AHA Works with Rep. Rush Holt to Introduce Darwin Day Resolution in Congress

The American Humanist Association is proud to announce that Rep. Rush Holt (NJ) has introduced a resolution in the House of Representatives honoring Darwin Day.

MORE: http://www.americanhumanist.org/HNN/details/2013-01--aha-works-with-rep-rush-holt-to-introduce-darwin-da

See also...

Support the Darwin Day Resolution: Contact Your Representative Now!
http://www.americanhumanist.org/HNN/details/2013-01--support-the-darwin-day-resolution-contact-your-repr

It's the Right Time for Congress to Recognize Darwin
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/roy-speckhardt/its-the-right-time-for-co_b_2535460.html

International Darwin Day Celebration Brings National Figures to the Palouse
http://www.americanhumanist.org/news/details/2013-01-international-darwin-day-celebration-brings-national

Obama's Strong Progressive Inaugural Address Dulled with Religious Music and Rhetoric

President Barack Obama's second inaugural address this week contained an abundance of support for progressive ideas that nearly all humanists accept: economic justice, fortification of science, cooperative action, battling prejudice of all kinds, praise for diversity, acknowledgement of the need to adapt to new circumstances, and the need to act in response to climate change. But the entire ceremony was so saturated with religion in general--Christianity in particular--that the plea for togetherness could rightfully be seen as absurd and deceitful by millions of non-Christian Americans.

MORE: http://www.americanhumanist.org/HNN/details/2013-01-obamas-strong-progressive-inaugural-address-dulled-w

See also...

A United States for nonbelievers?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/guest-voices/post/a-united-states-for-nonbelievers/2013/01/23/aafd9a32-6587-11e2-9e1b-07db1d2ccd5b_blog.html#

National Atheist Party, Black Nonbelievers, Inc. Form Partnership

The National Atheist Party, a political organization based in Florence, Ky., announced Tuesday that it would partner with the Atlanta, Georgia-based Black Nonbelievers, Inc. Troy Boyle, president of the National Atheist Party, said in a statement released Tuesday that the partnership was made in the hopes of increasing the scope of outreach.

MORE: http://www.christianpost.com/news/national-atheist-party-black-nonbelievers-inc-form-partnership-88790/

Atheists, others want equal access to schools after Bible distribution

A day after a Christian group distributed bibles to students inside 11 Orange County high schools, a group of atheists and secular humanists said they plan to hand out materials as well.

MORE: http://www.orlandosentinel.com/features/education/os-bible-orange-schools-controversy-20130117,0,3134271.story

Godless mom strikes a chord with parents

Mitchell, a mother of two teenagers in Texas who feels "immersed in Christianity," started a blog about raising her children without religion because she felt frustrated and marginalized. She didn't want to feel so alone, she says.

MORE: http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2013/01/18/godless-mom-strikes-a-chord-with-parents/

See also...

After 650,000 Page Views, CNN Decides Atheist Mom Is Okay After All
http://www.theawl.com/2013/01/atheist-pageviews

CNN Executives Carefully Reviewing Reader Submission From Atheist Mom
http://www.theawl.com/2013/01/cnn-defending-god-from-lady-blog

Why I Raise My Children Without God
http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-910282?hpt=hp_c3

High court rejects atheist's appeal over cross

The nation's high court on Tuesday declined without comment to review Robert Sherman's request to hear his case involving the $20,000 grant given in 2008 to the 111-foot-high Bald Knob Cross of Peace near Alto Pass. Lower courts already had ruled that Sherman lacked standing to sue over the grant.

MORE: http://www.azcentral.com/news/free/20130123atheists-appeal-over-cross-supreme-court-rejects.html

See also...

Atheist's Cross of Peace lawsuit ends
http://thesouthern.com/news/local/atheist-s-cross-of-peace-lawsuit-ends/article_6c10e16a-6520-11e2-b4fb-001a4bcf887a.html

Cartoon Classes: Report Finds Texas Bible Courses Promote Proselytizing, Religious Bias

Bible courses in Texas public schools are rife with religious bias, evangelism and even racism.

MORE: https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/cartoon-classes-report-finds-texas-bible-courses-promote-proselytizing

Americans And Religious Liberty: A New Poll Yields Good News And Bad News

The telephone survey, announced Jan. 18, found that 66 percent of Americans say no one set of values should dominate in this country. That's two out three Americans on the right side, and that's not too bad.

But Barna, an evangelical-leaning enterprise, also found some troubling statistics. Twenty-three percent of those polled say "traditional Judeo-Christian values" should be given preference in the United States. Among evangelical Christians that number rose to 54 percent!

MORE: https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/americans-and-religious-liberty-a-new-poll-yields-good-news-and-bad-news

Inside the Church of Scientology

Anderson Cooper reports on Scientology and a new book about its leadership and followers called "Going Clear."

MORE: http://www.cnn.com/video/?hpt=hp_c3#/video/bestoftv/2013/01/24/ac-scientology-book.cnn

Paying For Prejudice: Georgia Tax-Credit Program Subsidizes Anti-Gay Bias

Bigotry at private religious schools should not receive even one dime of taxpayer support, directly or indirectly.

MORE: https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/paying-for-prejudice-georgia-tax-credit-program-subsidizes-anti-gay-bias

Decalogue Déjà Vu?: Alabama 'Commandments Judge' Says Legal System Comes From Bible

Judge Moore claimed that our court system is the creation of God and that the foundation of our legal system comes from the Book of Deuteronomy.

MORE: https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/decalogue-d-j-vu-alabama-commandments-judge-says-legal-system-comes-from

Poison Pen: James Dobson's Latest Missive Misses The Mark

Don't read James Dobson's letter as a declaration of Religious Right surrender. That is not what it is at all.

MORE: https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/poison-pen-james-dobson-s-latest-missive-misses-the-mark

Berry Good: Kentucky Poet Tackles Church, State And Marriage Equality

Baptists were once strong supporters of church-state separation, and many still are. But the Southern Baptist Convention, the nation’s largest Protestant denomination, for decades has been in the iron grip of a fundamentalist faction that has forgotten history and hates church-state separation. Berry’s sermon is an altar call that Southern Baptist backsliders badly need to hear.

MORE: https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/berry-good-kentucky-poet-tackles-church-state-and-marriage-equality

N.M. State Rep Takes Heat for Bill That Criminalizes Abortion in Cases of Rape

New Mexico State Rep. Cathrynn Brown has come under attack for a bill she recently introduced that would brand  survivors of rape and incest who become pregnant and chose to have abortions as felons.

MORE: http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2013/01/n-m-state-rep-takes-heat-for-bill-that-would-criminalize-abortion-in-cases-of-rape/

Rhode Island House Passes Gay Marriage Bill

The Rhode Island House has overwhelmingly passed legislation to allow gay couples to marry.

MORE: http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/ri-house-vote-gay-marriage-18299537

What Should We Be Worried About?

Ever since the philosophers David Hume and G. E. Moore identified the "Is-Ought problem" between descriptive statements (the way something "is") and prescriptive statements (the way something "ought to be"), most scientists have conceded the high ground of determining human values, morals, and ethics to philosophers, agreeing that science can only describe the way things are but never tell us how they ought to be. This is a mistake.

MORE: http://www.skepticblog.org/2013/01/15/what-should-we-be-worried-about/

False Beliefs Persist, Even After Instant Online Corrections

"The problem with trying to correct false information is that some people want to believe it, and simply telling them it is false won't convince them."

MORE: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/01/130124092300.htm

How the Universe Has Cooled Since the Big Bang Fits Big Bang Theory

Astronomers using a CSIRO radio telescope have taken the Universe's temperature, and have found that it has cooled down just the way the Big Bang theory predicts.

MORE: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/01/130123101622.htm

See also...

When the Universe was twice as hot
http://scienceblogs.com/startswithabang/2013/01/23/when-the-universe-was-twice-as-hot/

NASA Officially Joins ESA's 'Dark Universe' Mission

NASA has joined the European Space Agency's (ESA's) Euclid mission, a space telescope designed to investigate the cosmological mysteries of dark matter and dark energy.

MORE: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/01/130124140757.htm

Biggest dinosaurs had brains the size of tennis balls

"This saurian may have reached 49 feet in length; nonetheless its brain was not in excess of 3 inches," study researcher Fabien Knoll, a paleontologist at Spain's National Museum of Natural Sciences, said in a statement.

MORE: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-205_162-57565625/biggest-dinosaurs-had-brains-the-size-of-tennis-balls/

Dung beetles guided by Milky Way

When dung beetles roll their tiny balls of poop across the sands of South Africa on a moonless night, they look to the glow of our Milky Way galaxy as a navigational aid, researchers report.

MORE: http://cosmiclog.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/01/23/16668013-dung-beetles-guided-by-milky-way?lite

Court rules British Christian has right to wear cross at work

However, the court found that three other British Christians who argued they'd been unfairly dismissed from their jobs had not been subjected to religious discrimination.

They are nurse Shirley Chaplin, who also wanted to wear a cross at work, registrar Lilian Ladele, who declined to register gay civil partnerships, and Gary MacFarlane, a relationship counselor who did not want to give sex therapy to same-sex couples.

MORE: http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/15/world/europe/uk-christian-lawsuit/index.html

Somali Islamists kill French hostage, claiming retribution

(CNN) -- Islamist militants had been saving one last blow to deal to France after its military conducted a bloody, unsuccessful hostage rescue attempt in Somalia Friday.

MORE: http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/16/world/africa/somalia-hostage-dead/index.html

Conflict in Mali town contained ... for now

Fighters linked to al Qaeda have taken over parts of Mali. The French sent in troops to push them out, and the U.S. Air Force is helping to carry the French troops there.

MORE: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18563_162-57565745/conflict-in-mali-town-contained-..-for-now/

See also...

French, Malians seize town from Islamists
http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/18/world/africa/mali-unrest/index.html

Algeria attack changes terror landscape in North Africa

(CNN) -- It was the most ambitious and the deadliest terror attack since the rampage by Pakistani militants through Mumbai five years ago. And it raises the alarming prospect that al Qaeda affiliates and other jihadist outfits could turn parts of northern and western Africa into no-go zones -- places too dangerous for Westerners to work, or even visit.

MORE: http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/22/world/africa/algeria-attack-analysis/index.html?hpt=hp_bn2

See also...

At least 37 hostages killed in Algeria gas plant standoff, prime minister says
http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/21/world/africa/algeria-hostage-crisis/index.html

Dozens of Pakistani bombing victims to be buried after families end public protest

The deadliest blasts were two suicide bombings in a predominantly Shiite neighborhood known as Alamdar Road. The double bombing, described by police as one of the worst attacks on the Shiite minority, killed 85 people. A banned Sunni militant group claimed responsibility.

MORE: http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/14/world/asia/pakistan-blasts-bodies/index.html

See also...

Roadside bomb targets Pakistan military convoy, kills 14 soldiers
http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/13/world/asia/pakistan-soldiers-attacked/index.html

Official: Taliban targeted U.S. troops in Afghan attack

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack in Kapisa province, saying the terror organization was trying to target U.S. troops, said Mehrabuddin Safi, the governor of the eastern province.

MORE: http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/25/world/meast/afghanistan-violence/index.html?hpt=ias_c2

See also...

Taliban attackers storm police office in Afghan capital
http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/21/world/asia/afghanistan-violence/index.html

Soldier killed when insurgents hit Afghan security agency office in Kabul
http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/16/world/asia/afghanistan-violence/index.html

35 killed in Iraq suicide bombing, police say

The uptick in violence has coincided with three weeks of demonstrations in Sunni provinces, including Anbar and Mosul, with protesters demanding that the Shiite-led government stop what they call second-class treatment of Iraq's Sunni community.

MORE: http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/23/world/meast/iraq-bombing/index.html?hpt=hp_bn2

See also...

Car bombs explode across Iraq
http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/17/world/meast/iraq-violence/index.html

Atheist group holds meeting in front of Salem sign

Whoever decided to vandalize the "Don't Believe in God? Join the Club" sign may have done more harm than good.

It screamed religious intolerance, and as a result, interest in the Blue Ridge Coalition of Reason skyrocketed.

MORE: http://www.wdbj7.com/news/wdbj7-atheist-group-holds-meeting-in-front-of-salem-sign-20130112,0,5971551.story

Evasive Action: Is A Marine Base Discriminating Against Atheists?

It has become apparent that some military officials want to use the Armed Forces to proselytize, and that they actively seek to intimidate and exclude those who don't share their religious beliefs.

MORE: https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/evasive-action-is-a-marine-base-discriminating-against-atheists

Picture Imperfect: Ohio School District Defies Request To Remove Portrait Of Jesus

No matter how long the portrait has been on display and no matter how many people want it there, the U.S. Constitution mandates a separation of religion and government.

MORE: https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/picture-imperfect-ohio-school-district-defies-request-to-remove-portrait-of

See also...

Jesus Portrait to Stay at Ohio School Defying Atheist Demands
http://www.christianpost.com/news/jesus-portrait-to-stay-at-ohio-school-defying-atheist-demands-88147/

Hobby Lobby finds way around $1.3-million-a-day Obamacare hit - for now

Peter M. Dobelbower, general counsel for Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. said in a statement released through the Becket Fund that, "Hobby Lobby discovered a way to shift the plan year for its employee health insurance, thus postponing the effective date of the mandate for several months."

MORE: http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2013/01/11/hobby-lobbys-1-3-million-obamacare-loophole/?hpt=hp_t2

Evangelical Christians prepare for 'largest ever grassroots push on immigration'

The group has already released an open letter to Congress and the White House. In it, they the group presses Congress to respect "the God-given dignity of every person" and establish a "path toward legal status and/or citizenship for those who qualify and wish to become permanent residents."

MORE: http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2013/01/12/evangelical-christians-prepare-for-largest-ever-grassroots-push-on-immigration/?hpt=hp_c2

Inaugural Imbroglio: Controversial Pastor Pulls Out Of Presidential Swearing-In

Giglio's selection was criticized because in the mid-1990s he delivered a sermon that was harshly critical of homosexuality, and it now appears that he has pulled out of the inauguration.

MORE: https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/inaugural-imbroglio-controversial-pastor-pulls-out-of-presidential-swearing

See also...

The Changing Zeitgeist on Homosexuality
http://scienceblogs.com/evolutionblog/2013/01/12/the-changing-zeitgeist-on-homosexuality/

Yet...

Lesbian couple: Restaurant owner hands them letter condemning homosexuality
http://www.wcti12.com/news/Lesbian-couple-Restaurant-owner-hands-them-letter-condemning-homosexuality/-/13530444/18086232/-/n0mfvd/-/index.html?hpt=us_bn9

National Cathedral to Hold Same-Sex Weddings

The Washington National Cathedral had been ready to embrace same-sex marriage for some time, though it took a series of recent events and a new leader for the prominent, 106-year-old church to announce Wednesday that it would begin hosting such nuptials.

MORE: http://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/316-20/15502-national-cathedral-to-hold-same-sex-weddings

Creationist flim-flam

That's creationism in a nutshell: fakery and incompetence.

MORE: http://www.skepticblog.org/2013/01/09/creationist-flim-flam/

See also...

Who Knew It Was All So Simple?
http://scienceblogs.com/evolutionblog/2013/01/09/who-knew-it-was-all-so-simple/

What Did Our Ancestors Look Like? Hair and Eye Color Can Be Determined for Ancient Human Remains

A new method of establishing hair and eye colour from modern forensic samples can also be used to identify details from ancient human remains, finds a new study published in BioMed Central's open access journal Investigative Genetics. The HIrisPlex DNA analysis system was able to reconstruct hair and eye colour from teeth up to 800 years old, including the Polish General Wladyslaw Sikorski (1881 to 1943) confirming his blue eyes and blond hair.

MORE: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/01/130113201136.htm

NASA's GALEX Reveals the Largest-Known Spiral Galaxy

Measuring tip-to-tip across its two outsized spiral arms, NGC 6872 spans more than 522,000 light-years, making it more than five times the size of our Milky Way galaxy.

MORE: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/01/130110170823.htm

See also...

A Jumble of Exotic Stars: New VISTA Snap of Star Cluster 47 Tucanae
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/01/130110075400.htm

NASA Rules out Earth Impact in 2036 for Asteroid Apophis
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/01/130111133502.htm

Northern Ireland: Draped in Union flags, protesters march in Belfast

As the protesters passed a Catholic neighborhood, Protestants and Catholics threw bottles at each other.

MORE: http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/12/world/europe/northern-ireland-unrest/index.html?hpt=ieu_c2

More than 300,000 rally against same-sex marriage in Paris

Holding aloft ancient flags and young children, hundreds of thousands of people converged Sunday on the Eiffel Tower to protest the French president's plan to legalize same-sex marriage and thus allow same-sex couples to adopt and conceive children.

MORE: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-202_162-57563729/more-than-300000-rally-against-same-sex-marriage-in-paris/

Cameroon court acquits 2 men imprisoned for 'looking gay'

"The judge who originally sentenced them had stated that the way they dressed, the way they spoke, and the fact that they drank Bailey's Irish Cream proved they were gay," their lawyer, Alice N'Kom, told global gay rights group All Out, which launched a petition demanding the men's release.

MORE: http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/09/world/africa/cameroon-gay-men-freed/index.html

Obasanjo: Nigerian leaders should reach out to Boko Haram

The Islamist militants, who operate chiefly in Nigeria's restive north, have carried out numerous deadly attacks on mosques, churches and businesses and are suspected of having links to al Qaeda.

MORE: http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/08/world/africa/nigeria-obasanjo-militants/index.html

Hardline Islam 'breeding a generation of Egyptian atheists'

We are now all torn between the reality of our religion, and the message coming from the bearded bunch. What are we supposed to tell our kids? Listen to the sheikh, or don’t listen? Go to the mosque, or don’t go? Should we monitor every speech they hear, every imam of every mosque, and pick a suitable rhetoric? Or should we drop this religious education altogether?

MORE: http://www.albawaba.com/editorchoice/egypt-atheist-islam-463134

What's behind the instability in Mali?

The Islamist extremists toppled the tribe and seized control of two-thirds of northern Mali, an area the size of France.

MORE: http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/12/world/africa/mali-q-a/index.html?hpt=iaf_t3

See also...

'Many deaths' as Malians, joined by French, try to beat back Islamist militants
http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/12/world/africa/mali-france/index.html

France determined to 'eradicate' terrorism in Mali, official says
http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/13/world/africa/mali-military-offensive/index.html

Who will win battle for the new Tunisia?

The group behind the protests are the Salafists -- ultra-conservative Sunni Muslims who are becoming an increasingly strident political force across the Arab world in the wake of the Arab Spring.

MORE: http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/11/world/meast/tunisia-salafists-artists-battle/index.html

Pakistan sacks provincial government after dozens killed

The prime minister flew to Quetta on Sunday after other efforts to pacify the protesters failed. Human rights organizations have accused the Pakistani government of not doing enough to protect Shiites targeted by radical Sunni Muslims who believe they are heretics.

MORE: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-202_162-57563720/pakistan-sacks-provincial-government-after-dozens-killed/

Suicide bombers kill at least 5 at meeting of tribal elders in Afghanistan

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the dual attacks and released a higher death toll. Eight tribal elders were killed, said Qari Yousuf Ahmadi, a spokesman for the Islamist militants.

MORE: http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/06/world/asia/afghanistan-violence/index.html

Syrian rebels claim capture of strategic military base

Rebel fighters and militants from various Islamic groups, including the jihadist al-Nusra Front, took part in the offensive, an opposition spokesman said.

MORE: http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/11/world/meast/syria-civil-war/index.html

Iraq attacks kill at least 12

Baghdad, Iraq (CNN) -- Heightened sectarian tensions erupted into violence....

MORE: http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/10/world/meast/iraq-violence/index.html

See also...

Thousands protest in Shiite provinces in southern Iraq
http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/08/world/meast/iraq-demonstrations/index.html

Israeli police clear West Bank protest camp, question dozens

In recent weeks, Israel has signaled its intention to construct settlements in the area. Some international leaders have criticized such a plan, as have Palestinian leaders who say it would slice the West Bank in two, cutting it off from the proposed Palestinian capital of East Jerusalem.

MORE: http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/12/world/meast/west-bank-protest/index.html?hpt=imi_c2

Bob's Notes: Matthew 16

Rebecca Hale Elected as American Humanist Association President

The American Humanist Association (AHA) is pleased to announce the recent election of Rebecca Hale, co-owner of EvolveFISH.com in Colorado Springs, Colorado, as president. In addition to Hale's new role, she will also serve as a member on the AHA board of directors.

MORE: http://www.americanhumanist.org/news/details/2013-01-rebecca-hale-elected-as-american-humanist-associatio

Non-Believers On the Rise in Congress

In any case, the Pew numbers seem to be a sign that the taboo about religious identification is being broken and members of Congress are increasingly comfortable admitting they don't adhere to any particular faith.
 
MORE: http://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/318-66/15410-non-believers-on-the-rise-in-congress

Scriptures Go Under the Knife in A Jefferson Bible for the Twenty-First Century

What Thomas Jefferson did for the Bible, the American Humanist Association did for the world's other major religious texts—in Jefferson's words, separated "the gold from the dross."

A Jefferson Bible for the Twenty-First Century includes Jefferson's famously edited version of Christianity's holy text, but this updated offering also includes similarly edited versions of the Hebrew Bible, the Qur'an, the Bhagavadgîtâ, the Buddhist Sutras, and the Book of Mormon. In addition, selections of the "dross" have been included alongside the "gold" for each.

MORE: http://www.americanhumanist.org/news/details/2013-01-scriptures-go-under-the-knife-in-a-jefferson-bible-f

Constitution Shmonstitution: Indiana Senator Wants Lord's Prayer In Public Schools

Kruse's agenda is clear: make public schools into factories that turn out indoctrinated children. What he doesn't realize is that increasingly fewer Americans agree with him.

Philip Schwadel, a sociologist at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, studied data from 1974-2010 and found that since the mid-1970s, overall support for school-sponsored prayer has fallen sharply. In his soon-to-be published study, Schwadel noted that Roman Catholics and mainline Protestants now support school prayer at much lower rates than they did 35 years ago.

The one group that remains unwavering on official prayer in schools? Evangelical Christians, who support it to the tune of more than 70 percent.

MORE: https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/constitution-shmonstitution-indiana-senator-wants-lord-s-prayer-in-public

See also...

Study: Generational changes cause drop in school-prayer support
http://newsroom.unl.edu/blog/?p=1469

Church can't withhold names in Calif. priest files

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles must release the names of church leaders and pedophile priests identified in thousands of pages of internal documents recounting sexual abuse allegations dating back decades, a judge ruled Monday.

The decision by Superior Court Judge Emilie Elias overturned much of a 2011 order by another judge that would have allowed the archdiocese to black out the names of church higher-ups. Victims, as well as The Associated Press and Los Angeles Times, argued for the names to be public.

MORE: http://news.yahoo.com/church-cant-withhold-names-calif-priest-files-230029218.html

Never Mind!: Emily Litella Joins N.C. Church, Learns About School Prayer

Contrary to popular misunderstanding, the U.S. Supreme Court never "banned prayer in public school." Instead, the justices forbade politicians and school officials to tell students when, where or how to pray (or whether to pray at all). Instruction about religion is the task of parents, not government officials.

MORE: https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/never-mind-emily-litella-joins-nc-church-learns-about-school-prayer

Partisan Pulpits?: House Race In Chicago Brings Candidates To Church

The American people overwhelmingly tell pollsters that they do not want houses of worship to be politicized. And federal law forbids churches, like other tax-exempt nonprofits, to intervene in partisan campaigns.

Yet some misguided clergy keep bending the rules. According to today’s New York Times, candidates for a vacant U.S. House seat in Chicago are targeting churches to win support, and some pastors seem to be misusing their positions to help favored office seekers.

MORE: https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/partisan-pulpits-house-race-in-chicago-brings-candidates-to-church

Choice, Not Compulsion: The Proper Place For God In Schools

After the horrific school shooting in Newtown, Conn., last month, we heard the usual din from the intolerant voices of the Religious Right asserting that the violence happened because God is not allowed in public schools.

MORE: https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/choice-not-compulsion-the-proper-place-for-god-in-schools

Time For A New Hobby?: Craft Company Seeks Right To Make Moral Decisions For Its Employees

What you might not know is that Hobby Lobby considers itself a religious enterprise. Its mission statement lays it right out. The firm's goal is, "Honoring the Lord in all we do by operating the company in a manner consistent with Biblical principles."

This wouldn't be a problem in many cases. But Hobby Lobby has decided that its business plan of glorifying God is in conflict with federal law. And it has decided it has a right not to follow that law.

MORE: https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/time-for-a-new-hobby-craft-company-seeks-right-to-make-moral-decisions-for

Atheist Group Threatens to Sue Ohio School for Jesus Painting

Howard told the local radio station the painting of Jesus is allowed because it was student initiated. The painting was a gift from a group of students to the school in 1947.

MORE: http://stateimpact.npr.org/ohio/2013/01/08/atheist-group-threatens-to-sue-ohio-school-for-jesus-painting/

Gay Calif. Teen's Hopes for Eagle Award Dashed, Despite Support

Ryan Andresen, a gay teen from California who has spent a decade working toward his Eagle Scout award, has had his hopes dashed for the organization's highest honor.

MORE: http://abcnews.go.com/Health/gay-teens-hopes-eagle-award-dashed-support/story?id=18162106

See also...

Local review board urges Boy Scouts to award Eagle rank to gay teen
http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/01/08/16414335-local-review-board-urges-boy-scouts-to-award-eagle-rank-to-gay-teen?lite

Ancient bird had specialized teeth!

In fact, the report mentions that birds have lost their teeth at least 4 times according to fossil records. The traditional theory according to the author, Chiappe, is that teeth are heavy so birds evolved beaks which are lighter.

MORE: http://scienceblogs.com/lifelines/2013/01/08/ancient-bird-had-specialized-teeth/

See also...

We're closer to learning how songbirds make those sounds
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/50403635/ns/technology_and_science-science/

New Telescopes to Give Researchers Glimpse of the Beginning of Time

Fluctuations in space-time, also known as "gravitational waves," are gravitational perturbations that propagate at the speed of light and can penetrate "through" matter, like an x-ray. The gravitational waves are thought to have imprinted the "primordial soup" of matter and photons that later coalesced to become gases, stars and galaxies--all the structures that we now see. The photons left over from the Big Bang will be captured by the telescopes to give scientists a unique view back to the universe's beginning.

MORE: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/01/130108141955.htm

Atheist Church 'Sunday Assembly' Is First Of Its Kind In Britain

According to the Islington Gazette, stand-up comedians Sanderson Jones and Pippa Evans founded the so-called godless church because they wanted a space where non-religious folks could commune and edify one another.

MORE: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/08/atheist-church-sunday-assembly_n_2432911.html

French Muslims join opposition to same-sex marriage law

French Muslims have begun joining a mostly Catholic-led movement against same-sex marriage, widening opposition to the reform that the Socialist-led government is set to write into the law by June.

MORE: http://blogs.reuters.com/faithworld/2013/01/07/french-muslims-join-opposition-to-same-sex-marriage-law/

Analysis: Study shows rise of al Qaeda affiliate in Syria

A jihadist group with links to al Qaeda has become the most effective of the different factions fighting the regime, according to a new analysis, and now has some 5,000 fighters.

--snip--

"The civil war in Syria is a gift from the sky for al-Nusra; they are coasting off its energy," the lead author of the report, Noman Benotman, told CNN.

MORE: http://security.blogs.cnn.com/2013/01/08/analysis-study-shows-rise-of-al-qaeda-affiliate-in-syria/?hpt=wo_c1

Thousands protest in Shiite provinces in southern Iraq

(CNN) -- Thousands of government supporters demonstrated in at least five Shiite provinces in southern Iraq on Tuesday, opposing protests by thousands of people in mainly Sunni provinces that have gone on for more than two weeks.

The demonstrations highlight the country's sectarian tensions.

MORE: http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/08/world/meast/iraq-demonstrations/index.html?hpt=imi_c2

Gunmen attack Nigerian police station, kill 4

Attacks by the Islamist militant group Boko Haram have been reported in the state before, but the group did not immediately claim responsibility for the attack.

MORE: http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/03/world/africa/nigeria-violence/index.html?hpt=iaf_c2