Gays, Jesus, and Judging

jesus-did-i-fucking-stutter

In response to my earlier post praising the young Christian man in the video above, who reached out with love to what he thought was a lesbian couple being berated by a cruel and judgmental waitress, Justin writes: Not to point out the obvious, but homosexuality is a sin, You have indeed not pointed out [...]

Blood Poisons The Purest Teaching

Ophelia Benson, PZ Myers, and Jerry Coyne are dismissing the bizarre notion that lacking the New Atheists somehow lack credibility for lacking martyrs. On this topic, Nietzsche has already far more eloquently said far more than I ever could: Zealously and with much shouting they drove their herd over their bridge: as if to the [...]

Hello Nietzsche

Buy one from the Unemployed Philosophers Guild (whose proceeds go to support unemployed philosophers. A most worthy cause). And via Malcolm, here’s an avatar version for your use on your Facebook (or other) profile! Your Thoughts?

On Zealously, Tentatively, and Perspectivally Holding Viewpoints

In a recent post, I wrote the following: Changing people’s minds to make them stop holding positions dogmatically and instead hold them tentatively is still a change of mind one may zealously pursue. On Facebook, Greg writes in reply: I want to address the peculiarity of this statement. One may passionately pursue such a change [...]

Is it Too Risky to Debate Morality’s Foundations in the Public Square?

Jean Kazez argues that the public square is not the place for atheists to be arguing that science and religion are incompatible. I strongly reject her position on this point because not only do I believe that ordinary people are quite capable of handling a vigorous, no-holds-barred debate about religion but because I believe the [...]

The Religious Conservative’s False Choice: “Big Brother” Or “Heavenly Father”

In an e-mail to me, Caroline proposes thought provoking reasons for non-believers to encourage (or at least to not actively discourage) religious beliefs: It would also be nice if people would carry out actions in good conscience of just being decent human beings rather than in fear of reprisal in the afterlife, but as there [...]

I Am Interviewed About My Personal (Atheistic) Religiosity/Spirituality

Through Facebook, I was recently contacted by an old friend from high school (who was actually the first girl to go on a date with me).  She is working on her Master’s in nursing and has an assignment which involves interviewing people about their views on religion and spirituality, for the purpose of thinking about approaches [...]

Apostasy As A Religious Act (Or “Why A Camel Hammers The Idols Of Faith”)

In “The Three Transformations of the Spirit” in Nietzsche’s Thus Spoke Zarathustra: A Book for Everyone and Nobody, Nietzsche’s Zarathustra describes the human spirit as successively taking three different forms: the camel, the lion, and the child. The transformations begin with the spirit of the camel, which Nietzsche characterizes as consisting of obedient, self-sacrificing, reverential, [...]

Wow! I Belonged To The TRUE Christian Church!!

From ages 5-21, my entire time as part of the Protestant Christian Church, I was more specifically a member of the “non-denominational” Church of Christ which arose out of the “Restoration Movement” of America’s 2nd Great Awakening.  John W. Loftus, a former minister and fellow former member of the Church of Christ turned atheist, has a [...]

Pleasure And Pain As Intrinsic Instrumental Goods

In recent posts I have been arguing that there is one sense of the word “good” which can be analyzed in terms of facts and that this is the kind of “goodness” which we can consider a real part of the world.  This real, intrinsic, factual sense of goodness is its meaning as “effectiveness”. We [...]