ريتشارد دوكنز's Blog, page 99

Scamvangelist: If You Lost Your Job in the Pandemic, “Don’t You Stop Tithing”

By Hemant Mehta Televangelist Kenneth Copeland, who said earlier this week that God told him the coronavirus would “be over much sooner than you think,” wants you to know that he feels your pain if you’ve lost your job because of the virus. But also, you really need to keep giving money to your favorite ministry. (Did you think unemployment …

A megachurch has nearly 1,000 people tested for coronavirus in two days

By Sarah Pulliam Bailey On Sunday, Alabama’s largest church stopped its in-person worship services. By Tuesday, it started hosting drive-through coronavirus tests in one of its parking lots. In the span of just two days, doctors in Birmingham tested 977 people from across the state by using the parking lot and volunteers from Church of the Highlands, according to …

One of Darwin’s evolution theories finally proved by Cambridge researcher

By University of Cambridge Scientists have proved one of Charles Darwin’s theories of evolution for the first time—nearly 140 years after his death. Laura van Holstein, a Ph.D. student in Biological Anthropology at St John’s College, University of Cambridge, and lead author of the research published today (March 18) in Proceedings of the Royal Society B, …

What Name Comes to Mind When You Think of Atheism? Many Americans Say… “Satan”

By Hemant Mehta Who is the first person who comes to mind when you think of atheism? Mind you, that doesn’t mean the person is the most famous atheist. Just the name that comes up when you think of the word. The Pew Research Center asked that question, along with similar ones concerning the major world …

Anti-Gay Lawmaker Voted Against Coronavirus Bill Because It “Redefined Family” By Providing Sick Leave To Domestic Partners

By Lee Fang ARIZONA REPUBLICAN Rep. Andy Biggs, one of the 40 lawmakers who voted against the coronavirus stimulus bill, said he did so in part because the legislation included paid sick leave benefits for domestic partnerships. “They’ve redefined family for the first time in a federal — in a piece of federal legislation, to include committed relationships,” …

Catholic Archbishop: Taking Communion OK Because ‘Christ Does Not Spread Disease’

By Michael Stone “Christ Does Not Spread Disease” – Roman Catholic Archbishop Andrzej Dzięga of Poland is encouraging Catholics to keep going to church and keep taking communion despite the dangerous health risks. In a letter responding to public warnings about the dangers of coronavirus, the archbishop contradicted all medical and scientific advice by encouraging …

Trump Adviser Paula White Asks for $91 “Seed” During Coronavirus Prayer Session

By Hemant Mehta If it involves the Trump administration and a crisis, you know there’s probably grifting involved. Enter Paula White, Trump’s “spiritual adviser” and the head of the White House’s “Faith and Opportunity Initiative” program. During a roughly 30-minute Facebook prayer session this afternoon, White talked about how the Bible can help us through the coronavirus quarantine… before making …

Why Soap Works

By Ferris Jabr It probably began with an accident thousands of years ago. According to one legend, rain washed the fat and ash from frequent animal sacrifices into a nearby river, where they formed a lather with a remarkable ability to clean skin and clothes. Perhaps the inspiration had a vegetal origin in the frothy …

How Many Nones Are There? Maybe More than We Thought

By Ryan P. Burge, Eastern Illinois University It’s a rare day when I don’t do some type of statistical analysis with survey data related to religion and/or politics. When I am presented with a question about what the public feels or how they behave in these areas, I immediately know which datasets would yield the …

Here’s A Running List Of The Latest Hoaxes Spreading About The Coronavirus

By Jane Lytvynenko An outbreak of the novel coronavirus around the globe has spawned countless online rumors and hoaxes, promising false cures and causing panic amid uncertainty. BuzzFeed News is keeping a running list of debunked hoaxes. For a previous list of debunks from when the outbreak started, go here. Before passing on any online rumor, …