Chatiryworld

Christians talking to atheists

Just read the post How To Actually Talk To Atheists (If You're Christian) by Joe the Peacock, via the Atheist and Agnostic Crafters group on Ravelry.  Some really interesting stuff in there, I particularly like the unicorn comparison. 

However, I'm sick of reading about 'new atheism' and this article makes it seem like Christians are turning people to this new atheism, people are changing their beliefs just because someone annoyed them? Hmm.  I don't think there has been a sudden increase in the number of atheists, I think we're just becoming louder, especially in the USA where there is a lot of prejudice and discrimination against us.  Anyway, still good reading.

Britain Britain Britain

Photo by Martin Parr for The Guardian newspaper

Somehow the recent Martin Parr supplements in the Guardian passed me by, I only ever buy it on a Saturday and it seems that they were in the weekday editions.  I remember getting the Edinburgh one months ago and wondered if it had been just a local thing.  Turns out there were highlights in the Weekend magazine today and as I browsed through and got to the Leeds photo I realised that I recognised the church in the photo.  It was the one about two minutes walk from my old flat.

I never saw the Zimbabwean Johane Masowe church (look it up yourselves, too many links containing the words cult and abuse for my liking and even Wikipedia isn't convinced by its own article) members pictured here, there was always a lot of action around that church though, some mad evangelical movement used the church hall opposite on a Sunday morning, I used to wonder if there was some kind of rivalry between them and the actual church.  Probably not.

Choice

You can either go and look at a selection of gorgeous calendars or read an interesting article about stopping fundies getting into schools in the UK.

Or you could read both.  I did.

Confess

Via Friendly Atheist, a fascinating site called Christians Confess.  It's a user-generated site where Christians can apologise for the times they get it wrong.  I think my favourite is the top one:

I'm sorry for all the times we've shoved God in your face and loved you with an agenda- trying to keep you from the burning pits of hell. I'm sorry we don't live more unique and genuine lives centered around loving one another. I'm sorry we get over righteous on you and fail to see life as it is. I'm sorry I told you I was a christian but I never minded gossiping about my sister or brother. I'm sorry I judged you.

 

          --Krisann

There's also space for non-Christians to post their thoughts.  I know the concept of the site sounds absolutely vomit-inducing but it's actually really interesting, and also pretty refreshing. 

Knock knock

Today's Cectic comic.  I like.

WTF?

I've been saving the FSTDT Top 100 (via Island Life) to read for a while, and just did.  There are some scary religious fundamentalists out there, thanks to them I have discovered that evolution can't be true because babies aren't born as monkeys and as an atheist I am actually part of a Muslim sect.

Yeah right.

Religion, or lack of

Friendly Atheist posts about a new study that states that religion comes about to promote social bonding and exists because we have imagination.  Fascinating stuff.

Edinburgh's Friendly Humanist linked a while back to a post by Greta Christina on dealing with difficult times as an atheist.  I think she's summed it up brilliantly.

And mediawatchwatch finds that anything not Christian in the media apparently promotes secularism.

Disgusting, absolutely disgusting

I'm really shocked by what happened in Chicago, a Republican Senator seems to think that we atheists are dangerous and out to destroy.  Plus we should be kept away from children.

I really hope this kind of thing never happens over here.

More at Daylight Atheism.

Update 1: An apology

Update 2: A good enough apology?

A tour of the Creationist Museum

I've had this saved in my Bloglines (Boing Boing originally I think) for ages but finally got around to reading John Scalzi's tour of the Creation Museum.  Make sure you go through the Flickr set as well because the captions/descriptions are brilliant.  Did you know that there were only fifty types of dinosaur and that most of them were about the size of a sheep?

Very funny.

I can't think of an appropriately amusing title

But the latest mediawatchwatch post about Stephen Green is quite amusing.