The supposed Secretary of Atheist Alliance International has finally admitted that the people who removed democracy from the alliance were not even elected themselves when they did so. He describes their failure to put themselves forward for election as an ‘oversight’, then continues as if there are no consequences for acting as if you are […]
The betrayal of democratic atheist activism
Since 2018, some people have falsely claimed to be the board of Atheist Alliance International. This article explains why democratic atheist activists should care about this, and why it is such a betrayal of democratic atheist activism. The Freethought Prophet podcast has covered this scandal for years, more aggressively than I would do so, but […]
The 5-year drop in religious marriages
Yesterday I reported on what I described as the rise in nonreligious marriages in Ireland since 2016. That is a fair description when you look at the percentages, as religious marriages have dropped from 67.4% to 56.7%, and nonreligious marriages have risen from 32.6% to 43.3%. However, when you look at the actual figures rather […]
The 5-year rise in nonreligious marriages
In the five years since 2016, the percentage of religious marriages in Ireland has dropped from 67.4% to 56.7%, Roman Catholic marriages have dropped from 56.3% to 39%, and nonreligious marriages have risen from 32.6% to 43.3%. This shows the need for the State to remove the privilege it gives to the Catholic Church in […]
The elephant fable with a twist
The fable of the blind men and the elephant is often used to show how humans cannot understand god. Here’s a version with a different ending. A wise man met six scholars who were having quite a fight deciphering an elephant without the gift of sight Each described what they had felt and claimed the beast […]
This Sunday is Census Day
This Sunday, 3 April, you will fill in your census form for 2022. The results will be used in planning the allocation of public services and resources, including the Catholic Church controlling almost all of our State-funded primary schools. To keep the census figures accurate, please pay attention to the new religion question, which now […]
Are atheists fully human yet?
23 March is international Atheist Day. By coincidence, on this day ten years ago, Jane Donnelly and I were at a conference in Ireland at which two Catholic theologians said that atheists are not fully human. Prof Gavin D’Costa, a Catholic theologian from the University of Bristol, said religious revelation tells us what being fully […]
The magic and wisdom of Marcelo Bielsa
Marcelo Bielsa is more than a football manager. He is an inspirational and wise human being of humility, integrity, and obsessive determination. He transformed the culture of Leeds into a joyfully entertaining and successful football team that was part of the wider community and many other fans’ second team. He built that team by inspiring […]
The making of ‘Debutante’ and the power of film
‘Debutante’, a short Irish film about religious control and coming-of-age, has had a wonderful reaction since it was completed last year. It won Best Irish Fiction Short at the Kerry International Film Festival, and has three nominations for the Richard Harris International Film Festival. In ‘Debutante’, Meg’s simple life revolves around her duties as a Jehovah’s […]
European court case on religious oaths
The religious oaths in the Irish Constitution for President and members of the Council of State still contravene human rights law, and today’s ruling by the European Court of Human Rights has not found otherwise.