Tag: Atheists

Commentary: New Study Shows American Religious Divides

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America is a diverse country. In most cities, you can find people from nearly every ethnic or racial background imaginable. This is becoming the case in rural areas as well. But America is host to a considerable amount of religious diversity as well. And while race relations are often the subject of considerable discussion, understanding interreligious relations is a necessary part of understanding the country as a whole.

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Senate Considering Constitutional Amendment to Formally Allow Faith Leaders Seat at Legislative Table

Corinne Murdock

Voters will likely see on the ballot an amendment confirming that faith leaders and teachers can lawfully join the legislature. The Supreme Court (SCOTUS) ruled in McDaniel v. Paty, et al. in 1978 that this provision was unconstitutional. It is unclear why Tennessee never updated its constitution to strike that provision. It is also unclear what the legislature could do if voters were to turn down the amendment. 

The proposed resolution by State Senator Mark Pody (R-Lebanon) reaffirms SCOTUS rejection of excluding individuals from the legislative process based on their status as a recognized teacher or leader within the Christian faith. 

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Commentary: How Socialism Causes Atheism

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George Orwell’s 1984 defines the booming genre of dystopian literature, but Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World provided a more accurate prophecy of the future. In another of his works, Ends and Means, Huxley offered deep insights into why people choose to become atheists. In a time when 26 percent of Americans are unaffiliated with any religion, and the number of atheists and agnostics in the U.S. has doubled in the last 10 years, people of faith must pay heed to his observations. Huxley wrote that he and “most of [his] contemporaries” saw atheism’s moral vacuum as their “instrument of liberation,” because it allowed them to embrace sexual hedonism and socialism:

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Freedom From Religion Foundation Objects to Worship Service as Part of Governor-Elect Bill Lee’s Inauguration

Jason M. Reynolds

The Freedom From Religion Foundation is objecting to Tennessee Gov.-elect Bill Lee reportedly selling tickets to a worship service as part of his inauguration. The 2019 Inaugural Worship Service Saturday will feature Michael W. Smith, CeCe Winans, Steven Curtis Chapman, Nicole C. Mullen, Matthew West and others, The Tennessee Star reported Tuesday. The service at 8:30 a.m. CST Saturday was scheduled for the Ryman Auditorium, but due to overwhelming demand, it has been moved to the Grand Ole Opry House, the governor-elect said on Facebook. The worship service made the atheist organization upset. According to a press release, FFRF sent the governor-elect a letter asking him to “honor the U.S. Constitution, and all the Tennessee citizens he is soon to represent in office, by refraining from including religion in his swearing-in event. Additionally, FFRF has submitted a public records request for information pertaining to the worship service.” A copy of the letter is available here. FFRF Staff Attorney Ryan Jayne said in the letter addressed to Lee, “This defiance of the U.S. Constitution is a disappointing way to start your time as governor of Tennessee. As you take your oath to uphold the U.S. Constitution, FFRF urges you to reflect…

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Apologetics Conference Brings Global Evangelists to Murfreesboro

Jason M. Reynolds

“I don’t have enough faith to be atheist.” That statement may make atheists scratch their heads or utter a mocking remark. However, it is the focal point of Christian apologist Frank Turek’s ministry. He will share his arguments for Christianity at the Defending Truth Apologetics Conference on Nov. 4 at New Vision Baptist Church in Murfreesboro. He will be joined by global evangelist Ravi Zacharias; J. Warner Wallace, author of “Cold-Case Christianity;” and evangelist Stuart McAllister. Defending the Truth will equip people with tools to engage non-Christians within the secular American culture, people with “a sense something is wrong with the world and everyone knows there is something wrong.” In his ministry, Turek makes the case that Christianity is more rational than unbelief. Every person has a sense of justice. What is justice? What is the source of justice? Why should we fight for justice? “None of that makes any sense unless God exists,” Turek said. “There is no justice if we are just molecular machines like the atheists say. Everybody wants to right wrongs, but there can’t be something wrong unless there is something right, and right does not exist unless a standard of right exists — that’s God.”…

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