by Jerry A. Coyne Well, I am not science-inclined, but I have always felt woefully uneducated in the topic of evolution. It is such a hot topic in education and religion, I felt I owed it to myself to get the facts. Fortunately, this book is very easy to understand for the “non-science” types. Plus, right on the back cover are glowing recommendations from three of my favorite authors, Dawkins, Hitchens, and Pinker. That was enough to convince me to…
by Gore Vidal There are so many things to say about this book. One must keep in mind that it was written in 1968, and some of the views of sexuality are interesting. It’s hard to write a complete review of the book without giving away the entire premise. However, I would like to comment on one passage I found quite fascinating and relevant to today’s arguments about sexuality. In one chapter Myra and Rusty are disucssing sexuality: heterosexuality, bisexuality,…
NOSHA’s president, Harry Greenberger, made this presentation to the Lakeview Community Unitarian Church here in New Orleans in November and we wanted to let everyone who couldn’t be there that day read what he had to say on this important topic. ****************************** Would a Secular Majority Make a Better America? By Harry Greenberger All recent U. S. surveys have shown that non-believers and non-church-goers are rapidly increasing in numbers, yet are still below 20% of our adult population. When I…
Humanist groups nationwide celebrated the life and work of Carl Sagan this month. Sagan (1934-1996) an astronomer, educator and secular humanist, was probably best known for his PBS series “Cosmos.” It has now been 30 years since “Cosmos” first aired. This is a wonderful story he wrote that you can use when dealing with people who try your patience. You’ll see what I mean. The Dragon In My Garage by Carl Sagan “A fire-breathing dragon lives in my garage” Suppose (I’m following a…
by Jeff Sharlet This book is fascinating and a fast read. I finished it in four days. The book is divided into six chapters, each focusing on a different goal of “The Family,” the group of fundamentalist U.S. Senators and Representatives, and others, who meet in a house on C Street in Arlington, Virgina, to study the Bible and talk about how to influence domestic and international politics with “the teachings of Jesus.” The chapter on the proselytization of Africa…
Since Hereafter, the latest movie by Clint Eastwood, prompted the media to go bonkers over the contemplation of an afterlife, non-believers should take a moment to reflect on this frightening reality. You don’t think it’s a little scary? That one day, each of us will die and we will cease to be? No? Well, it is one of the peskier concepts where even we non-religious types don’t have the answers. And we’re pretty sure the others don’t either, but they are willing to go out of their…
Or maybe you do? A letter to the editor from a local NOSHA member, Timothy Ruppert, deserves our applause. It’s imporant when someone takes up our cause and lets the public know more about non-believers and that we are paying attention. Even better when it’s in New Orleans. Why atheists have the answers (Published: Sunday, October 10, 2010) (Re: “Most Americans flunk basic religion,” Page 1, Oct. 3.) The Times-Picayune’s coverage of the Pew Research Center report glossed over the major finding….
by Phil Zuckerman Is it possible to live a good, moral life and not be religious? Of course, it is, claims the author of this book! Phil Zuckerman spent a year living in Denmark with jaunts over to nearby Sweden to interview hundreds of Scandinavians about their religious beliefs. What he discovered first and foremost is that the Scandinavians view religion as a private matter. What one personally believes about god and religion has absolutely no impact on other people’s…
by Sam Harris All in all, I enjoyed this book. Some parts got very philosophical, so I really had to slow down, sometimes re-reading a paragraph, or even a page or two! The best chapter in the book is “What’s Wrong With Islam?” The chapter went into great depth trying to explain the history of Islam and what it’s trying to achieve in this 21st century. It helped me better understand the clash between Islam and the modern world. The…
by Tim LaHaye Many NOSHA members will recognize Tim LaHaye as the (in)famous co-author of the Left Behind series, more than a dozen works of speculative fiction about what might happen on earth between the Rapture and the Second Coming. Fewer of us may be aware that LaHaye is also a prolific writer of non-fiction with a Christian bent. Recently, I’ve had the pleasure of teaching a course in the anthropology of Magic, Witchcraft and Religion, and in an effort…