Clipmarks | wiccantexan's 'god' clips

Prof, college reach settlement after 'Adam and Eve' incident

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 04:03:57 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.firstamendmentcenter.org

Southwestern Community College has reached a financial settlement with a professor who was fired after telling students the biblical story of Adam and Eve should not be taken literally.

Steve Bitterman taught world civilization at the Creston school. He was fired last September after students complained. Bitterman later sued for wrongful termination.

Bitterman's lawyer, Brad Schroeder, says academic freedom should have outweighed religious concerns.

"What was for him a purely objective, academic exercise in studying the religious beliefs of different Western civilizations became a group of fundamentalist students taking exception when it came time for their God to be put under the microscope," Schroeder said today.

Tags: college, religion, god, history, belief

World's oldest mom age now 72

Sun, 06 Jul 2008 18:21:15 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: abcnews.go.com

A 72-year-old woman who has two children and five grandchildren has given birth to twins, making her the world's oldest mother.

Omkari Panwar delivered twins, a boy and a girl, by Caesarean section last week.

Singh was reluctant to speak because he has received negative publicity for his wife's having children at such an advanced age.

"The desire for a male child has always been there, but God did not bless us with a male child," he said of the son who is a product of in vitro fertilization. "Now, we are very grateful to God, who has answered our prayers."

The septuagenarian couple spent their life savings and took out a loan from the bank for Panwar to undergo in vitro treatments. For the couple, the desire to have a son was most important because they wanted to carry on the family name. They know that their son may never be able to care for them in the traditional way because of the age gap.

Tags: children, elderly, pregnancy, old, woman, twins, medical, health

Apocalypse Now: Floods, Tornadoes, Locusts

Sat, 14 Jun 2008 00:14:44 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: abcnews.go.com

In the beginning, God created heaven and Earth, and he saw that it was good. So begins the Book of Genesis, the dramatic opener of the Old Testament.

But things went downhill from there.

By the final Book of Revelation in the New Testament, the Earth suffers "Seven Plagues" -- from disease to "intense heat" and drought, then finally a shower of deadly hailstones.

Biblical imagery is all over the news these days — even including a story last week of a New York baby being enwrapped by a snake in its crib, harking back to evil lurking in the Garden of Eden.

Most theologians and scientists don't take seriously warnings that the end of the world is nigh. But many reputable scholars do lend some credence to the notion that the world is in for some kind of disaster, be it meteorological, ecological or geopolitical.

Tags: bible, belief, nature, god, theology, science

Einstein letter calls Bible ‘pretty childish’

Wed, 14 May 2008 01:06:34 GMT

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Clip Source: www.msnbc.msn.com

A letter being auctioned in London this week adds more fuel to the long-simmering debate about the Nobel Prize-winning physicist's religious views. In the note, written the year before his death, Einstein dismissed the idea of God as the product of human weakness and the Bible as "pretty childish."

Einstein, who helped unravel the mysteries of the universe with his theory of relativity, expressed complex and arguably contradictory views on faith, perceiving a universe suffused with spirituality while rejecting organized religion.

In it, Einstein said that "the word God is for me nothing more than the expression and product of human weaknesses, the Bible a collection of honorable but still primitive legends which are nevertheless pretty childish."

"Like many great scientists of the past, he is rather quirky about religion, and not always consistent from one period to another," Brooke said.

Tags: religion, belief, bible, science, god, theology

Vatican astronomer says it's okay to believe in extra-terrestrials

Wed, 14 May 2008 01:03:12 GMT

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Clip Source: www.earthtimes.org

Belief in the existence of aliens from outer space is not necessarily at odds with being a Christian, according to the Vatican's top astronomy official. "It is possible to believe in God and in extra-terrestrials," Father Jose Gabriel Funes was quoted as saying in an interview published Tueday in the Vatican's official newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano.

For Christians it is also possible "to admit the existence of other worlds and other forms of life, even those more evolved than ours, without necessarily questioning faith in the Creation, in the incarnation (of God as man through Jesus) and redemption" of mankind, said Funes.

Tags: vatican, catholic, aliens, space, astronomy, god, belief

Atheist soldier claims harassment

Sun, 27 Apr 2008 04:06:46 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.cnn.com

But the short and soft-spoken specialist is at the center of a legal controversy. He has filed a lawsuit alleging that he's been harassed and his constitutional rights have been violated because he doesn't believe in God. The suit names Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

Known as "the atheist guy," Hall has been called immoral, a devil worshipper and -- just as severe to some soldiers -- gay, none of which, he says, is true. Hall even drove fellow soldiers to church in Iraq and paused while they prayed before meals.

It wasn't until he joined the Army that he began questioning religion, eventually deciding that he couldn't follow any faith.

It eventually came out in Iraq in 2007, when he was in a firefight. Hall was a gunner on a Humvee, which took several bullets in its protective shield. Afterward, his commander asked whether he believed in God, Hall said.

"I said, 'No, but I believe in Plexiglas,' " Hall said.

Tags: military, soldier, religion, belief, atheism, god, army

Obama Suggests Jesus Christ Not the Only Way to Heaven

Tue, 01 Apr 2008 03:48:15 GMT

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Clip Source: www.christianpost.com

While answering a question about his Christian faith, Obama said he believes that Jesus Christ died for his sins and through God’s grace and mercy he could have “everlasting life,” according to the Los Angeles Times.

But he also believes Jews and Muslims and non-believers who live moral lives are as much “children of God” as he is, according to The Associated Press.

As an example, he spoke about his late mother who was “not a believer.”

"[S]he was the kindest, most decent, generous person that I have ever known," Obama said, according to the Times. "I'm sure she is in heaven, even though she may not have subscribed to everything that I subscribe to."

Tags: politics, obama, christian, heaven, jews, muslim, god

Hundreds protest Fred Phelps and Westboro Baptist Church

Tue, 01 Apr 2008 03:44:34 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.ksn.com

Hundreds of people from Kansas and across the country gathered Sunday in Topeka to protest Pastor Fred Phelps and the Westboro Baptist Church. The march was also a way to promote peace, love, and equality.

People of all ages, races, and sexual orientation were present. The group of more than four hundred people marched throughout Gage Park, but were not allowed to cross any streets without a parade permit. The organizer of the march, Chris Love says he wants to show the Westboro Baptist Church there is an opposing voice equally as powerful. Other marchers feel the same.

"We don't agree with him talking about hatred and how God hates this god hates that," marcher Angi Boetta said. "We're just here to show him who we are and we're not going away no matter what you say or do."

The Westboro Baptist Church is known for picketing the funerals of U.S. soldiers killed in Iraq, and says their deaths are God's way of disapproving of homosexuality in America.

Tags: religion, church, gay, hate, love, god

Baby Girl Born With Two Faces Worshipped as Reincarnated God

Fri, 14 Mar 2008 23:51:57 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.foxnews.com

She's only a few days old and already a baby girl in Northern India is being worshipped as a reincarnated god.

• Click here to watch a video of the girl

The newborn is unlike any other child villagers have seen before — she has two faces.

The parents are hoping the government will help with medical treatments needed for their baby girl in the future.

Tags: baby, religion, belief, india, god, deity, medical

When God goes to the office

Wed, 12 Mar 2008 01:37:13 GMT

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Clip Source: www.cnn.com

Religion, like sex and politics, once was considered inappropriate watercooler talk. Not anymore. Prayer sessions, religious diversity groups and chaplains like Reece, along with rabbis and imams, have become more common across corporate America in the past decade.

Fifty percent of those questioned in a 2002 Gallup poll said religious expression should be tolerated in the work place while another 28 percent thought it should be encouraged. That's compared to 21percent who didn't see a place for religious expression on the job.

"Faith is coming out of the closet at work," says David W. Miller, author of "God at Work: The History and Promise of the Faith at Work Movement." "It could be as simple as using a Buddha screen saver or having a cross at your desk."

Experts like Tulin recommend that companies create faith-friendly policies through a "religious-diversity lens." They say employees should be up front about their religious needs.

Tags: god, work, religion, office

The Pope Rules Out Feminist Theology

Sun, 02 Mar 2008 18:50:11 GMT

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Clip Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

The Vatican has cracked down on feminist interpretations of the liturgy, ruling that God must always be recognised as Our Father.

In a move designed to counter the spread of gender-neutral phrases, the Holy See said that anyone baptised using alternative terms, such as "Creator", "Redeemer" and "Sanctifier" would have to be re-baptised using the traditional ceremony.

The Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith said yesterday: "These variations arise from so-called feminist theology and are an attempt to avoid using the words Father and Son, which are held to be chauvinistic."

Instead, it said that the traditional form of "Father, Son and Holy Ghost" had to be respected.

The new phrases are particularly popular in the Church of England. It was recently reported that guidelines to bishops and priests advised them to avoid "uncritical use of masculine imagery".

The Catholic Church and the Church of England are split over feminist issues.

Tags: vatican, pope, god, religion, feminism, theology, church

Teen Says He Was Kicked Out For Not Standing For Pledge Of Allegiance

Wed, 06 Feb 2008 01:23:41 GMT

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Clip Source: www.lvrj.com

Devon Smith, a Spring Valley High School sophomore, said what he did Monday morning was no different from what he's done since the eighth grade -- he neither recited the Pledge of Allegiance with other students nor did he stand silently while classmates took part in the recitation.

What was different, the 16-year-old said, was teacher Susan Rheinwald's reaction to his lack of participation.

He got kicked out of class.

"I wasn't being disruptive," he said Monday afternoon while sitting with his mother on the couch in their Spring Valley home. "I don't believe we are 'one nation under God' as the Pledge says. I don't believe in God. So I was just sitting there. That is my right."

In 1973 and 1978, the 2nd and 3rd U.S. circuit courts of appeals, respectively, also ruled that public school students could not be forced to stand silently while others recited the pledge. "It can no more be required than the pledge itself," the 2nd Circuit ruled.

Tags: pledge of allegience, school, teens, rights, god, public, legal

Multiple-Faith Rule Disturbs Prison Chaplain

Thu, 31 Jan 2008 04:16:51 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.thenewstribune.com

Suss took a voluntary leave of absence at the beginning of the year because a new Corrections Department policy allowing inmates to profess multiple religions has put his faith into conflict with his duties as a state employee.

At issue is whether in the state’s efforts to protect inmates’ freedom to worship, Suss should have to compromise his own religious convictions.

Suss’ dilemma raises other questions, too:

What does it mean to belong to a particular faith or tradition? Can you just say, “OK, I’m Jewish now” (or Hindu, or Catholic, or Buddhist, or whatever), or must you be accepted into that faith through certain sacraments and rituals? Is it meaningful to claim you’re both a Catholic, believing in one triune God, and at the same time a pagan, espousing the existence of many gods and goddesses? Who should get to decide?

Tags: faith, religion, beliefs, prison, ritual, pagan, christian, god, goddess

Ash Altar Of Zeus Offers Insight Into Origins Of Ancient Greece's Most Powerful God

Tue, 29 Jan 2008 04:21:31 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.sciencedaily.com

On the highest point of the mountain is a mound of earth, forming an altar of Zeus Lykaios, and from it most of the Peloponnesos can be seen,” wrote Pausanias, in his famous, well-respected multi-volume Description of Greece. “Before the altar on the east stand two pillars, on which there were of old gilded eagles. On this altar they sacrifice in secret to Lykaion Zeus. I was reluctant to pry into the details of the sacrifice; let them be as they are and were from the beginning.”

What would surprise Pausanias—as it is surprising archaeologists—is how early that “beginning” actually may be. New pottery evidence from excavations by the Greek-American, interdisciplinary team of the Mt. Lykaion Excavation and Survey Project indicates that the ash altar—a cone of earth located atop the southern peak of Mt Lykaion where dedications were made in antiquity— was in use as early as 5,000 years ago—at least 1,000 years before the early Greeks began to worship the god Zeus.

Tags: history, archaeology, pagan, greece, religion, zeus

Radical church plans to protest Ledger’s memorial

Thu, 24 Jan 2008 23:14:02 GMT

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Clip Source: www.msnbc.msn.com

Courtney Hazlett

The Scoop

The radical Baptist church known for picketing the funerals of American soldiers who lost their lives in Iraq has announced that they intend to protest Heath Ledger’s stateside memorial service because he played a gay character in “Brokeback Mountain.”

“You cannot live in defiance of God. He (Ledger) got on that big screen with a big, fat message: God is a liar and it's OK to be gay,” said Shirley Phelps in a statement sent out by the Topeka, Kan.-based Westboro Baptist Church.

The only compelling reason to ignore Westboro Baptist’s reprehensible intentions is that highlighting the vast inappropriateness of their thoughts and actions only brings the church more publicity. However, if the members of Westboro Baptist get to speak their minds, every individual who feels that this is an affront to most basic standards of human ethics should be able to as well.

Tags: hollywood, gay, christian, church, radical, actor