====================================================================== MITAAH News -- Volume #2 / Issue #9 -- May 1, 1998 (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. http://www.mit.edu/~mitaah/ ====================================================================== In this issue: * Recent AAH activities * Coming Attractions * News and views: MITAAH and friends criticized by WSJ, and more... * Mailing lists: new, improved, spam-free! ====================================================================== Recent Events ------------- * On April 14, MITAAH sponsored its first big public event: "Life, the Universe, and Everything: and evening with the chaplains." Organized and moderated by Matthew Gray, the event drew over 45 non-AAH people and a wide range of religious viewpoints. The discussion was polite and informative, and several of the invited representatives were quite pleased with the event and with MITAAH's handling of such potentially divisive topics. Big thanks to all who attended and all who helped out in preparation and planning. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Coming Attractions ------------------ * Night on the Town III: anyone still interested in dinner Sunday night? Destination: Pho Pasteur in Allston. We'd meet at the Kendall T at 6pm. Please RSVP to reagan@mit.edu if interested (a reservation might be needed). * End of Term Wrap-Up: May 15. Watch the mailing list for info! ----------------------------------------------------------------------- News and Views Excerpts from mailing lists and news sources -------------------------------------------- (The Wall Street Journal, "Weekend Journal" Friday, April 17, 1998, p. W13) GOD ROUTS ATHEISTS Think the campuses have been lost to Godless PC academics? Ask an atheist. They've just organized themselves into the Council for Secular Humanism [???] to promote atheism on campus. Why? Because they feel under siege from the explosive growth on campus of religious groups, according to this week's Chronicle of Higher Education. Even Harvard's atheists feel suppressed. Harvard junior Derek Araujo said, "Religious extremists have demonized atheism to the point where declaring one's non-belief is like admitting to eating babies." An Ohio State atheist reports "getting odd looks for saying we don't believe in a god." What can one say? Maybe, "halleluja!" |Editor's Note: | | Apparently they meant to trash the Campus Freethought Alliance, our | parent organization. | | To Respond To This Item, Write or Call: | | Joanne Lipman | Editor, Weekend Journal | The Wall Street Journal | 200 Liberty Street | New York, NY 10281 | Telephone: (212) 416-2000 | | Also see: | http://www.infidels.org/secular_web/feature/1998/wsj.html ----- (Associated Press) Governor appeals for restoration of tax break on Bibles HARRISBURG, Pa. -- Exempting Bibles from sales tax is no different from the tax breaks the law gives to church-owned real estate, the administration of Gov. Tom Ridge argued in asking the Pennsylvania Supreme Court to overturn a lower court ruling. The administration wants the justices to restore the exemption for religious books, which Commonwealth Court said amounted to an unconstitutional governmental support of religion. The case was argued Tuesday. A ruling is expected at a later date. Attorney David Millstein argued the other side of the case, relying on a May 1997 ruling by Commonwealth Court that directed the state to begin taxing religious books. The Ridge administration appealed that ruling and the state Supreme Court agreed to hear the case. The collection of sales tax on the affected books was delayed, pending the appeal of the lower court's decision, said Revenue Department spokeswoman Deb Snyder. The sales tax exemption was established in 1956 and applied to Bibles and religious publications, such as hymnals, prayer books and the Koran, when sold by religious groups. Some religious articles, such as rosary beads and crucifixes, also were exempted by the law. In its 4-2 decision, Commonwealth Court said the imposition of a sales tax on Bibles and other religious materials would not violate First Amendment protections of free exercise of religion. But by giving a tax break to people who purchased those items, the court said, the state was in essence showing favoritism to religion. The state and federal constitutions ban government from officially supporting religion. The challenge to the law was made by several people, including a publisher of non-religious books and a consumer who bought religious and non-religious books and noticed the difference in the way the sales tax was applied. Millstein said the selective use of the sales tax was discrimination based on the content of the publications. But the primary argument he made, which he said was supported by a 1989 U.S. Supreme Court ruling, related to government support of religion. Texas Monthly, Inc. v. Bullock invalidated a Texas law that exempted from the state sales tax those "periodicals that are published or distributed by a religious faith and that consists wholly of writings promulgating the teaching of the faith and books that consist wholly of writings sacred to a religious faith." John Knorr, who represented the Revenue Department, contended to the state justices that Texas Monthly was focused narrowly and contained no reasoning that could be applied to the Pennsylvania case. The cost of the tax exemption to Pennsylvania is about $900,000 annually, Snyder said. ----- (AANews #415) OHIO SCHOOL DISTRICT WILL TEACH GOD BELIEF AS VALUE A public school district in Ohio has approved a new educational plan which will include teaching belief in god and the importance of religious freedom. The Lake Local Schools board approved the measure Monday night which was part of a larger package of education program reforms and goals. The project was formulated by a group of 26 community and school representatives. According to a report in the Lake Leader newspaper, "Beliefs include statements about personal responsibility, individual value, honesty, integrity, respect, ability, positive character and the importance of belief in God and religious freedom." One school board member gushed, "I've been on the board for 13 years and this is the most positive thing I've encountered." The board president, James Jenkins, said that this would put Lake "on the verge of becoming one of the premiere school districts in the state of Ohio..." There has been little information about this in the national media. But Ohio has been the stage for a number of recent political fights concerning state-church separation issues, including the use of religious symbols on municipal seals and voucher programs will direct state money to sectarian schools. More extreme measures -- such a bill requiring teachers to present "scientific evidence" against evolution -- have been narrowly defeated in the Ohio legislature. . . . While other elements of the new goals package involve secular objectives -- teaching all students to read, for instance -- the section on belief and the value of religious freedom (as opposed to tolerance) could end up costing taxpayers money if a legal challenge is made. The god-belief section is constitutionally suspect, and may violate the "Lemon test" (from the LEMON v. KURTZMAN case) which prohibits government from taking any action which is not primarily secular. ----- Empty Pew Syndrome in Boston... We've been reporting on the Massachusetts Council of Churches, which recently pumped out letters to 1700 different churches throughout its state asking them to pressure government and civic groups to avoid scheduling conflict of events with Sunday services. "Sounds like an example of 'empty pew' syndrome to me," noted Gil Lawrence, the Northeast Regional Director for American Atheists. Indeed, it is a pathetic day for organized religion when it must ask government to insure that Sunday mornings are event-free, presumably so that people will flock back to church, temple or mosque. One example of "empty pew" syndrome exists in the Boston Archdiocese, which may have to close as many as 60 parishes in the next decade. Catholic officials have noted that there are only 738 active priests in the area, but that number will decline to about 573 by 2003. Cardinal Bernard Law of Boston announced the bad news last month during an archdiocesan meeting; he also admitted that there has been a 2 percent decline in Sunday Mass attendance over the past five years. "How sad it is that people are depriving themselves of the grace of the Eucharist," whined the archbishop. "Please come home. You must know the emptiness we suffer by your absence." ----- Groups wants officials to pass Bible character test... An organization known as the Virginia Trinitarian Pro-nominan Alliance (VTPA) wants all officials who serve in public office to pass a Bible-based test of character, according to the recent edition of Freedom Writers. "All candidates for public office shall be required to give a public account of their works for Christ," warns the Christian Reconstructionist organization. "This account shall be thoroughly and impartially investigated by an independent council (sic). Only candidates with a fruitful Christian life will be considered true to Christ, and therefore qualified to hold public office." "If Christians in America continue to permit non-Christians to government the country, to usurp the authority of God in matters of the State, and to make decisions according to their own will, instead of according to the will of our Sovereign God, then there will be relief from the negative sanctions and judgment of God upon this country," says an Alliance web posting. Is the group for real? You might think that such cranky, Old Testament- style authoritarianism fell into disfavor centuries ago, but Christian Reconstructionism is alive and well, and even enjoys growing popularity in some political quarters. Reconstructionists wish to establish a society governed by "Bible law," and proscribe the death penalty (by stoning, say some members of the movement) for over a dozen crimes including blasphemy, witchcraft, adultery, sodomy and disrespect to parents. The VTPA site has a number of Reconstructionist articles and links at http://members.aol.com/vtpa/vtpahome.html. ----- (AANews #415) "STUDENT APPROVED" COMMANDMENTS PROPOSAL STALLED A South Carolina proposal that would permit students to vote on displays on the Ten Commandments in public school classrooms has been tabled pending further action. Last week, members of the state Board of Education refused the give the necessary two-thirds approval to bring up the resolution for a full review. But the measure, introduced by Board member Henry Jordan, could be raised at next month's meeting. Jordan attracted condemnation and controversy last year, when he introduced a similar proposal. When informed that display of the Ten Commandments might offend non-Christians, he belligerently responded "Screw the Buddhists and kill the Muslims." ----- (AANews #419) ACTIVIST CHALLENGING ''CHURCH BULLETIN NIGHT'' AT B-BALLGAME A Pennsylvania state-church separationist has complained to the Maryland Commission of Human Relations about a "church bulletin" promotion sponsored by the Hagerstown Suns Baseball Club, a Class A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays. The complain in the form of a "Charge of Discrimination" stems from an April 12, 1998 incident when the man says that he took his family to the Hagerstown Municipal Stadium for a Suns game. On that day, the club was having one of its promotional activities known as "Church Bulletin" day, which allows a family of up to six persons with a church bulletin into the park for $6.00. "I informed the ticket clerk that 'I'm not religious, I don't have a church bulletin,'" said the man. He was then informed that without the bulletin, he would be required to pay the full price. "I believe this practice to be discriminatory and a violation of my civil rights." . . . The club could be fined up to $500 if found to be in violation of anti- discrimination laws. "There are plenty of legal problems here. Would they accept a 'bulletin' from every church? And how would people react if they promoted an 'atheist night' at the stadium?" There is one final irony in this story, according to "Karl." Maryland State Delegate John Donaghue was quoted in a media statement from the Suns Baseball Club. "The fact is that most families in this area worship on Sundays," he said. "I cannot think of a better way to allow a family a reasonably priced afternoon of fun than to offer the church bulletin family promotion." He then told "the gentlemen who filed the ridiculous charge of discrimination" to "stay home." ----- "A more credulous, believing America?" Some recent statistics gathered by the Yankelovich survey group suggest that belief in paranormal and mystical beliefs is growing. Results published earlier this week in USA TODAY showed that compared with 1976 levels, Americans are becoming a nation of full-blown, credulous believers. Belief in spiritualism -- the notion that one can communicate with the dead, or that "ghosts" and "spirits" can drop in our lives for a visit, soared from 12% in 1976 to 52% of respondents today. Only 10% of Americans believed in faith healing, a figure which has climbed to 45%. 9% believed in reincarnation; 25% do today. Belief in the efficacy of astrology -- defining personality or predicting the future on the basis of planetary movements -- climbed from 17% to 37%. Curiously, belief in UFOs -- aliens buzzing our atmosphere, or abducting hapless humans for sexual kicks or bizarre genetic experiments -- increased from 24% to only 30%. That figure puzzles us in light of the proliferation of "unsolved mystery"-type programs and pseudo-documentaries which present us with ambiguous evidence of alien cadavers and grainy photos or videos of alleged extraterrestrial craft. (Can't these hoaxers do better?). ----- (AANews #422) ALABAMA LEGISLATURE PASSES RELIGIOUS FREEDOM RESTORATION ACT Amidst the news focus on the state's new moment-of-silence law, Alabama legislators faced less scrutiny and opposition when the House approved the Alabama Religious Freedom Amendment by a 76-6 vote. The measure is the state version of the discredited Religious Freedom Restoration Act which was struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court last year in the BOERNE v. FLORES case. Since then, versions of RFRA have appeared in nearly two dozen states; the laws prohibited government from placing "excessive burden" on religious belief, exercise or organizations. Critics charge, however, that RFRA creates "special rights" for churches and believers. The Religious Freedom Restoration Act has near unanimous support from the country's religious community and even some civil liberties and separationist groups. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Mailing Lists ------------- Remember to be careful--the mitaah-announce list is an announcement list only. Discussion needs to stay on the discussion lists, and specific requests should go to the officers or planning lists. Due to repeated spams, we've renamed the announcement list and discontinued publicizing these lists outside of MIT. Once again, we have the following lists for your reading pleasure: mitaah-announce Official announcements mitaah-discussion Free-form discussion mitaah-gcf-forum AAH-Graduate Christian Fellowship discussion forum To add/remove yourself from any of the lists, use the following command from your athena% prompt: 'blanche $USER' Switches are '-a' to add, '-d' to remove. Your request will not be processed until 2am the next morning, so there may be up to a 26 hour wait for changes to take effect. *Please do not send requests to the list itself*, and remember that you are responsible for your own list maintenance. Other AAH lists include: mitaah-officers Feedback to the officers mitaah-planning Feedback to the planning board --------------------------------------------------------------------------