Atheist myths?

Among many of the more militant atheists, there are a number of common claims made about religion. Some are fair, some are not, but they have become as entrenched as dogma. It is refreshing when one of their own argues for a more thoughtful and nuanced view.

is belief in god declining?

The percentage of people believing in God is always of interest to me. What is the latest?

who owns jesus?

It is an interesting headline. "Jesus: a prophet of Islam" And it will be coming to a billboard or two in Sydney.

I wonder what impact it will have.

dying for a story?

John Carroll is an interesting man. He is Professor of Sociology at La Trobe University in Melbourne, and a secular humanist who believes secular humanism has failed us. He has spent a lot of time reading the Bible and seeking to learn from it. He's even telling the church how it can improve its message to postmodern people.

What's going on?

are we entering a 'post-secular' age?

"There are many problems in today’s society that cannot be resolved by the application of reason, logic or medical science." So says Professor David Tacey of La Trobe University in Melbourne, Australia. "We are emerging from a long period of materialism and rationality," he says.

Is this true? Is it good, or bad? And why does he think this?

science and religion (again!)

A reader drew my attention to this brief debate on this topic, in which well-known atheist Sam Harris made the statement:

"We have Christians believing in the holy ghost, the resurrection of Jesus and his possible return – these are claims about biology and physics which, from a scientific point of view in the 21st century, should be unsustainable."

What is the basis of this statement?

william lane craig and debates

William Lane Craig is a philosopher and a christian. In recent years he has specialised in public formal debates with many unbelievers - philosophers, Biblical scholars, scientists and others. He seems to win most of these debates, but some people think he clearly loses.

How can his performance be assessed so differently by different people?

further appreciation of martin rees

Last tear I blogged in appreciation of martin rees, where I expressed admiration for this eminent scientist who refuses to get involved in the religion-atheist "wars", and who thinks we cannot know whether God exists or not.

But now he has received a lot more appreciation - a million pounds worth, no less - and some people are very angry.

prayer vs anger

Jesus said his followers should avoid anger and make peace with enemies (Matthew 5:21-24); in fact we should love our enemies and pray for those who hurt us (Matthew 5:43-44). But does it work? It seems it does.

galileo and historical myths

Last post I looked at the conflict thesis - the idea that christianity (or even religion generally) opposed science down through history. Let's look at a few more myths....

diary of hope?

Recent events in Egypt offer hope of a better future, hopefully.

does religion poison everything?

Atheist Christopher Hitchens subtitled his book "How religion poisons everything". But does religion, specifically christianity, merit this comment? What is the evidence?

does religion cause terrorism?

It's a common charge these days. Nobel Prize winning Physicist and atheist Stephen Weinberg said: "for good people to do evil things, that takes religion." And this atheist certainly seems to thinks so: "we see religion regularly used for war, mass murder, terrorism, and even genocide"

Are there any facts on the subject?

It turns out that there are.

is burning the Koran a good idea?

In a month it will be 9 years since Islamic terrorists flew planes into the World Trade Centre in the US, with the loss of about three thousand lives. News reports say a church in Florida plans to commemorate the event by publicly burning copies of the Koran. Is this a good idea? Is it a christian idea?