ريتشارد دوكنز's Blog, page 113

Except for devout Latter-day Saints, Utahns want to require churches to disclose their finances, poll shows

By Peggy Fletcher Stack and David Noyce It turns out that the very Latter-day Saints who may have the biggest stake in how their tithing contributions are spent have the least interest in forcing churches to disclose those finances. While a new poll for The Salt Lake Tribune shows that 54% of Utahns support the …

3 Leaders of Filipino Church Are Charged With Running Human Trafficking Ring

By Neil Vigdor Three leaders of a megachurch based in the Philippines were arrested on Wednesday in California and Virginia on charges that they ran a human trafficking ring, one that the Justice Department said had arranged for dozens of sham marriages in the United States to support a fraudulent charity. The arrests coincided with …

These lawmakers voted to protect abortion rights, so a priest says he’ll deny them Communion

By Teo Armus As legislative efforts across the country put abortion protections into doubt last year, Democratic lawmakers in Rhode Island decided to take matters into their own hands. Like their counterparts in other left-leaning states, legislators in Providence passed a bill that would enshrine safeguards at the state level. They wanted to make sure federal restrictions could not …

OPEN DISCUSSION FEBRUARY 2020

This thread has been created for discussion on themes relevant to Reason and Science for which there are not currently any dedicated threads. Please note it is NOT for general chat, and that our Comment Policy applies as usual. There is a link to this at the foot of the page. If you would like …

Warp factor: we’ve observed a spinning star that drags the very fabric of space and time

By Matthew Bailes and Vivek Venkatraman Krishnan One of the predictions of Einstein’s general theory of relativity is that any spinning body drags the very fabric of space-time in its vicinity around with it. This is known as “frame-dragging”. In everyday life, frame-dragging is both undetectable and inconsequential, as the effect is so ridiculously tiny. Detecting the …

Giving victims of religious trauma a voice

By Chrissy Stroop On Jan. 8, Cindy Wang Brandt, a podcaster and author of “Parenting Forward: How to Raise Children with Justice, Mercy, and Kindness,” tweeted: “Do not evangelize a child. Do not colonize a child’s spirituality. Do not threaten a child with religious control. Your religion does not have a right to stake claim to …

As the Election Year Begins, Some White Evangelicals Stand Divided on Trump 2020

By Val Wilde With his constant and very public moral failings dismaying voters across the political spectrum, Donald Trump has always been a polarizing candidate. But for white evangelical Christians, a demographic that has long been reliably Republican, support for Trump — or its absence — raises questions about the very goals and meaning of the evangelical …

Rep. Ford seeks prayer in public schools with bill

By Tyler Cleveland A bill she says would pave the way for school days to begin with the Lord’s Prayer in every public school in Mississippi has been proposed by state Rep. Jill Ford. Ford, a Republican from Madison, described her bill, which has not been posted in the Legislature’s bill status system, as one …

Tennessee governor signs anti-gay adoption bill

By the Associated Press Tennessee has become the latest state to assure continued taxpayer funding of faith-based foster care and adoption agencies even if those organizations exclude LGBTQ families and others based on religious beliefs. Republican Gov. Bill Lee signed the bill Friday without fanfare or an official announcement, making it the first law to …

Can a bestselling Christian marriage book about love and respect lead to abuse?

By Bob Smietana here’s not much love lost between Christian marriage and sex blogger Sheila Wray Gregoire and pastor turned marriage expert Emerson Eggerichs. Or much respect. The two — both of whom have been featured on Focus on the Family broadcasts — have been feuding for a year over Eggerichs’ bestselling book, “Love & Respect.” Gregoire says she’s heard …