Posted on 05/01/2011 3:23:08 PM PDT by neverdem
The report in the New York Times that atheists are looking for official recognition as chaplains in the American military in order to cater to the needs of non-believing servicemen is interesting.
On the one hand, it’s kind of absurd. Atheist chaplains? It’s a contradiction in terms. What are they going to teach? Non-belief? What services will they offer? Non-prayers and sermons on evolution? And what comfort will they offer dying soldiers, G-d forbid (oops! Even that doesn’t work). Will they say, “Game over. You’re going to a place of complete oblivion. Thank you for your service.”?
On the other hand, I am completely opposed to any kind of religious coercion, and why should non-believing military personnel not have someone they can talk to who shares their absence of faith? If you’re an atheist and you’ve returned from Iraq or Afghanistan and you’re finding it difficult, say, to reintegrate to life back home, maybe you don’t want to talk to someone whom you think views life only through the prism of faith. In the same way that it might be uncomfortable for a Jewish soldier to talk about his deepest issues with, say, a Catholic Priest, it is arguably just as uncomfortable for an atheist soldier to talk to the same Priest.
Still it would seem that those who profess an absence of belief can’t really be religious or spiritual chaplains. If you’re an atheist then what you see is what you get. There is no other reality – higher or lower – and the word spiritual is nothing but a crude con.
I am well aware that many of my atheist friends will tell me, “Come on Shmuley. OK, so an atheist ‘chaplain’ might not be able to offer the same comfort...
(Excerpt) Read more at nysun.com ...
>>> I can just hear the atheist prayer now. “Dear Heavenly nobody, thank you for nothing.”
Ahahahahahahahaha! Wait, shouldn’t “nobody” be capitalised, out of respect?
>>> I’ve always wondered what atheists shout during sex.
“Oh me, oh Me, oohhhhhhhhhMMMMEEEEEE!”
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Sorry, dunno what happens if a partner is involved.
*applause*
Sounds like a lot of nothing.
ping
Two main/basic flavors of false religions in the world Today, i.e. I-Slam, and Evoloserism. I recommend Christianity as a general rule, but anything is better than I-Slam or Evoloserism, including Rastafari.
That’s right, and it’s why I’m a G-d fearing woman. I know He is.
Please clarify the intent of your communication.
Ayn was an atheist but much of what she wrote is inconsistent with what atheists of today believe.
Do other charities have the same tax exemptions whcih church “related” resorts and entertainment facilities get?
Moose? Elks? Lions? Eagles?
The charity excuse is a lot of a stretch in many cases.
And how about those days off for “religious holidays”.
When it’s done for some, it should be done for all.
Yes charities do get every benefit that churches do. Atheists get every day off they want. And atheism should be ripped out from being the de facto religion of the federal government.
There should be prayer every day in schools that want it, and if an atheist wants to opt out, they should opt out.
“No prayer” is itself a religion. Taking away religion is itself religion.
You’re absolutely right. “Nobody” should be capitalized. Please forgive me Nobody for I have transgressed.
And on page one in post #4 you wrote:
Atheism is not no religion. They cannot prove there is no God. They are acting out of faith alone.
So you would have no objection to Atheist Clubs and Schools getting the same tax exemptions as religious clubs, aka churches and schools? Would Atheists be able to qualify property as religions and churches?
According to
this source
In recognizing a church as a qualifying tax-exempt entity, the IRS applies the following criteria. The church must have the following.
*A distinct legal existence.
*A recognized creed and form of worship.
*A definite and distinct ecclesiastical government.
*A formal code of doctrine and discipline.
*A distinct religious history.
*Members who are not members of any other church or religious order (transfer letters must confirm membership from one church to another).
*An organization of licensed and/or ordained ministers.
*Ordained and/or licensed ministers selected after
completing prescribed courses of studies.
*Literature of their own.
*Established places of worship.
*Regular attendees and congregational memberships.
*Regular religious sacramental and/or worship services.
*Religious instruction for the young.
*Schools or courses for preparation of its ministers.
I
HAVE SWORN UPON THE ALTAR OF GOD ETERNAL HOSTILITY
TO EVERY FORM OF TYRANNY OVER THE MIND OF MAN"
--
Thomas Jefferson
The relationship between the Individual and their Creator is nobody's business but theirs. And it certainly isn't a product of collective mandate.
I read a book once by Roger Zelazny called Creatures of Light and Darkness. There was an agnostic prayer which might work too:
Insofar as I may be heard by anything, which may or may not care what I say, I ask, if it matters, that you be forgiven for anything you may have done or failed to do which requires forgiveness. Conversely, if not forgiveness but something else may be required to insure any possible benefit for which you may be eligible after the destruction of your body, I ask that this, whatever it may be, be granted or withheld, as the case may be, in such a manner as to insure your receiving said benefit. I ask this in my capacity as your elected intermediary between yourself and that which may not be yourself, but which may have an interest in the matter of your receiving as much as it is possible for you to receive of this thing, and which may in some way be influenced by this ceremony. Amen
Surely then some Christian legal group could bring a First Amendment case to overturn the previous decisions which banned God's Names in schools and thereafter in most every publicly funded venue.
After all, if atheism is a religion then banning God's Names by judicial fiat has established atheism as the religion of the land.
IMHO, those wrong turn judicial decision have caused much of the spiritual blindness in the US today. Jeepers, the reporters gasp at the Name Jesus as if it were a curse word and yet find it perfectly acceptable when actually used as a curse word.
I was once discussing religion with some friends, one of whom claimed to be agnostic. The agnostic one was advised that, when you die you will see a light and should go toward it. He was further advised that if the light is flickering to turn around and run as fast as possible in the other direction.
That schmuck was a psychiatrist. He trained in medical school before he did a psychiatry residency. Psychologists don't prescribe psych meds as a general rule.
If its flickering, it must be the light of an oncoming train.
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