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USA Today reports  the American Religious Identification Survey reports the number of people reporting they have no religion continues to increase in the United States. Fifteen percent of those replying said they had no religion.  In 2001 the number was 14.2 percent and 8.2 percent in 1990.  The decline includes Catholic and non-Catholic Christians.  Meanwhile…

I spent yesterday flying back to California.  It’s weird to take off from Paris at 10 am, and arrive in San Francisco at 1 PM.  My body also thought it was weird and is still catching up.   One of my readers in particular responded in such a long and thoughtful way to my post…

From earliest recorded times many people have sought to understand as best they could the foundations for spiritual reality. Throughout the early ancient world from at least India to Greece, ‘monism’ appears to have been the most favored model.  It accorded with the experiences reported by mystics and seemed to handle people’s experience of there…

I had earlier blogged how religious zealot Rep. Scott Renfroe of Colorado argued that according to the Bible gays should be executed.  Later, in the comments, one reader who identified himself as a ‘Reverend’ applauded Renfroe’s words.  I quickly commented that people who worshipped a deity making such demands seemed to worship a demon rather…

While we are a small portion of America’s population, on occasion we can be mighty.  Ten years ago the Headwaters Forest  in northern California was saved from the rape and pillage methods of logging by Texas financiers who took over a responsibly managed Pacific Lumber company to liquidate its assets and make themselves a fortune. …

I just discovered a good account  Gobekli Tepe on Stephen Schwarz’s  often fascinating site.  Not only does it give a good account of the place and its discovery along with great pictures, it also discusses in greater detail than I had seen before the possible long-term ecological and cultural consequences of this amazing set of…

I have long been perplexed, and more than perplexed, by the seeming contradiction between the more intelligent right wingers’ stirring defenses of ‘freedom,’ ‘the rule of law,’ and ‘small government’ and their cheer-leading for George Bush, who under-mined these values more than any other president in my life time.  I think I now understand –…

Barack Obama’s decisive win throughout almost the entire United States gave many of us hope that the threat of religious persecution and authoritarianism would begin to fade from our land.  To the degree that they could, a majority of Americans said “No way!” to America’s home grown Taliban.  I imagine most genuine Christians were as…

 Yesterday I went again to the wonderful Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, long the largest cathedral in the world, and still number three, after St. Peter’s and St. Paul’s.  When it was built, all of an admittedly smaller Florence could gather within its walls.  This time I went inside, and a guide, a young…

Some of those who commented on an early blog of mine on the Bible and abortion questioned whether a Pagan should address so-called “Christian” beliefs.  Among other points, I answered that when these so-called “Christians” based their political opinions on their reading of scripture, and used those beliefs to support legislation those who believed differently…
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