By BlackFreethought ~ O nce I took off the mask and removed the veneer of Christianity during this second deconstruction, the world became a more scary, challenging, and indifferent place. Within this deconstruction 2.0, because one deconstruction wasn't enough to wipe the slate clean, I lost my sense of specialness, my sense of being God's little raindrop, cascading on the earth below. I started to see myself first as one of the many humans who lived and died. I was no longer an actor in a cosmic drama; I was simply me, fated to exist on this pale blue dot in an unremarkable solar system, moving through the universe. Sometimes I feel fear like a child who is instructed by their parents to sleep with the lights off because that's what big kids do. I wasn't ready, but eventually I got used to sleeping with the lights off. Now, having deconstructed a second time, I am finally turning off the light of Christianity, and learning to sleep in the dark unknown of th...

By MTC ~ T he "relationship" Christians have with their deity and wish for others to seek as well, is claimed to be one of pure love, benevolence, and devotion. However, if one pays close attention to the Bible, church teachings, etc., this relationship is exactly like an abusive marriage ("The Church," which is comprised of all Christians, is indeed said to be his bride). "God" demands complete control over the lives of his followers; where they live, what they do for a living, according to the Bible God controls everything in their lives, and if they rebel in even the slightest way, watch out! Christians are instructed to fear their god. In fact, they often avoid doing, saying, or even thinking about things they fear will anger him. I remember that all too well when I was still a believer! One of the main reasons why battered spouses don't leave and file for divorce is because they're too scared to do so. "God" threatens mortals ...

GREENVILLE COUNTY, S.C. ( WHNS/Gray News ) - A former youth pastor in South Carolina has been sentenced to federal prison after appearing in court on Tuesday. Daniel Kellan Mayfield was sentenced to the maximum sentence of 240 months in prison on a federal charge for possessing child pornography. The judge said he must serve 85 percent of his sentence and is also required to register as a sex offender. Officials said 5,344 images of child pornography were found on Mayfield’s phone.

By Dillon Thomas Updated on: November 11, 2025 / 5:45 PM MST / CBS Colorado     F ort Collins, Colorado police have arrested Matthew McGinley, 30, accusing the former worship pastor and teacher of sexual assault of a minor by a person in a position of trust. In police and court records obtained by CBS News Colorado, McGinley is accused of having a sexual relationship with a former student that continued for more than one year. McGinley was a part-time educator at a prominent Northern Colorado Christian school for the 2018-2019 school year, according to the school. According to police, that is when McGinley met the victim in one of the classes he helped teach. The student was younger than 18 when they met. Police reported that McGinley, 24 at the time, and the student began by exchanging flirtatious late-night texts before the relationship progressed to kissing. Police said the two started having sex at the beginning of 2020. It continued through part of 2020 until the v...

From the Oklahoma Attorney General: OKLAHOMA CITY (Oct. 2, 2025) – The founder of a Texas megachurch pleaded guilty today to five counts of lewd or indecent acts with a child stemming from incidents that date back to the 1980s. Robert Preston Morris, 64, appeared in court today in front of Osage County District Special Judge Cindy Pickerill. Morris, who resigned last summer as senior pastor of Gateway Church in Southlake, Texas, was indicted by a Multi-County Grand Jury earlier this year. The abuse began in December 1982 when Morris was a traveling evangelist visiting the family of the victim in Hominy. The victim was 12 years old at the time, and the abuse continued over the next four years. Under the plea agreement, Morris received a 10-year suspended sentence with the first six months to be served in the Osage County Jail. He must register as a sex offender and will be supervised by Texas authorities via interstate compact. Morris was also ordered to pay his costs of incarcerat...

I n this video, Neil deGrasse Tyson revisits a previous statement he made about not believing in God. Astrophysicist/TV Host Tyson expanded on the quote by asking which god of the multitude of "gods" worshipped by various religions. He then states that the reason behind his viewpoint is that he values evidence and he has not seen any that suggest the existence of a higher power. As the interview moves along, Tyson explains why he doesn't consider himself to be agnostic and then outlines the difference between himself and individuals in that category. For more, scroll down and press play.

By Mike Hixenbaugh and Elizabeth Chuck ~ This article is part of “ Pastors and Prey ,” a series investigating sex abuse allegations in the Assemblies of God. A children’s pastor was caught filming girls in a church bathroom in Arkansas. Elders suspended him for a few weeks. In Illinois, a preacher was accused of sexually abusing children. Church leaders sent him to therapy rather than call police. In California, a worship minister went to prison for molesting boys. His congregation threw him a party when he returned. All of these men remained in ministry in the Assemblies of God, the world’s largest Pentecostal denomination. All went on to abuse more children. Since the 1970s, Assemblies of God churches have repeatedly reinstated ministers and volunteer leaders accused of sexual misconduct, returning them to pulpits and youth groups [...] Survivors say they were violated in sanctuaries, at pastors’ homes and in tents on camping trips. Read the entire NBC news article here:...

I t never ceases to amaze me how completely a human mind can be taken over by belief. Once someone decides they have the truth, there’s no reaching them with reason, no appealing to evidence, no possibility of honest dialogue. Their belief isn’t a conclusion they’ve come to — it’s the ground they stand on. To question it feels like questioning existence itself. I see it in my own family. Some of my relatives, though their lives are in varying degrees of disarray, remain absolutely certain that their particular brand of Christianity is the only true faith — and that I, for having rejected it, am destined for hell. Nothing I say, no matter how calm or rational, makes a dent. Their conviction is immune to contradiction; it explains everything and defends itself from all challenges. To them, their faith is reality itself. One relative in particular has merged religion with politics — a heady mix of MAGA-flavored Christian Nationalism . He quotes Jesus while echoing doctrines that have n...

By William Walter Kay BA JD JEREMY Bentham was born in 1748 unto a line of London lawyers. His father amassed a fortune flipping real estate. England’s youngest university grad at 18, Jeremy joined the Bar at 24. His inheritance excusing him from practicing, Bentham wrote legal texts which were well-received in America and France. Jefferson praised Bentham. The French awarded Bentham citizenship and assembled his manuscripts into a comprehensive, readily adopted, national legal code. Pennsylvania, New Hampshire and Virginia borrowed from this code. Bentham’s five-volume Rationale for Judicial Evidence earned marquis shelf-space in judges’ chambers and lawyers’ libraries across French and English speaking worlds. George III disliked Bentham thus thwarted his substantial efforts toward prison reform. Bentham’s overarching goal was a society based upon the principle of “ the greatest good to the greatest number, and subordinate the whole to rational calculations of utility. ” He c...

W hen I first started questioning my faith, I noticed something odd. People didn’t really want to hear why I had doubts. They wanted to classify me. The moment someone steps away from belief, the label comes out: “They were never true believers.” The go-to verse for that is 1 John 2:19 —  “They went out from us, but they were not of us.”  That line has done a lot of heavy lifting over the centuries. It provides a neat theological escape hatch: if someone leaves, it’s not because something might be wrong with the faith. It’s because something was wrong with them. Of course, there are supporting texts — Hebrews 6, Matthew 7, 2 Peter 2 — each offering its own spin on the idea that you can get close to the truth without ever really possessing it. For the faithful, it’s a reassuring narrative. It means their worldview is insulated. No need to wrestle with messy questions about why sincere people lose belief — the Bible already explained it. Looking back, I can see how useful...

L ately, I’ve been asking myself a question that feels both embarrassing and profound: How could I have possibly believed that the claims of Christianity were anything more than absurd? It’s not an accusation against my past self so much as a genuine inquiry. Looking back, I can see there were many powerful and very human reasons why I believed — and why it all felt so convincing at the time. I grew up inside it.   Christianity wasn’t presented to me as an idea to be evaluated; it was simply reality. “Jesus is Lord” wasn’t a proposition — it was a background truth, like “the sky is blue.” I didn’t choose it. I inherited it. It met deep emotional needs.  The faith promised meaning, belonging, and eternal security. When you’re searching for purpose or fearing death, that’s an intoxicating combination. Wanting reassurance isn’t irrational — it’s profoundly human. I trusted the people who taught it.  Parents, pastors, teachers — the people I loved and respected — all af...

I f prophecy forecasting were a sport, it would have the same credibility as the Cleveland Browns winning every Super Bowl from now until eternity. For at least the last century and a half, preachers and “prophecy experts” have been setting dates for the Rapture like overeager cruise directors planning a voyage that never sails. The Latest Bust: September 23, 2025 This year’s big date was September 23 (or 24, depending on your time zone). A South African pastor named Joshua Mhlakela announced that Jesus told him directly this would be the day when believers would be “taken.”[1] TikTok and YouTube lit up with frantic “prophecy updates,” urging Christians to repent quickly or risk being left behind. Then September 23 came. And went. Nothing. Again. Media outlets ran with the post-mortems, some in mockery, others in pity. And just like every other failed prediction, excuses flooded in: the calendar was off, the feast day was misunderstood, or the rapture happened “spiritually.” If ...

I n every Charismatic or Pentecostal congregation I’ve attended, worship was thunderous, prophecy flowed freely, and spiritual experiences were the proof of a “vibrant faith.” These practices were presented as evidence of the ultimate truth. But for some believers, the same practices became fertile ground for religious psychosis—more accurately, psychosis with religious content—where hallucinations and delusions were shaped by faith itself. Psychosis is a medical condition involving a break from reality: hallucinations (such as voices), delusions (fixed false beliefs), and loss of insight. Religion doesn’t directly cause psychosis, but emotionally charged preaching and environments that encourage believers to hear God’s voice or fight unseen demons can worsen vulnerability and delay treatment ( Lloyd, Reid & Kotera, 2021 ). Psychosis with religious themes is not rare. Studies across cultures and diagnoses show that anywhere from 20-60% of deluded patients report religious content ...