Intelligence Squared – Is The RC Church a Force For Good?
Is the Catholic Church a force for good in the world?
A new debate, presented from London by Zeinab Badawi
It stands up for the oppressed and offers spiritual succour to billions say the Church’s supporters. But what about the Church’s teachings on condoms, gay sex and women priests, ask the detractors.
Speaking for the motion, Archbishop John Onaiyekan and Anne Widdecombe MP. Speaking against the motion, Christopher Hitchens and Stephen Fry.
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lt_zippy2′s opinion: This wasn’t a debate it was a massacre! Despite the heavy editing it was very clear from the beginning who had the upper hand. The list of atrocities committed by the RC Church in the past and even today were well expounded by Messers Hitchens and Fry, and the response from Anne Widdecombe was to complain “Why do they keep bringing up the arguments about condoms, homosexuality and child abuse?” The answer to this is simple (and was made by Fry before she repeated the point) It is because it is the main reason that they were debating, whay did she expect, “Oh yest it does proide charity and comfort, I suppose we conceed this debate and leave with our tail between out legs?”…and this point was not lost on the audience…I won’t spoil the result but it is a classic!
Plus it was great to see Stephen Fry, a newcomer to this sort of debate, really pressing the point home with personal vigour. We at Atheism, I’m sure, look forward to seeing even more from him!
The Evolution Of Confusion – Dan Dennett
Philosopher of science, Daniel C Dennett, author of such works as “Consciousness Explained”, “Darwin’s Dangerous Idea” and “Breaking the Spell: Religion as a Natural Phenomenon” delivered this lecture at the AAI Convention in Burbank California.
He talks about purposely-confusing theology and how it’s used. He also describes his new project interviewing clergyman who secretly don’t believe anymore, and introduces a new term: “Deepity.”
Click here: “Theologians are the spin-meisters of philosophy”
Transsexual Jesus – Queen of Heaven
About 300 protesters held a candlelit protest outside a Glasgow theatre over the staging of a play which portrays Jesus as a transsexual.
The protest was held outside the Tron Theatre, where Jesus, Queen of Heaven – in which Christ is a transsexual woman – is being staged.
It is part of the Glasgay! arts festival, a celebration of Scotland’s gay, bi-sexual and transsexual culture.
To read more click here to access the BBC News site
Why Evolution Is True
A talk by evolutionary biologist Jerry Coyne Read more
What Defines Your Religion?
The following is a story on the BBC’s News Magazine:
A Universe From Nothing
At the Atheist Alliance International Convention in Burbank California Read more
A New Twist on the Omni God
I was talking to a Muslim friend of mine a while back and he informed me that his god, Allah, was infinitely merciful, infinitley just and yet still sends sinners to an eternity of hellfire.
This is a new twist on the Omni god (omnipotent, omniscient, omnibenevolent, omnipresent etc) which is logically impossible, cannot and therefore doesn’t exist.
This was before I was able to debate effectively, so let’s now examine this claim.
1. Infinitley merciful: To be be merciful is to withold punishment that is deserved, in effect to forgive. To be infinitley merciful this god must forgive ALL transgression, and withold ALL punishments, for ALL people for ALL time. So far so good.
2. Infinitely just: To be just is to impose the appropriate level of punishment to every transgression. To be infinitley just mean to impose the appropriate level of punishment to ALL people for ALL transgressions for ALL time.
3. To send sinners to hellfire for ALL eternity, despite the fact humans are finite beings and any transgression that a human can commit is by definition finite.
So, infinitely merciful, just or punishing, which one is it because it can only be one or the other, all three are mutually incompatible. This god is impossible, it cannot exists therefore it doesn’t QED