You might or might not have noticed that there’s been a bit of controversy over feminism in the atheist community of late. I have avoided addressing this topic – until now. Blogger vjack of Atheist Revolution recently suggested that there are two types of feminism in the atheist community – “equity feminism” and “gender feminism” – and I’m going to take this opportunity to finally weigh in on the conversation.
Do you know what I realized this year? The way I celebrate Christmas with my family today is really very little different from the way I celebrated Christmas in my family of origin growing up. Given that I grew up in a devout evangelical family but that my husband and I are not religious, this at first seems rather odd. In the end, though, I think it simply highlights just how secular Christmas is for most Americans, even those who are religious.
Many of the holiday displays atheists have put up alongside nativity scenes on public property appear to be designed to offend – and, in fact, many are. Unfortunately, many of the confrontational tactics used by organized atheism serve to reinforce the negative public image many people have of atheists. I would argue that these tactics are detrimental even to the goals of atheists who would like to see religion disappear.
I wrote almost a year ago about my fears about reading the Bible story books relatives had given us to my daughter. I knew then that my fears were irrational – that stories only have the power we give them – but knowing a fear is irrational doesn’t automatically make it disappear. In this post I share how a single comment from my daughter Sally finally dispelled the last of my concerns.
Sometimes something can be totally clear in my head but not end up that way on paper – or rather, computer screen. Some readers have commented that I was unclear about something in last week’s post on Unitarian Universalism and diversity of belief. In that post I touched on some of the reasons some atheists object to the UU church. I wasn’t saying that these are the reasons non-UU atheists are not UU, but I didn’t make that clear enough.
As I’ve spent time learning about Unitarian Universalism, I have come to understand the problem many atheists have with it, and it’s not just that some dislike ritual or congregational gathering. It’s that being a UU means you have to accept UUs who are Christian, or Hindu, or Muslim, and encourage them to follow their own paths rather than criticizing their beliefs as delusions and hoping that they will deconvert.
Are churches the only place people have to meet their need for community, transcendence, meaning, and purpose? In an article in the Guardian, Jill of Feministe suggests not and looks at the many ways young adults are meeting these needs outside of religion before finishing with a call to action. I find Jill’s approach to be an excellent way to constructively de-privilege religion.
Sometimes atheists who hear my story respond by saying “wouldn’t it be great if your whole family deconverts?” The reality is, I don’t give a fig whether or not my siblings – or my children – become atheists. I do, however, care a great deal about whether they are caring, compassionate, loving people who do good to others and not harm.
I recently had occasion to ask myself how it was that I, having been raised a social conservative, became a progressive. The reality is that it was the seeds planted in me during my time in the Catholic Church that made me progressive – and the irony is that when those seeds blossomed and grew, it was they that then pushed me out of the Catholic Church.
Dan Fincke of Camels with Hammers has been writing an ongoing series about his deconversion from evangelical Christianity to atheism. While it’s long, it’s quite good, because Dan takes the time to really analyze what challenged his faith, how he fought to keep it, and how and why he eventually found he could not hold onto it.
For two full years, I didn’t go to church. I enjoyed sleeping in on Sunday mornings and I enjoyed not feeling obligated to go to church each Sunday and guilty if I did not. During this time I attended a local atheist group off and on. But at the end of this past August I began attending the local Unitarian Universalist church. In this post I explain why.
Does a candidate’s faith matter? While I don’t believe in God, I am not bothered by the idea of voting for a candidate who is a Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Mormon, or pagan … if that person shares my values. What values do I look for when determining how to vote, and why do I make a distinction between faith and values? Click here to read more!
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