February 16, 2006

ok, so science and religion aren't always friends

I just read a fascinating (if a bit slanted) LA Times article about genetic evidence that Native Americans aren't descendants of the Hebrews. It probably doesn't come as a shock to most of us, but apparently it's a big deal to Mormons who were converted to that faith based on their "Lamanite heritage". Anyway, I'm not doing the article justice. Read it; it has an interesting set of twists and turns.

December 13, 2005

Leviticus: Quote One, Quote 'Em All

I hope I can get this to work. One of the students on GVSU's LiveJournal has been using this a lot and I LIKE it:

No link, just that.

August 23, 2005

this just in: 'thou shalt not kill' more a guideline

...at least according to Pat Robertson.

August 10, 2005

More on the Flying Spaghetti Monster

Our friends at Wikipedia have a full entry on this New Religious Movement. There is information I didn't know, and it's absolutely fascinating. Here it is!

August 05, 2005

grumble science religion grumble

I was hoping to let it go without comment, but the latest insinuation that Intelligent Design has merit astounds me. Not that it comes from the President, but rather that it caused me to agree with a Charles Krauthammer opinion piece. I'm shocked.

April 13, 2005

run for the hills

Aaaaigh! Crusaders! (incoherent gibbering) The Crusaders are coming!

If only we had some kind of missile, we could take the steam out of those bells.

[UPDATE: I swear I didn't read Karen's post before posting this. We're just on the same wavelength.]

April 06, 2005

Was the Pope a Gambling Man?

I sure hope so. Otherwise, this is just wrong: Place your bets! If you decide to throw your hat into the ring, I don't think I want to know.

(I put this under "Religion" but it could just as easily be culture, or even reference, if you are so inclined to visit our friendly web-bookie again...)

December 28, 2004

Happy Holidays, All Y'All

My brother Carl sent me a really good article debunking the idea that 'Happy Holidays' is an attack on Christmas. What's scary is that the idea apparently needs to be debunked.

December 06, 2004

light, and air, and fish, and jam

I know I have some wild ideas of my own, beliefs that defy the available evidence, but at least I don't build a big shrine to my irrational beliefs and call it a museum. "Look! If I take this page from Genesis and fold it like this and make the words match up like so, it's science! Or a pteradactyl. Whatever."

September 27, 2004

Oh My Heavens!

For all you polytheists (or even henotheists) out there, here's a fun, easy guide to the gods called "Godchecker." From the Australian Aboriginal Bellin-Bellin to the Egyptian plant god, Uneg, they're all here (or nearly!).

September 21, 2004

Links Lead to Links

The previous post (showtunes) led me to the comments our intrepid singer has generated, including a very positive one from a group I didn't know existed, Ship of Fools. They're a sort of progressive, weird, Anglican/Episcopalian site. Their arguments for and against acceptance of homosexuality in Christianity are interesting, and may provide some cool ammo.

June 17, 2004

Reclaiming

Since I seem to be on a holy roller, here's another little goup y'all might want to check out called Reclaiming.

Chris, it's like the feminist wicca stuff I do, only boys get to come, too. Yay!

Starhawk started it and she's got this great book called The Fifth Sacred Thing. It's like a thought experiment in how to implement non-violent action against all odds. I love her vision . . .

June 02, 2004

Islam's marked woman

This article about Irshad Manji, a feminist Canadian Muslim and author of The Trouble With Islam — a Wake-Up Call For Honesty and Change, caught my attention.

I'm very impressed by her candor, and I think she is right to press for a Muslim reformation, in that the true power of a faith comes from individuals choosing, after thought, to follow tenets, not blindly. There seem to me (not that I am an expert on Islam) to be so many good aspects to the religion, if only individuals can allow themselves to choose, and not feel they have to live a medieval religion.

May 04, 2004

Oh, It Was On the SIXTH Day....

Want your kids to have the fun of learning about dinosaurs without all that misleading, distracting evolutionary theory? Want to throw science out the window in favor of good old fundamentalist belief? Have I got the theme park for you! (It's NY Times - it didn't make me sign in, but sometimes NY Times does. Worth reading if you can).

February 21, 2004

Okay, NOT helpful

I think we have enough going on in Iraq without bringing Christian missionaries into the mix...

November 25, 2003

Holy Matrimony, Batman!

Will Massachusetts single-handedly destroy marriage?

This is a good article, kids, I highly recommend you read it, if only to discover "The Wiggles" website. But most importantly to support your married lesbian friends . . .

Note: Here's another good one. It's hard to respond to the ridiculousness of the issue with anything less than full blown sarcasm.

November 06, 2003

Rational Religion?

I'm having a vague sense of déjà vu, but thought I'd post a link to United Universists anyway. Its goal is to unite atheists, deists, pantheists, agnostics and transcendentalists. Enjoy!

October 16, 2003

Very Disturbing General with a Very Disturbing Rationale for the War

Okay. I do not want this guy making major decisions about what my country does. This is the scariest thing I've read this side of Halloween.

September 29, 2003

Hindu Priests Marry Pairs of Animals for Peace

Not making this up, kids. I don't quite know what to make of it, though. I just know the marriages won't be considered legal in the U.S., ha ha. :-)

September 25, 2003

Woman to be Spared from Stoning

Well, this is good news, I guess. Amina Lawal, a Nigerian woman who was sentenced to be stoned to death for adultery (mostly given the fact that she gave birth to a child two years after she and her husband divorced), has been spared.

What's weird, though, is that she's not being spared because burying someone up to her neck in sand and stoning her to death is a ridiculous punishment for any crime, especially a nonviolent one. She's being spared because of procedural errors in the case, probabably because of the amount of international protest the case has sparked, and also, her lawyer argued, because it is believed in the strict Islamic law being followed that, "babies can remain in gestation in a mother's womb for five years, opening the possibility her ex-husband could have fathered the child."

This makes me want to scream and take notes at the same time.

September 21, 2003

Stupidity by Design

Hi, this is Deana, your Michigan correspondant, writing with a report from the field. Despite all the supporting evidence, it turns out, according to this Detroit News editorial, that the theory of evolution is "an antiquated, unproven teaching theory". Oh, I see. It also says that evolution "fails (the) test" of being a "genuine scientific theor(y)". Ah. Unlike intelligent design, which "can and has been proved scientifically." I'm learning so much here in Michigan!

It is so, so, so awful. I'll finish this despairing rant with another quote, "Some Michigan educators have already vowed to fight intelligent design. One Grand Rapids Community College biology professor called it "embarrassing." But the theory that we "evolved" from apes isn't?"

Oh, joy.

September 12, 2003

Evangelism as public education?

I belong to a humanistic web group here in Michigan and recently someone noticed that one of the community colleges was giving a class called the Alpha Course, meant to determine what relevance Jesus has in the lives of its students. The humanists alerted the ACLU and apparently they agreed that the separation of church and state was being violated, and managed to shut the class down. This article discusses the situation. What do you think? Is this an attempt to evangelize, or just education?