So we ARE a Christian Nation!

The House on Tuesday passed a resolution 847 that while not explicitly saying we are a Christian Nation, sure implies it. It includes implications that:

• Christianity is the primary religion of the country and the world


• Acknowledges the importance of Christianity, but not others.


• Recognizes that Christianity had a lot to do with the founding of this nation

It is ridiculous that the house feels compelled to even deal with such a resolution let alone that it would pass one thereby slapping every other religion and the non-religious in the country (and world) in their collective face.

I'm appalled and I feel like it is one more step towards making this country a Theocracy.

Christian Shooter in Colorado obviously not a Humanist

While starting to read the unraveling story of the two recent shootings at churches in Colorado (where I live), I found myself expecting the shooter to be a religious person.
This article through Google says the shooter was enrolled in religious training at one point and it has a quote: "He is said to come from a deeply Christian family."

Now, it may not always be true, but I find that many of the people that do such horrible things are frequently very religious. I wonder if there is some tendency towards extreme passion/obsession (to the point of doing or believing the impossible) that is common between the religious and people who would do such a horrific thing.

Certainly I have a hard time thinking of a Humanist doing such a thing. Being a Humanist has strong implications that you think about what is right and wrong and about compassion and that you see the beauty in life.

It is interesting to note that anyone can be religious without any real morality (and many do), but to say you are a Humanist actually means a lot more.

Something to smile (and be proud) about.

Norway a secular nation?

NORWAY FLOURISHES AS SECULAR NATION

Montgomery Advertiser - Montgomery, AL, USA

Link

Rev. Rick Mason notes that atheism is on the rise. He blames Christian
fundamentalism. Certainly the ineptness, dishonesty and lack of ethics
of the overtly God-fearing Bush administration may be turning people off
on God.

A case study shows what this could mean for America. Norway has embraced
secularism at the expense of its Christian roots. A 2005 survey
conducted by Gallup International rated Norway the least religious
country in Western Europe.

In Norway, 82.9% of the population are members of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church. (They are automatically registered at birth and few
bother to be unregistered.) However, only approximately 10% regularly
attend church services and identify themselves as being personally
Christian.

A 2006 survey found 29% believe in a god or deity; 23% believe in a
higher power without being certain of what; 26% don't believe in God or
higher powers; 22% have doubts.

Depending on the definition of atheism, Norway thus has between 26% and
71% atheists. The Norwegian Humanist Association is the world's largest
humanist association per capita.

And what has secularism done to Norway? The Global Peace Index rates
Norway the most peaceful country in the world. The Human Development
Index, a comparative measure of life expectancy, literacy, education and
standard of living, has ranked Norway No. 1 every year for the last five
years.

Norway has the second highest GDP per capita in the world, an
unemployment rate below 2% and average hourly wages among the world's
highest.


Reprinted under the Fair Use section of international copyright law at
http://www.eff.org/IP/fair_use_and_copyright.excerpt. Full copyright
retained by the original publication.

The Golden Compass, a Humanist movie?

The Golden Compass movie comes out this Friday, December 7th. Some are billing it as a Humanist (or in this case Atheist) movie, though I think that is a stretch. The books do take a stab at the Catholic church, but that is more just treating the church as the dogmatic, authoritarian organization it is. The movie tones this down some and isn't quite as blatant, but it is still a statement against authoritarian rulers.

But, the Catholic church is causing some of the problem it self by trying to ban the reading of the books and boycott the movie. Of course, this will probably make the movie and books even more popular. I know it makes me want to go :)

Check out the AHA article here or a YouTube interview with author Philip Pullman here