Friendly Atheist

Share this post

WEEK IN REVIEW: Backlash after challenging Christian prayers and the Pledge

www.friendlyatheist.com

Discover more from Friendly Atheist

Commentary about religion and politics, centered around atheism.
Over 7,000 subscribers
Continue reading
Sign in

WEEK IN REVIEW: Backlash after challenging Christian prayers and the Pledge

Religious discrimination against Muslim students, a Christian mom loses her "smudging" lawsuit, ChatGPT's attempt at a theological debate, and more!

Hemant Mehta
Dec 16, 2022
4
Share this post

WEEK IN REVIEW: Backlash after challenging Christian prayers and the Pledge

www.friendlyatheist.com
Share

Thank you for checking out this newsletter! Thank you even more if you become a full subscriber! Consider giving someone a gift subscription! Do it for Jesus. Think of your friends! (Or your enemies.)

Give a gift subscription

Emily Olson, the newest city council member in Owosso, Michigan, is already making waves—and getting threatened—for trying to end the tradition of Christian prayers at meetings and refusing to stand during the Pledge of Allegiance.

After reading an article about what she did, and how she was being threatened, I reached out to Olson and ended up having a lengthy phone conversation with her. Not only was she a delight, she’s the sort of person who makes you want to run for office because she’s doing it for all the right reasons.

She didn’t protest the Pledge and prayers (in her own way) because she wanted to create a stir. She was just hoping Owosso could be more welcoming and inclusive to people who aren’t part of the majority faith. Her attempt to make things better was met with resistance by people who believe the city belongs to them and only them.

The city isn’t changing just yet. But the people of Owosso should be grateful they have someone like Olson looking out for the community’s best interests. If only the majority of her colleagues on the City Council felt the same way.

As always, I appreciate your support through Patreon and Substack, which allows me to spend time on articles like these.

And while I still love what Twitter could be, I know that option may not be viable much longer, so here’s my Mastodon account for anyone interested. Let’s hope I never actually have to use it.


The Board of Trustees for the Greenville County Schools in South Carolina wants clergy members to be able to review what books are appropriate for public school students, and they may face a legal challenge if they go through with it.

SC school district gives clergy members say in which books are banned | An atheist group wants the Greenville Public Schools to stop giving pastors veto power over books

The board says they’re just following state law, but the Freedom From Religion Foundation says the law is specific: It limits clergy involvement to reviewing “reproductive health education, family life education, and pregnancy prevention education.” (That’s a horrible law, to be clear, but it’s specific.)

If the clergy members are allowed to remain on the committees, a lawsuit may be forthcoming.


A teacher at Franklin Academy, a public charter school in Florida, was fired after interrupting three Muslim students in the middle of a prayer. She stepped on their hands during the sacred ritual and dismissively calling their worship “magic.” That’s especially ironic coming from a Christian, since the same faculty member said, “I believe in Jesus, so I’m interrupting the floor.”

It was all caught on video where over a million people have seen it on TikTok:

@gawpui literally dont even believe what happened to me is real im still shook. #muslim #praying #tate #prayer #andrewtate #andrewmuslim #kanye #islam
Tiktok failed to load.

Enable 3rd party cookies or use another browser

A new report obtained by CBC News found that the lawyer tasked with helping the Archdiocese of Montreal be more transparent when it comes to child sexual abuse allegations has discovered that Church leaders were sabotaging her efforts.

Report: Montreal priest stymied investigations into sexual abuse | The ombudsman for the Archdiocese of Montreal says a priest created roadblocks for her investigations

Marie Christine Kirouack said that the same priest undermining her efforts “failed to notify her about one complaint and in another, told a complainant not to contact her.”

All of this makes it less likely that victims will come forward with their stories. The Church’s ability to downplay or ignore abuse allegations, even while a watchdog investigates over their shoulders, is no comfort to those who were hoping the Archdiocese would fix itself. Kirouack vows to stay on the job and continue pushing the institution in a better direction, but when she isn’t allowed to do a thorough investigation, it’s hard to have hope in the process.


A Christian mother spent YEARS arguing that a school in British Columbia violated her family's religious freedom by making her kids participate in an Indigenous “smudging” ritual.

British Columbia mom loses appeal over school's Indigenous smudging demonstration | A traditional Indigenous smudging demonstration

Now a Court of Appeal has dismissed her case. Turns out her claims weren't even true. One example? The Court said, “Children were not participating in the smudging, but that they were actually observing it as part of a lesson about others’ beliefs.”

Educating kids about religion doesn’t amount to religious indoctrination.


This shouldn’t be controversial. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul should immediately sign into law a bill letting people who need substance abuse treatment know that they have non-religious options.

Twitter avatar for @nicholasrfish
Nick Fish @nicholasrfish
🧵 There is absolutely no reason for @GovKathyHochul to not sign this groundbreaking piece of legislation immediately. A strong, multi-faith coalition of civil rights, criminal justice reform, and legal groups support it and it's 100% the right thing to do.
Twitter avatar for @HarveyforNY
Harvey Epstein @HarveyforNY
During National Recovery Month @SenatorHarckham & I introduced legislation (A.8163/ S.7313) to require courts that mandate substance abuse treatment programs to inform defendants of their right to a nonreligious option. One in four NYers are not affiliated with any religion.
5:29 PM ∙ Dec 13, 2022
25Likes6Retweets

Even though After School Satan Clubs are nothing more than science clubs with a twist, Virginia’s Chesapeake Public Schools has delayed one ASSC group’s first meeting citing safety concerns. What they won’t say is where those concerns are coming from.

After School Satan Club delayed after VA school board cites safety concerns | The website for the After School Satan Club

The Satanists are coming in peace and they’re bringing art supplies. The Christians who claim this is evil, and may choose to take measures into their own hands, are far more of a threat to this community than the Satanists trying to teach compassion without Christ.

Interestingly enough, FOX host Jesse Watters brought on The Satanic Temple’s Lucien Greaves to talk about this story, and when Watters asked what values TST stood for, the response appeared to leave him dumbfounded:

Twitter avatar for @hemantmehta
Hemant Mehta @hemantmehta
Seems like FOX's Jesse Watters is now a Satanist after this brief exchange with The Satanic Temple's Lucien Greaves.
6:11 AM ∙ Dec 16, 2022
178Likes21Retweets

On Monday, Congressman Louie Gohmert, one of the most conservative members of the Republican Party, gave a general speech on the floor of the House and recited a sermon written for him by Pastor Tommy Nelson, who runs Denton Bible Church in Texas.

GOP lawmaker honors pastor who ignored a child sex abuse scandal at his church | Louie Gohmert speakers on the floor of the House

Somehow, Gohmert left out the whole part about how Nelson’s church has become a hotbed of sexual abuse and Nelson’s own negligence allowed that abuse to continue.

Gohmert said instead that Tommy Nelson was full of “profound truth,” the sort of morality that could only come from a higher power.


Christian hate-preacher Greg Locke has a new YouTube channel… which shouldn’t be up for long given that his two previous channels were banned.

Twitter avatar for @hemantmehta
Hemant Mehta @hemantmehta
Despite being banned on YouTube, Christian hate-preacher Greg Locke says he has a new YouTube channel (violating their terms of service).
Image
Image
11:27 PM ∙ Dec 15, 2022
39Likes8Retweets

The announcement coincides with his new movie trailer…

Twitter avatar for @hemantmehta
Hemant Mehta @hemantmehta
New trailer just dropped. Courtesy of Christian hate-preacher Greg Locke.
6:05 AM ∙ Dec 15, 2022
74Likes12Retweets

Someone send this woman help:

Twitter avatar for @ThinkingAtheist
The Thinking Atheist @ThinkingAtheist
Here's a terrifying 2021 "Ladies Conference" where a Christian wife is concerned she hasn't been meek and quiet enough for her man.
6:01 PM ∙ Dec 14, 2022
224Likes55Retweets

Shot…

Twitter avatar for @lavern_spicer
Lavern Spicer 🇺🇸 @lavern_spicer
Do not ever refer to my Lord Jesus Christ with pronouns.
5:00 PM ∙ Dec 14, 2022
13,820Likes1,111Retweets

Chaser…

Twitter avatar for @aprilajoyr
April Ajoy @aprilajoyr
This you?
Image
Twitter avatar for @lavern_spicer
Lavern Spicer 🇺🇸 @lavern_spicer
Do not ever refer to my Lord Jesus Christ with pronouns.
7:33 PM ∙ Dec 14, 2022
2,545Likes237Retweets

May we all have the confidence of Grinnell’s men’s basketball team playing a Christian college:

Twitter avatar for @hemantmehta
Hemant Mehta @hemantmehta
Grinnell's men's basketball team absolutely loves embarrassing small Christian colleges.
Image
Image
Image
12:03 AM ∙ Dec 14, 2022
54Likes2Retweets

Ark Encounter is going through another attendance slump. Too bad. So sad.


The U.S. House Oversight Subcommittee on Civil Rights and Civil Liberties held a hearing about the threat of Christian Nationalism and how it’s a guiding force for right-wing extremists:


I asked the ChatGPT tool to write up a short theological debate… and thank goodness I never have to listen to this in real life.

Twitter avatar for @hemantmehta
Hemant Mehta @hemantmehta
I broke the ChatGPT machine.
Image
Image
2:02 AM ∙ Dec 11, 2022
102Likes8Retweets

What is the source of this? Someone please find out.

Twitter avatar for @ChristiansSTDT
Christians say the darndest things @ChristiansSTDT
Of all the Christian things that never happened, this didn't happen the most.
Image
12:41 AM ∙ Dec 10, 2022
8,111Likes977Retweets

Kudos to Andrew Hartzler, the gay nephew of right-wing Christian bigot Rep. Vicky Hartzler, who recently went viral for crying about how protecting marriage equality would hurt Christians.

Twitter avatar for @andyhartzler
andrew hartzler @andyhartzler
when my aunt says religious freedom what she really means is an open license to discriminate. freedom of religion is not freedom to hate anyone outside your religion.
6:30 PM ∙ Dec 9, 2022
73,749Likes11,971Retweets
@andrewhartzlermy aunt cried today #vickyhartzler #lgbtq #respectformarriage #religousexemption #congress #gay #missouri
Tiktok failed to load.

Enable 3rd party cookies or use another browser

Oh, look. Those drag queens are at it again. (What’s that? Oh. I see…)

Twitter avatar for @antifaoperative
𝐁𝐞𝐤𝐬 @antifaoperative
A choir director of a private Catholic school in Kansas has pleaded guilty to more than 25 child sex crimes after secretly recording more than 100 young girls at his school.
4:12 AM ∙ Dec 13, 2022
6,279Likes2,565Retweets

Leave it to a Muslim commentator to remind Christians what Jesus taught:

Twitter avatar for @mehdirhasan
Mehdi Hasan @mehdirhasan
"What would Jesus do?" Well, erm, certainly not back Trump's tax cuts, his border wall, or the GOP obsession with increasing spending on defense while decreasing it on the poor. My pre-Christmas commentary tonight on why I think Jesus was a lefty:
2:23 AM ∙ Dec 13, 2022
542Likes126Retweets

I made a video about how we ought to respond to the vandalism at Focus on the Family's headquarters.


I also spoke with Janice Selbie for the Divorcing Religion Podcast:


It’s never good when I can’t decide if a conservative Christian is being racist, sexist, transphobic, or just plain heartless.

Twitter avatar for @RightWingWatch
Right Wing Watch @RightWingWatch
MAGA pastor/Trump cultist Shane Vaughn fumes over the deal that released Brittney Griner: "If you want to get brother Brittney back, then why don't you go find a Russian prostitute that we've got in jail and give her back ... because their value is about the same."
3:21 PM ∙ Dec 12, 2022
211Likes44Retweets

Fundamentalist Christian grandmother Lori Alexander, a.k.a. The Transformed Wife, is just making things up now… while telling boys to avoid school:

Twitter avatar for @hemantmehta
Hemant Mehta @hemantmehta
You know what I love about this sermon illustration? The fact that it totally happened.
Image
5:40 PM ∙ Dec 13, 2022
93Likes3Retweets
Twitter avatar for @hemantmehta
Hemant Mehta @hemantmehta
Besides the point, I know, but this person doesn't think girls should be formally educated either.
Image
4:06 AM ∙ Dec 15, 2022
126Likes5Retweets

And now for your weekly dose of fundie insanity and right-wing preaching:

Twitter avatar for @hemantmehta
Hemant Mehta @hemantmehta
Christian hate-preacher Tanner Furrh says he celebrated the murders at Club Q. "Praise God! That's what I was saying inside. Praise the Lord! There's five less pedophiles in Colorado..."
12:23 AM ∙ Dec 15, 2022
227Likes69Retweets
Twitter avatar for @hemantmehta
Hemant Mehta @hemantmehta
Christian hate-preacher Steven Anderson delivered a completely unhinged rant against gay people, full of lies and slurs.
5:26 PM ∙ Dec 13, 2022
53Likes8Retweets
Twitter avatar for @hemantmehta
Hemant Mehta @hemantmehta
Christian hate-preacher Joe Jones condemned Biden for bringing Brittney Griner home: "This woman hates God." He says Biden didn't bring back Paul Whelan because he's "not a sodomite, because he's a man, and because he's white."
4:54 PM ∙ Dec 15, 2022
38Likes6Retweets
Twitter avatar for @hemantmehta
Hemant Mehta @hemantmehta
Christian hate-preacher Cameron Hall: "I instruct my wife on who she should and should not be friends with within the church."
2:49 AM ∙ Dec 16, 2022
53Likes6Retweets
Twitter avatar for @hemantmehta
Hemant Mehta @hemantmehta
Evangelical conspiracy theorist Eric Metaxas said yesterday that the "classical Greeks" promoted a "biblical worldview"... even though the Bible didn't exist until hundreds of years later.
3:40 PM ∙ Dec 12, 2022
345Likes43Retweets
Twitter avatar for @hemantmehta
Hemant Mehta @hemantmehta
Christian preacher Kent Christmas says the Bible references four seasons, therefore "global warming doesn't exist." "Sorry, Al Gore."
4:24 PM ∙ Dec 12, 2022
365Likes55Retweets

This week in Atheist Bible Study? Numbers 32: It's time for another round of names you do not care about. Thanks, Bible!


I spoke with my co-host Jessica Greiff about many of the stories in this newsletter during this week’s podcast:


Finally, I guess this is a news story.

Twitter avatar for @nicholasrfish
Nick Fish @nicholasrfish
Can we reflect for a moment on how absolutely bizarre it is for a news channel to post something like this?
Image
12:04 PM ∙ Dec 11, 2022
1,959Likes243Retweets

Please become a full subscriber or share this with someone who may enjoy it. It would mean a lot to me :)

Share

4
Share this post

WEEK IN REVIEW: Backlash after challenging Christian prayers and the Pledge

www.friendlyatheist.com
Share
Comments
Top
New
Community

No posts

Ready for more?

© 2023 Hemant Mehta
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start WritingGet the app
Substack is the home for great writing