Category Archives: Religion

The God of Abraham had the chance to prove his existence to me

Posted on January 1, 2019 by a1skeptic

Last year I posted on Facebook that I would start to believe in the God of Abraham if he were to take out Sheldon Adelson, both Koch brothers, and one of the Mercers (Robert or Rebekah) in 2018. I’d be … Continue reading →

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Three things that made Christianity what it is today

Posted on March 27, 2016 by a1skeptic

By now one figures that most people, at least most reasonably educated people, know that Easter is largely a pagan holiday. It’s based on the celebration of Ostara, and the Vernal Equinox. I wrote about this last year at Easter … Continue reading →

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Pulling Together the Strands for 2016

Posted on January 3, 2016 by a1skeptic

In the last week of 2015 I recapitulated the central ideas that fuel the blog. These included the following: That the state of political discourse in the United States is currently very low, and that the populace in general has … Continue reading →

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On the Wizard of Oz

Posted on December 31, 2015 by a1skeptic

Back in 2005, the University of Chicago economist Steven Levitt and New York Times journalist Stephen J. Dubner published a book called “Freakonomics.” The book has been described as attempt to meld together pop culture with economics. By 2009 it … Continue reading →

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Philosophical Arguments about God

Posted on December 29, 2015 by a1skeptic

There are a number of philosophical arguments that have been made on behalf of the existence of God, and many of these arguments are, if nothing less, intellectually interesting. Some of them are even ostensibly persuasive. And I am, indeed, … Continue reading →

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On the Self-Help Movement

Posted on December 28, 2015 by a1skeptic

Closely related to New Age religions and New Thought religions are the self-help and human potential movements. None of these terms have, of course, precise definitions. The beginning of “self-help” has at times been traced all the way back to … Continue reading →

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On New Age Thinking

Posted on December 27, 2015 by a1skeptic

It’s not just Christians who engage in wishful thinking, in belief in an afterlife and the soul and that the children from Newtown are all in heaven. It’s also the hordes of people who now define themselves as “spiritual but … Continue reading →

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Why I am Not a Christian

Posted on December 26, 2015 by a1skeptic

Bertrand Russell wrote his famous essay, Why I am not a Christian, back in 1927 as part of a talk give to the National Secular Society in Great Britain. It was subsequently published as a pamphlet. I read it in … Continue reading →

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On the Historical Jesus

Posted on December 25, 2015 by a1skeptic

If we can agree that the Bible should not be taken literally, then the question arises, how should it be taken? And if you are among the multitudes who call yourself a Christian, what does that mean? What does it … Continue reading →

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On Biblical Literalism

Posted on December 24, 2015 by a1skeptic

Have you ever noticed that there has never been a massacre between atheists and agnostics. And no pantheist has ever gunned down a pandeist because of a theological dispute. That kind of behavior is reserved for people of religious passions, … Continue reading →

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