A child of twelve in a wonderful Black Baptist church can be captured by the activity, no matter the boy’s personal color. The preacher perched up high, talking about heaven or hell, saying we’ll all be saved by jeee-sus. All those people shouting and singing, happy and good people. Box lunches full of homemade fried chicken. It was a dream come true for an adolescent boy. Read on…
Having recently started thinking about faith again, I find myself remembering what seems like another life (or another person’s life) long ago, in which I was generally undecided in the matter of religious belief. I was a pre-teen, drawn to a local Southern Baptist church by the spectacle and the fellowship. And, if truth be known, by the enthusiastic singing and the excellent box lunches. I had thought, then, of becoming a pastor, perhaps in the same way that many … Read on…
Ellen Johnson has been an activist for American Atheists (AA) since 1978. In addition to having served on the AA Board of Directors, she was also the New Jersey representative for ten years. Currently, she is the President of AA. She considers herself “one of the fortunate few who grew up in an Atheist home.” She is raising her two children in an Atheist environment. American Atheists is an organization dedicated to securing the civil liberties of Atheists and the … Read on…
When Brian was young, he had looked at the moon as a magical place. Now, he saw the cool serenity of the lunar surface and the efforts that it had taken mankind to reach its surface. Although not even an amateur astronomer, Brian had always enjoyed the night sky. It had been a place of both mystery and discovery for him throughout his life. It was also a sight that inspired speculation. How far is it to that star? How … Read on…