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Local
Events
The
Davis Square Philosophy Café (DSPC), Is held
monthly on the 3rd Tuesday, 7:30-9:30pm at McIntyre & Moore
Booksellers in Davis Square, Somerville, MA, A discussion group
modeled on philosophy cafés in Europe & the US. Goal is to
have informal, relaxed philosophical discussion of mutual interest
to participants.
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Bowling for Columbine did it to the gun culture. Super Size Me
did it to fast food. Now The God Who Wasn't There does it to religion.
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Did
a Historical Jesus Exist?
Amazingly,
the question of an actual historical Jesus rarely confronts the
religious believer. The power of faith has so forcefully driven
the minds of most believers, and even apologetic scholars, that
the question of reliable evidence gets obscured by tradition,
religious subterfuge, and outrageous claims. A brief look at the
claims of a historical Jesus and why the evidence the Christians
present us cannot serve as justification for reliable evidence
for a historical Jesus.
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Upcoming Events April 2008
From April 7-13 "Freethought Week" Plus!
April 7th, "Keeping Public Schools Secular" with
Dr. Barbara Forrest, Prof. Ken Miller, Dr. Ellery Schempp, and
Ms. Nica Lalli. They will discuss the goals of the
religious who wish to insert God into the classroom.
Miller and Forrest will also be discussing their
roles in the Dover v. Kitzmiller evolutionary trial,
while Schempp will be discussing his Supreme Court
case, and Lalli will take a unique perspective
on raising children with this threat. Free admission
and it begins at 7:00 PM,
Tufts University, Barnum Hall.
April 9th, "Ezra Furman" will be
performing at Brown & Brew, an event for all
sponsored by
Tufts Freethought Society.
April 13th, Freethought Coming Out Day!
April 21st, Dan Barker, President of the Freedom
of Religion Foundation, will be debating Christian
apologist Dr. R.C. Metcalf, on the subject: "Did
Jesus Resurrect?"
Needless to say, it will be an exciting few weeks!
We hope you attend our events!
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The GOD Delusion By Richard Dawkins
NY Times Best Seller
"At last, one of the best
nonfiction writers alive today has assembled his
thoughts on religion into a characteristically
elegant book." --Steven Pinker
"Richard Dawkins is the leading soothsayer of our
time. . . . The God Delusion continues his
thought-provoking tradition." --J. Craig Venter
"The God Delusion is smart, compassionate, and
true . . . If this book doesn't change the world,
we're all screwed." --Penn & Teller "
"The world needs passionate rationalists. Dawkins
so stands out through the cutting intelligence of
The God Delusion." --James D. Watson
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Prayer
& Healing
In a comprehensive scientific study
on the effects of intercessory prayer on the health
and recovery of 1,802 patients undergoing coronary
surgery, prayers offered by strangers had no effect.
In fact, patients who knew they were being prayed
for had a higher rate of post-operative complications.
For the entier article see: Prayer
& Healing The Verdict is in and the Results are
Null by Michael Shermer
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Tufts'
Secular Student Association - Freethought Society
is a
community brought together and unified by our love of
reason, truth, freedom, humanity, and nature.
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If you're
someone with a naturalistic philosophy - someone who
might call themselves a freethinker, atheist, humanist, skeptic,
objectivist, rationalist, naturalist, agnostic, or a "Bright"
- someone who believes that all that exists,
exists within a natural universe(s)
OUR
GOALS ARE TO:
- provide a sense of community & a positive secular
alternative to supernatural systems of belief.
- encourage freedom from superstition, irrationality,
dogmatic religious assumptions & extremism.
- further the acceptance and application of science, reason,
and critical thinking in all areas of human endeavor.
- challenge the misconceptions of naturalistic-based convictions,
lifestyles, ethics & morals.
- cultivate a sense of global responsibility and
compassion for humanity.
- look for human solutions to human problems and
trust in our ability to reason.
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"God
used to be the best explanation we had, but now we've
got vastly better ones. God is no longer an explanation
of anything, but has instead become something that that
would itself need an insurmountable amount of explaining."
Douglas Adams
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News
and Items of Interest
Sam Harris Reviews Francis Collins' New Book "The
Language of God".
In this essay, the
bestselling secularist author of “The End of Faith”
delivers a scathing review of “The Language of God,” by
Human Genome Project head Francis Collins that attempts
to demonstrate a harmony between science and evangelical
Christianity. Read the review
HERE....
Demolishing
the Myth that Faith Strengthens Society. Gregory
S Paueveral in
the Journal of Religion & Society (Vol.7,2005) comparing
18 prosperous democracies concludes secular societies
have lower rates of violence and teenage pregnancy than
thoes where many people believe in God. Japan #1- 80%
accept evolution and <10% believe in God. With 100
million+ people, Japan is one of the least crime-prone
countries in the world..... MORE
HERE.
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There
is no God (and you know it) - Sam Harris in an excerpt
from An Atheist Manifesto, 10/7/05
Atheism is not a philosophy; it is not even a view of
the world; it is simply a refusal to deny the obvious,
says Harris, author of the international bestseller ....MORE
HERE
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OTHER News/Articles
- Freedom
From Peoiple of Faith
- The
Passion for Religion Ebbs
- Supreme
Court Upholds Separation
- Salvation
Army Sued
-
Uses and Abuses of Science
- Protecting
Your Right to Religion?
- A
Call for Support in India
- AHA
Bashes Bush
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Humanist Network News headlines
are syndicated here as a service of the Institute
for Humanist Studies. [Subscribe
for e-mail delivery]
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