks of how his evangelizing to a South American tribe ended…

If defenders of religious authority think gurus get insulted too much on this blog, take a look at Tim Minchin's "Pope Song," for comparison. The lyrics are profanely basic, but true.

Being both non-Christian and non-religious in general, I don't pay much attention to Easter. But since so many other people in the United States do, I feel drawn to play my part in this holiday/fantasy by dedicating a fresh blog post to the occasion -- drawing on some of my previous ponderings.My secular attitude toward Easter was summed up a few years ago by "Easter infringes on my religious freedom." It doesn't seem right that my normal Sunday life gets disrupted by a national shut down in honor of someone (Jesus) I couldn't care less about. My athletic club is…

This is why blind faith in bullshit religious dogma is so dangerous. Fundamentalist idiocy has real-world consequences. Like, being killed for being homosexual.

Driving around yesterday, I heard a Portland talk-show host get enraged about a lawsuit that seeks to have a Christian cross removed from the Mojave National Preserve in California.Right-winger Lars Larson said that a plywood box has been placed around the cross. "Unbelievable. How can this be happening in America!"What's unbelievable is that there would be any controversy over removing an obvious religious symbol from public property -- regardless of whether the cross was put up by the Veterans of Foreign Wars.The National Park Service denied a request to put up a Buddhist memorial. So it looks like only Christians…

Here's some bad news for children being abused or killed in the name of religion: last Friday an Oregon judge sentenced Carl Worthington to two months in jail for sacrificing his child, Ava, in the name of Jesus.It's disturbing that this legal slap on the wrist is all Worthington got for committing an atrocious crime. As Oregonian columnist Susan Nielsen said today, religious crazies benefit from a double standard under my state's laws.  This trial should inspire Oregon to look outside its borders and consider the following: First, other states aren't so deferential to parents who withhold lifesaving medical care…

Today an Oregon jury came to a verdict in what I call a child sacrifice case. Carl and Raylene Worthington let their 15-month old daughter, Ava, die because their bizarre variety of Christianity teaches that Jesus cures illnesses, not doctors.All I needed to know to conclude that Ava's parents should rot in jail for a really long time was summed up by Ava's grandfather, Guy, in a newspaper story.Worthington said no one in his family has seen a doctor and has no use for them. Instead, they put their trust in God, he said."Jesus Christ almighty can cure anything," Worthington…