ريتشارد دوكنز's Blog, page 154

Guardians of the Gates: Gateway Ministries and the church that wasn’t

By Clifton Adcock The head of a politically influential Tulsa-based group used the organization’s status as a church to obtain property tax exemptions for his family’s house to avoid thousands of dollars in property taxes, though the organization has not had a congregation or held religious services for more than five years, an investigation by …

Missouri Attorney General Refers 12 Catholic Clergy for Prosecution

By Elizabeth Dias The Missouri attorney general will refer a dozen men who previously served as Roman Catholic clergy for potential criminal prosecution, his office announced on Friday after a yearlong statewide investigation into clergy sexual abuse. The investigation found that 163 priests or clergy members were accused of sexual abuse or misconduct against minors. “Sexual …

A penthouse, limousines and private jets: Inside the globe-trotting life of Bishop Michael Bransfield

By Shawn Boburg and Robert O’Harrow Jr. It was billed as a holy journey, a pilgrimage with West Virginia Bishop Michael J. Bransfield to “pray, sing and worship” at the National Shrine in Washington. Catholics from remote areas of one of the nation’s poorest states paid up to $190 for hotel rooms and overnight bus …

Scientists use gene-edited stem cells to treat HIV — with mixed success

By Jonathan Lambert For the first time, researchers have used CRISPR gene-editing technology to try to treat a person infected with HIV. Scientists in China engineered human stem cells to mimic a rare form of natural immunity to the virus and transplanted them into a man with HIV and blood cancer. The gene-edited cells survived …

Marist Brother Michael Beaumont who sexually abused girl during prayer sentenced to home detention

By Edward Gay A former Marist Brother who sexually abused three girls in the 1970s was found to still have a sexual interest in young girls, 40 years later. In the 1970s Michael Beaumont abused a 9-year-old girl while her family had their eyes closed in prayer. Beaumont admitted the historical indecent assault charge on the morning …

Liberty students plan a protest after new Falwell revelations

By Will Young In the wake of reports alleging objectionable rhetoric and conduct by Liberty University President Jerry Falwell Jr., students at the evangelical Christian school plan to call for internal and external investigations into the president and administration at a protest on campus Friday (Sept. 13). “We are not calling for Falwell to resign right now,” said Elizabeth Brooks, …

California winery reverses ban on same-sex weddings after a reporter proved they discriminate

By Alex Bollinger Just a day after a California winery was publicly called out for its “overt homophobia” in refusing to host a lesbian couple’s wedding, it turned around and said it would allow the wedding. Dezanea Reyes and her fiancee Alex Biddle tried to book Viaggio Estate & Winery in San Joaquin County for …

MN School Board Leader: Why Do We Teach Evolution If “It’s Never Been Proven”?

By Hemant Mehta On Monday night, during a meeting of the Brainerd School Board in Minnesota, a science teacher and an administrator overseeing teachers were asked why the district even bothers including evolution in the curriculum. That question came from the president of the school board. (Good luck, children. You’re going to need it.) Board President …

Refusal of Interracial Couple Shows How Slippery the Slope of LGBTQ Refusal Really Is

By Heron Greensmith The owner of a Mississippi wedding hall, Donna Russell, made news last week for refusing to provide space for an interracial marriage due to her religious beliefs. Russell was caught on film stating that “First of all, we don’t do gay weddings or mixed race, because of our Christian race—I mean, our Christian belief. . . .” …

Water Vapor Detected in Atmosphere of an Alien World Nearly Twice the Size of Earth

By Chelsea Gohd Scientists have detected water vapor in the atmosphere of K2-18 b, a potentially habitable alien world about twice the size of Earth. The finding, announced today (Sept. 11), follows a separate study released yesterday announcing the discovery of water vapor, and likely clouds and rain, on the planet. The far-off planet (it’s about …