Or rather, are being worshipped again in Greece: To the astonishment of onlookers, [Doreta] Peppa also began babbling Orphic hymns, before thrusting her arms upwards into the Attic skies and proceeding, somewhat deliriously, to warble her love for the gods of Mount Olympus. But, then, for the motley group of modern pagans coalesced around the … The Greek gods are back

Taner Edis lists one of Harris’ “silly arguments” against atheism in which “religion is used as a rationale for other aims.” He concludes, correctly I think, that “paying attention to the political, economic, and social background of religious groups is indispensable.” I agree. After all, the Abolitionist Movement in the U.S. probably would not have … Silly Arguments

In his latest column in Free Inquiry, Sam Harris gives a list of “silly retorts to atheism” made by atheists reluctant to oppose religion, and announces a contest to come up with short replies. Now, the four items on Harris’s list are indeed dubious. Nonetheless, I think most of them bring up good questions, which … “Silly retorts to atheism”: Really?

I’ve occasionally remarked that I don’t care so much what people believe as I do how they act. The people I enjoy spending time with are not always those who share my beliefs, but are those who demonstrate integrity, respect, honesty, and other virtues. These virtues are associated with not just holding beliefs in the … Belief, behavior, and bumper sticker religion

Anyone getting deeply involved in debates over creationism and intelligent design eventually runs across the name of Howard Van Till, a physicist with a Calvinist Christian background who taught at Calvin College. Having him on board as a defender of science has been invaluable, especially as an example of someone who seemed theologically conservative but … Howard Van Till

Physicist Vic Stenger’s God: The Failed Hypothesis—How Science Shows that God Does Not Exist is now available. It should interest most Secular Outpost readers, especially those who like to read about science and religion issues. I wrote one of the jacket blurbs for it: “Both casual readers interested in what science has to say about … God: The Failed Hypothesis

At the Overcoming Bias blog, Robin Hanson raises the question of how to interpret the fact that more of the U.S. public believes in God than university professors do, more of whom in turn believe in God than their counterparts at elite universities. He offers the following as possibly relevant considerations: Hanson suggests that factors … Godless Professors

OK, time for a quick laugh. Eddie Tabash led me to MrDeity.com, and I’m passing the meme on…

I just got back from a conference on “The Evolution of Religion,” largely devoted to discussing evolutionary and cognitive science-based explanations of human religiosity. There’s some fascinating work being done, and I expect this topic will be of increasing interest to secular people as the field continues to mature. As I pointed out in my … Do the more aggressive skeptics misunderstand religion?

As if covering up molestation by its priests were not bad enough, Trent Stamp of Charity Navigator points out that, according to researchers at Villanova University, 85% of Roman Catholic dioceses have discovered embezzlement in the last five years, and 11% report that more than $500,000 was taken. As Stamp suggests, if this were reported … Embezzlement in the Catholic Church