====================================================================== MITAAH News -- Issue #5 -- August 13, 1997 (sent sporadically to mitaah@mit.edu mailing list) Pseudo-random samplings of information that may relate to atheism, agnosticism, humanism, freethought, or church-state separation issues. Please send any promising material to reagan@mit.edu. ====================================================================== In this issue: * *** Order your MITAAH merchandise today! We need the money! * * Distributing this newsletter could result in one year in jail * R/O Activities * MITAAH retreat! * AANews-of-the-Week ----------------------------------------------------------------------- "Merchandise" We've placed an order for the first batch of MITAAH t-shirts. These shirts, at a mere $12 apiece, will raise the first bit of cash for the MITAAH treasury. The money will fund publicity, group activities, and guest speakers. See the shirts: http://www.mit.edu/~reagan/shirts.html 100% cotton, L or XL, delivery by August 25. But, since we have no ASA money to start with, the deposit on the first batch is being funded through Herculean check-writing efforts by the officers (actually, just me for the first half). So, please, if you are interested in a shirt, why not place an order today and chip in a few bucks to the effort? We only need to sell 18 shirts to break even, and then we can order as many more as we need. Be visible! "Come out" as an atheist, agnostic, or humanist! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ "One year in jail?" Here is what you can find in the latest edition of the Massachusetts General Laws: MA ST 272 s. 36 "Whoever wilfully blasphemes the holy name of God by denying, cursing or contumeliously reproaching God, his creation, government or final judging of the world, or by cursing or contumeliously reproaching Jesus Christ or the Holy Ghost, or by cursing or contumeliously reproaching or exposing to contempt and ridicule, the holy word of God contained in the holy scriptures shall be punished by imprisonment in jail for not more than one year or by a fine of not more than three hundred dollars, and may also be bound to good behavior." Blasphemy is legally defined "as 'the malicious reviling of God or religion.' The purpose of this statute has been said to be the protection and preservation of the Christian religion." (Corpus Juris Secundum, 1997) To prove a charge of blasphemy, one must prove "a willful denial of God, the intention being to impair or destroy the veneration due to Him." (Massachusetts Practice, 1987), or to prove that the defendent "[spoke] evil of the Deity with an impious purpose to derogate from the divine majesty, and to alienate the minds of others from the love and reverence of God." (Mass. General Laws Annotated). An example of a statement of "blasphemous libel" is taken from Commonwealth v. Kneeland (1838): "The Universalists believe in a God, which I do not, but believe that their God, with all His moral attributes (aside from nature itself), is nothing else than a chimera of their imagination." The jury's instructions in this case was that this public denial of the existance of any God except the material universe constitutes a violation of the statute. Therefore, the MITAAH homepage, back issues of this newsletter, our upcoming t-shirts, and many of our legitimate discussions and activities are technically subject to criminal indictment through this statute. This statue was determined to be constitutional in the cases Commonwealth v. Kneeland (1834) and Commonwealth v. Kneeland (1838), although CJS claims that, in today's legal climate, this would certainly be held unconstitutional. But, it's still on the books! It hasn't been used, therefore it hasn't come up for challenge, and the legislature (like the legislatures of CO, LA, MD, MI, OK, and RI) hasn't specifically removed it. Both pro-choice activist Bill Baird and professional skeptic James Randi have made attempts to provoke arrest and prosecution under this law, but to no avail. Also interesting one is 272 s. 37: "Whoever wilfully interrupts or disturbs an assembly of people met for worship of God shall be punished by imprisonment for not more than one year or by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars." Non-religious gatherings do not share this priviledge. Something to think about in Massachusetts. From now on, MITAAH materials will have to carry appropriate warning labels. (Thanks to Sarah for the research that uncovered these details) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- "R/O Activities" MITAAH will have a booth at the activities midway on Tuesday, August 26, 6pm - 8pm. We expect to have all sorts of stuff available for the incoming students. We might need some help getting it all together, so watch this mailing list for details. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ "Retreat!" Things are looking great for the first annual MITAAH retreat to the White Mtns. of New Hampshire. Eight people have expressed interest so far, and we have plenty of room for more! Cabin pictures: http://www.mit.edu/activities/mitoc/interpict1.htm Date: November 8-9, 1997 (Veteran's Day weekend) Cost: a mere $20 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ "AANews" For the more active activist (from AANEWS #319): |Make Your Support For The First Amendment Known! | SUPPORT THE AD | | In October, American Atheists will be hosting a special display ad in USA |TODAY, "The Nation's Newspaper," with an estimated total audience of nearly 5 |million readers. You can participate in this unique, historic public |statement on behalf of state-church separation, the First Amendment and |freedom FROM religion. For details, check out the FLASHLINE section of our |website at: | http://www.atheists.org/flash.line/index.html ------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Humor" Also from AANews #319: |. . . Take the Virgin of the Metro , which was discovered over two |months ago in Hidalgo subway station in Mexico City. Tens of |thousands of people -- some believers, others just curious -- have |flocked to see the "virgin," which is actually a stain measuring about |12-inches by 6-inches, and bears a superficial resemblance to images |of the famed Virgin of Guadalupe. According to some reports, the stain |was caused by leaking water, although one account suggests that it is |a urine stain. That hasn't discouraged the flock, though; people |queue for nearly an hour to catch a glimpse of the remarkable |apparition. . . . I have an idea for a neat hack... --------------------------------------------------------------------------