The following is a short interview with Bill Burkland, the author of a soon to be released book entitled " The Misconceived Conception of a Baby Named Jesus ." The book is available for preorder now. W hy did you write The Misconceived Conception of a Baby Named Jesus? I began the book because I wanted to make people laugh, and finished the book because I wanted to make them think. Sometimes humor is the best way to approach controversial or sensitive subjects. What sort of controversial subjects do you touch on in the book? Well, the book essentially challenges the entire Christian origin story. It challenges everything from the prophecies (and prophets) hundreds of years prior to the birth; it challenges the notion of a virgin birth, the role of the Wise Men and shepherds, the absurdity of miracles, and it challenges how Gospel writers like Luke, stitched together their stories. It challenges these stories through parody and satire. Why did you reach out to exChr

By Carl S ~ P eople sincerely believe this crap: In chapter one of their book, their god creates everything, and pronounces this creation "Good."  In chapter 8, he wipes it out.  On top of that, in the very same chapter, at verse 25, he proclaims that never again will he destroy the world by drowning, because... and get this, he concludes after it, that "man's heart is evil from his birth"! Wait one minute. Concluded this. Shouldn't he have known this before he committed genocide, nature-cide (ecocide)? True believers are stupid to believe stories like this.They want it both ways; a loving god who is at the same time, excused for the evils he constantly commits. We've had over two thousand years of this shit. Apologists "explain" why his evils should be tolerated, why evil is good, telling us "You can't understand the mind and wisdom of God."

By Cassandra Brandt ~ I was told from further back than I can remember, that belief in God and a personal relationship with Jesus Christ would save my soul. Not unlike three quarters of the American population, my parents raised me on the Bible and in church. My faith was a huge part of my life which I didn’t know to question until it was so much a part of me I was terrified to let go. I was born belonging to the evangelical Christians whose customs and beliefs were a bit crazy to the outsider or apostate’s eye. As a child I grew up used to seeing respectable adults in their Sunday best flopping around on the floor “slain by the spirit”, jumping and shouting prophecies and praying in “tongues”👅. My first Bible was a red hardcover comic strip Bible with awesome illustrations. I loved how the paper smelled. I read those stories over and over and over. I loved the Old Testament stories about Joshua and the Wall of Jericho, Moses and the plagues; I knew all the New Testament parable

By Webmdave ~ P eople with Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD) display a pervasive pattern of grandiosity, a need for admiration, a lack of empathy, a heightened sense of self-importance, believe they are unique or “special,” and demonstrate an inability to take responsibility for their actions. I have experienced – up close – the abusive behavior these individuals are capable of inflicting on those around them. The biblical God is the ultimate example of these unhealthy traits. He believes the universe exists solely to worship him, and his vision of heaven revolves around constant adoration. Revelation 4:11 : “You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and by Your will they exist and were created.” Narcissists tend to devalue or attack those who threaten their self-image. The God of the Bible displays this tendency by punishing all who stray from His worship and condemning all unbelievers to eternal damnation. Romans 1:18

By Webmdave ~ I grew up in the 1960’s in what I thought was a normal stable family, nicely accessorized with a father who went to work every day (at short-term, low-paying jobs) and a mother who stayed home to keep house. Over time I came to realize my father suffered from a learning disability coupled with a disturbingly explosive temper. Today he might be diagnosed as having lower cognitive and emotional quotients. My mother’s intelligence was at or above average, but her personality was heavily seasoned with many of the symptoms of Narcissistic personality disorder . Although fiercely committed to their marriage vows (divorce was a big taboo for them), the tenuous poverty-level lifestyle was frequently accented by shouting, fighting, and hitting – a routinely colorful attribute for our normal, “stable" family. Early on I opted to cope with the stressful atmosphere by wetting the bed and playing with matches.  At about 11 years old something changed. My grandmother invited

By Webmdave  ~ diversity, equity and inclusion: noun A set of values and related policies and practices focused on establishing a group culture of equitable and inclusive treatment and on attracting and retaining a diverse group of participants, including people who have historically been excluded or discriminated against — Merriam-Webster D iversity, equity and inclusion are among the political clarion calls of our modern culture. I read an article today about how the original Star Trek series received criticism for including no female speaking parts in an episode entitled “ The Devil in the Dark ." In the 60’s, Gene Roddenberry’s Star Trek was experimenting with all kinds of possible futuristic scenarios while promoting going beyond current cultural boundaries, but apparently sometimes fell short. Diversity, equity and inclusion has been on the forefront of the minds in the media, politics and the wider culture for quite some time.  The word diversity can rattle some

By Pinkbunion ~    H ello, guys. It's been 4 years since my first post here, which detailed the start of my deconversion, which was on July 2022. So, now, 2 years on from that post, I'm going to give an update. Currently, I am very happy with where I am right now. I have remained agnostic since that 2022 post. I haven't changed much in being agnostic, except that I always change between being an agnostic atheist or spiritual agnostic on different days. I want to remain agnostic because I just want to learn about different belief systems and religions, take whats good in them and discard the things that aren't true or are not beneficial. 

By Raul ~    T his is my first article ever posting on this site. So, if you are reading this, please don't criticize it too much. Thank you. One main Christian belief is that Jesus conquered death through his resurrection. This however contradicts passages in the bible that state god created death himself. Let's have a look at some of them. Genesis 3:19: In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

by WizenedSage ~    Thanks to Carl S. for the idea. W hen the Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses came to my door, this is what I wish I had said… Men lie. We have all lied; most of us many, many times. In fact, lying among humans is so common that there are currently at least 700 different creator deities worshipped in the world today. TODAY! So, when we come across a wild or outrageous religious claim, shouldn’t we always ask, did someone lie? And isn’t that the most likely, almost certain truth of the matter, EVERY TIME?   

By Carl S ~ I 've known my relative and his family for over 25 years now. I decided to share something with him in an email: "I woke up at 5 a.m. with a very peaceful and comforting thought. I don't know if there's an actual Heaven or Hell (no one does), but it doesn't matter because after I'm dead. there won't be a 'me' to experience either one."  (You can imagine the responses to that.) Later on,  "This particular Carl you think you know, will be dead, and won't experience Hell, Heaven, Paradise, Reincarnation, or any other 'afterlives' ignorant men have created." Once again I was chided with his repetitive – over 25 years – interpretation of Pascal's Wager,  "If I'm wrong, I've lost nothing; if you're wrong, you've lost everything."  (WTF?). I told him, “That's ridiculous.”  I knew all the good he'd done, so I couldn't think he wasted his life if he didn't bet on belie

By Webmdave ~ Animals often strike us as passionate machines -- Eric Hoffer, Reflections on the Human Condition A s scientific advancements unveil the mysteries of the universe, it becomes increasingly evident that everything appears to operate mechanistically. Atoms, molecules, stars, planets, cells, and biological systems are fundamentally mechanical. If the existence of a supernatural, invisible soul within my body is negated, then it is undeniable that I too am a machine. Complex machines, including self-programming ones, remain machines nonetheless. Some individuals may contend that life forms are fundamentally distinct from inanimate objects, despite both being composed of atoms and molecules. However, a closer examination reveals that this distinction is tenuous.      

The Tower of Babel by Pieter Brueghel the Elder By Carl S ~ C hildren are still being taught the Tower of Babel tale about building something so high it would enter God's realm in the sky. For thousands of years it's been a warning: Don't ever go there. Be afraid, don't even think of going there. What's up doc? What if we do? Pictures coming from the James Webb Space Telescope are available for the whole world to see. So why aren't the Christians broadcasting them in their megachurches and singing "How Great Thou Art" to the one they claim created everything? Do you suppose it's because there's no relation between their puny biblical deity and reality? And, oh look! No “Heaven" in the Universe with "many mansions," nor Paradises for Muslims, JW's, or Mormons! No god is in control in the billions of light-year distances. Certainly, not their "God" who cares about the sex lives of humans occupying a pin-prick of i

From a series of stories in the Provo Daily Herald in July and August 1985 warned of satanism in Utah County. By Wertbag ~  T he Satanic Panic was at its peak during the 1980's, where preachers around the world jumped on the bandwagon to claim that Satanic cults existed and were inflicting sexual and physical abuse on people as part of Satanic rituals, and that almost every form of pop culture was Satanic and hence evil. Some of these claims developed into anti-elite or anti-government conspiracy theories that exist to this day, including bizarre groups such as Qanon who claim a group of the world's wealthiest people gather to do child sacrifices, sexual abuse and child pornography. It is thought that the start of the Panic was in large part due to the hugely popular movies The Exorcist (1973), Rosemary's Baby (1968) and The Omen (1976). When people who claimed to be victims of such cults were tested, the images they commonly referred to were scenes from the movies,

By Wertbag ~  W hat is a true Christian? What are you required to believe or practice, and which parts can be skipped while remaining a Christian? The majority of Christians will point to Mormons as being false Christians, and yet they follow the Protestant bible (plus 3 extra books), believe in God, Jesus and the resurrection. Their heresy makes them labelled as false, and yet the core of the religion remains the same. Would God really care that people who are actively looking to have a relationship with Him have been led to believe in extra books? By such logic the Catholic church can declare the Orthodox church heretics, the Protestants can declare the Catholics heretics and the Ethiopian Orthodox church can declare all the other heretics. There are some Christians who say you must be baptised to be a true Christian, but this is not universal and amongst those who do practice it some believe in a splash of holy water while others say it must be full immersion. Some Chris

By Wertbag ~  C ognitive Dissonance is the fascinating ability of humans to hold two beliefs at the same time which are contradictory to each other. This is commonly done by simply never comparing a person's beliefs to each other, each being looked at as a separate subject on its own. Some such contradictory ideas may be held by special pleading, that is saying certain ideas are exempt from universal beliefs that apply to everything else except the claim. Some examples of this include "It is ridiculous to think the universe came from nothing" and "God made the universe from nothing", or "Life cannot come from non-life" and "Adam was created from dirt". In each of these cases a universal unavoidable standard is held which makes scientific claims impossible, while having the belief that the exact thing declared as impossible was done. Perhaps the most obvious version of this is the belief that God is all-loving, that all people are equ

By Wertbag ~  H eaven is classically described as a place of pure happiness, where there is nothing negative ever and you live with the angels for eternity. This does sound very much like a carrot and stick situation, where if you accept the claim, you are rewarded, not just with some benefit but with the greatest thing ever, oh but if you don't agree then you'll suffer the worst thing possible. It's the very extremes of the two views, perfect happiness verse unending torment, that points to it being just the greatest thoughts in each direction that the author could come up with. The problem with trying to propose a place where there is no sadness, is that such emotion is a normal part of being human. We have empathy and care for our fellow humans, but we are expected to believe that we can be in heaven and not care for those cast into hell? Upon arrival in heaven, you find your wife, husband, children, parents or other loved ones didn't make it, so the alternat

By Wertbag ~  W ithin Christianity there is a split in how Jesus is viewed. By far the most popular position is the Trinitarians, who believe that Jesus was God, while the other, the Unitarians, believe that Jesus was the Messiah, the chosen one or the son of God but not God himself. Each group will point to the others as misled and, in some cases, claim that being misled in this way makes them not a true Christian. The Trinitarians will say failing to believe in Jesus's divinity will mean you don't have faith and in the case of faith only salvation, can lead to failing to reach heaven. While the Unitarians will say God said to have no other God's before me, so elevating Jesus to be God's equal is against God's direct laws. Some Trinitarian believers will say Jesus had to be God, as that is the only way his sacrifice is worthy of redeeming the world. The sacrifice of just a man, no matter how pure, is not enough to cover the whole worlds sin, while Unitari

By Wertbag ~  T he simplest version of a God is the deist version, that is an unknown force behind the universe. Such a definition doesn't claim certain features, powers or even a mind, just that there is something beyond what we understand. Such a definition could be a force of nature, or a being, but it says that we don't know from our perspective. While this kind of vague definition is the hardest to disprove, due to its lack of any real claims or clarity, it is also possibly the least important, as any such force would be apathetic to us and if it doesn't interact or care, then its existence is irrelevant to us. So, the focus of apologists and counter apologists is on the claims of interactive, intelligent and supernatural beings who it is claimed have revealed themselves and their wishes to their chosen people. Even once we say we are looking at a being and not just a force of nature, the numerous possible claims and features this being can be said to have makes

By Wertbag ~  S ome religious folks will say their belief is due to them feeling the presence or actions of their particular God in their lives. The immediate problem raised by this claim is that it is universal across competing religions. Christians will say Mormon's are following false teachings, and yet Mormon's have experiences that they attribute to God as well. Muslims, Hindus and Jews all have similar experiences, but each religion believes the others are incorrect. Of course, any such experience is something that only the claimant can experience, and as their experience is not repeatable or testable, it is valueless as evidence for their claim. It can certainly be a powerful motivator of belief, with many people putting personal experiences as the foremost reason they believe. Many, such as William Lane Craig, will say it is more important than any other evidence, and if the bible was shown to be completely wrong, they would still believe based on the witness of

By Wertbag ~  M any apologists will quote several bible verses where it says that God wrote His moral code on our hearts. Verses such as Hebrews 8:10 "This is the covenant I will establish with the people of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people." or Romans 2:14-16  "For when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law. They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them on that day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus" seem to say this is the case, although there are Christians who read this as metaphor rather than fact. The problem with this often-repeated idea that we have morals on our hearts, is th

By Wertbag ~  F irstly, it must be said that Ron Wyatt is a scam artist who lies to make money. Any of his many claims should be considered false until such a time as more reputable sources can double check his work, as every time this has happened Ron has been shown to be wrong or lying. Ron was the one who claimed to have found the remains of Noah's Ark , which when checked by experts was found to be nothing more than an oval rock formation. He claimed to have found chariot wheels at the bottom of the Red Sea, but when checked it turned out they were train wheels (the metal train wheels survived the time under the sea, while wooden chariot wheels would have long rotted away). He also claimed to have found the Ark of the Covenant under the Temple Mount, but mysteriously his camera failed and others checking the same tunnels failed to find any trace of it. The Ark of the Covenant was said to be the golden casket in which the ten commandments were kept. The bible talks of