Thoughts of a Freethinker

About the time of the printing press, Popes started publishing long lists of banned books. For hundreds of years, including the present, this practice has continued. Of course, various branches of Protestantism has done this as well. Has this history, along with bans of movies and economic boycotts of "sinful" businesses accomplished anything? The short answer is no.  That is the long answer as well. Book stores and public libraries today have tables displaying "Banned Books" making them even more tempting to readers. A Catholic author explains why banning books is foolish. Banning media coverage is similar. A few years ago in Iowa where I now live, the pig and corn dominated legislature passed a law against anyone becoming an employee of a farm and then photographing on their phone what went on. In particular, farmers did not what videos of walking through a barn of chickens picking up dead ones. Now, certainly it is dishonest to take a job at a chicken farm for on...

For all of its chest beating of being the largest Protestant denomination and having moral standards higher than any others, the Southern Baptist Convention is slipping every year. Membership has declined by 10% annually of decades. The "Largest Protestant Seminary," Southwestern, is no longer the largest. It has gone from 3,000 students to about 1,000. And, it's $12 million in debt.  Southwestern is in the news mostly because a recently hired President up and resigned. He resignation statement hinted at problems that are unresolvable. That seems like the case of this seminary and it serves as a metaphor for much of Christianity.  The seemingly unresolved dilemma is the unmovable puritanical members versus those more pragmatic. The more pragmatic represent better the general public which ultimately is the source of followers and money to keep the lights on. With the puritanical blocking the way for change the result are places like Southwestern Seminary sinking under wate...

It's common these days to see articles by Christians explaining the decline in Christianity. Often appearing are articles telling of the danger caused by weaponizing the faith to use against political opponents. One has to admit it is also done by some on the left. Surely, we would all agree the big users are the political right. The numbers who voted Donald Trump into office exclusively because he promised an anti-abortion Supreme Court have been documented. That he did not receive the voting majority in 2020 indicates a problem for conservative Christianity. If its views do not represent the majority, how can it expect to turn around its declining numbers? While I agree with the author that driving deep into politics does not help and probably hurts Christianity with young people, it is a Christian's view, not necessarily the view of those who have left the faith. The decline is more complicated than that. The bigger problem, in my view, is use of the Bible as the basis for t...

As if we didn't have enough to wonder or worry about, the news about complete loss of organisms is another. It is thought we are experiencing more loss of diversity than ever in the earth's history. This does not mean automatically humans are going to be extinct. There is not a way to predict who or what will survive. One conclusion is this exodus and decline in diversity is due to loss of habitat . This is where humans come in. As one species after another becomes extinct, and new ones are not appearing, it suggests a trend or direction toward nothing is left. Certainly it is not a trend line toward expanding the health of welfare of living things, including humans. There have been many doom's day predictions involving our environment. Because doom's days did not arrive on schedule all such prognostications are scoffed at by some. There were scoffers about climate change. It is here.  Having followed the economics of the environment for decades I'm well aware of th...

Wife and I were married 60 years ago in her Methodist church. We belonged to one for seven years. I remember only a few things. The church we belonged to was hostile to alcohol and retail stores being open on Sunday. Restaurants were open on Sundays and that was OK. It was, however, aggressively liberal about the big issue of that time, ending racial segregation. Decades have passed and I assume alcohol and Sunday open stores is no longer discussed. One thing that seems the same in U. S. Methodist policy is its aggressive liberal views on contemporary issues. A majority of U.S. Methodists want to allow gay preachers. It is evident the majority also has a strong dose of ecumenism. These liberal views are an outrage to U.S. conservative Methodists. The outrage was laid out in a recent rant where we learned the many  liberal topics taught in Methodist seminaries.  For several years, conservatives fought to keep liberal ideas out of Methodist dogma. Through legal and procedur...

A popular columnist from the Methodist denomination recently admitted and lamented that polyamory is practiced among some Methodist preachers in Africa. It is a cultural thing and quite common . In the country of Senegal, for example, the census shows 47% of marriages list more than one wife. An anonymous letter was published recently in a Pittsburg newspaper from an African Methodist preacher complaining Methodism prevents him from openly saying he practices polyamory. He sees nothing wrong with it.  What exactly is the "Christain church" in Africa and what is its future? The Methodist link author noted the salaries of African Bishops and church administrators are paid by U.S. Methodists. They, understandably, speak out against polyamory. Those African Methodists who attend and vote at conferences are strongly against gay marriage. Their collective view of polygamy is not as clear. That  reflects the various cultures on that continent. Polyamory is still common. The Presiden...

Around the world, women are demanding the end of practices, policies and attitudes that hold them back from full participation in society. Some places it is dangerous to practice the politics of equality. But women are doing it, including in Iran. Women there are casting off their hair covering and marching in the streets.  Defiance of rules made and enforced by men does not appeal to all women. It would be wonderful political theater if 60% of the women in the world decided, more or less at the same time, they will no longer tolerate rules that make them 2nd class citizens.  We've already seen some of this in Ireland, Chile and here in Kansas where abortion has been legalized in spite of religious hand wringing. In the U.S. black and gay people said they would not put up with harassment by the majority.  It can happen with women as well.  I wish we knew more about what is going among women in Afghanistan. I blogged a while back about women who lost their jobs becaus...