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YouTube host of Anti-Ordinary, Demi Smith
Jessica Schab interviews Demi Smith, British YouTube host of Anti-Ordinary. She is a former Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, Wiccan and New-Ager turned atheist, and she is also transsexual. Demi is not afraid to explore all sides of an argument and she passionately encourages others to do the same. Jessica and Demi will discuss religion, spirituality, and the LBGT movement.
Audio can be found here!
De-converting from Christianity, the Sensible Thing?
Audio here!
It’s one thing to realize that science contradicts the Bible in a lot of ways, that the bible contains a lot of immoral passages (slavery, anyone?), that some passages in the bible are even contradicted by other passages in the Bible. It’s quite another thing to take the next logical step and realize God is nonexistant altogether. After all, maybe the Bible is just a collection of metaphors, an inspired book of wisdom not meant to be literal truth. Maybe “God” is a primal being who set the universe in motion and then did nothing else; a God like that couldn’t possibly conflict with science. Maybe there’s a true god out there, and all the different religions are only glimpsing pieces of divine truth. Right?
Wrong. It turns out there’s absolutely no good reason to believe in a God of any kind, Biblical or otherwise, no matter how little it directly contradicts science or how little immorality is contained in that God’s scripture. Few understand this better than this week’s guest Matt Dillahunty, who was a fundamentalist Christian for 25 years of his life and sincerely believed in and enjoyed his religion and God, before becoming an outspoken atheist. He’s been hosting the cable access show “The Atheist Experience” in Austin, Texas for the past six years, and served as the president of the Atheist Community of Austin for much of that time. He also appears in formal debates with Christian apologists and on his own YouTube channel, discussing atheism. He co-founded the “Iron Chariots” wiki with Russel Glasser, a fellow host on “The Atheist Experience”.
Dillahunty will discuss his experience going from Christian to atheist, why it doesn’t make sense to believe in a God or gods, why theistic arguments are largely based on fallacies, and much more.
“After Atheism… Humanism?”
Audio Here!
In ‘After Atheism,’ Mark Vernon confronts the lust for certainty found in the dogmatism of conservative religion and militant science. He believes that a committed even passionate agnosticism is vital for the future of our planet and our souls. But how can you be an agnostic and why does it matters? The key to wisdom, Socrates said, is understanding one’s own ignorance. A similar thought lies at the heart of all good theology, since God is nothing if not unknown.
‘Teach Yourself Humanism‘ is a comprehensive guide to an important and diverse philosophy. Generally seeking to define itself not as a negative response to religion but as a practical and ethical way of life focusing on common human needs and seeking rational ways of solving human problems, this book will delve into the history and development of humanist thought and address the many questions that surround humanism today. Why is humanism important? Is it possible to ‘believe’ in humanism after Auschwitz? What implications does humanist thought have on our society as a whole and the way in which it is structured? How does humanism deal with birth, marriage and death?
Continue reading “Show 263: “After Atheism… Humanism?” A Chat with Mark Vernon”