By Larry Spencer ~ T here was a very upsetting story on CNN.com a couple of weeks ago. What disturbs me most is that few people seem to have noticed the story and even fewer apprehended its horror. It involves decades of torture and ultimately murder, all at the alleged behest of one of the most revered father-figures in the world. This personage has many sons (the exact number is the subject of intense argument) but the story concerns just three of them: Paul, Peter and Baptiste. According to the official records, Baptiste was the youngest, although one of the odd things about this family is that each son insists that he is the first-born. For years, Paul and Peter picked on Baptiste. They would put him down and leave him out, but that’s normal in most families. What was not normal were the tortures. For example, on more than one occasion, the two older boys tied Baptiste so he could not move, lit a bonfire under his bare feet and kept him there until he could not cry out any...

By Larry Spencer ~ F ive years ago, my son was in Basic Training to become a Marine. A drill sergeant bellowed at his company: "DO YOU KNOW WHY A MARINE IS ALWAYS HAPPY?" "Sir, no SIR!" they shouted in unison. "BECAUSE IT COULD ALWAYS BE 20 @!#%ING TIMES WORSE!!" At the same time, a thousand miles away, the Drill Sergeant of Reality was starting to shout some sense into me. Ultimately, I would gain my own unshakable reason to be happy. Like my son, I had to endure a long period of tear-down before I was mentally equipped to stand straight and face the world. I had to leave a comfortable, 40-year relationship with God and step into the unknown of freethought. As a Christian, I could not conceive of joy and purpose apart from God. Unexpectedly, as a freethinker I find my joy in living is much greater than it was as a Christian. I'd like to tell you about just one facet of that joy. It's the aspect to which I always return when I fe...

By Larry Spencer -- R ecently, I was at my former church to pick up one of my daughters. One of the members engaged me on the way in by saying, "I haven't seen you in a long time! I've been praying for you!" I thanked her and continued with my errand. Image by may the circle remain unbroken via Flickr This woman, whom I will call Polly, is a very good person, and has been a faithful friend of our family. She meant her remark in the warmest, most loving way. Nevertheless, it irritated me a little. I mean, had she ever asked me what she should pray for on my behalf? Did she know why I had left the faith? Had she made a reasonable effort to understand my situation? No, no and no. Suppose I were to visit a psychiatrist for the first time and he were to say as soon as I walked in the door, "I know what's wrong with you. You made some very bad choices recently, so of course you're depressed." I would respond, "How can you say that? You d...