On Religion and Sin | #shorts

Richard Dawkins tells us what he thinks.

«The Majority of the Vatican Priests Are Gay» | Sternstunde Religion | SRF Kultur | Reupload

Mar 31, 2020 | It is well known that the Vatican frowns upon men who love men. But that the centre of power of the Roman Catholic Church should at the same time be one of the largest gay communities worldwide was new to many when Frédéric Martel brought this thesis to the world in 2019.

After having published "In the Closet of the Vatican" simultaneously in eight languages, the French author and journalist was invited to countless talk shows, but the Vatican was shrouded in silence.

Whoever felt somehow different - just homosexual - as a young man in the 30s, 40s and 50s of the last century, found an oasis in the Roman Catholic Church, according to Martel. Men living among men, wearing different clothes and singing in a choir, that would have been the salvation for many, which was also accepted by society.

While most of the men Martel spoke to are very old, their world view remains: Homophobic on the outside, homophile on the inside. This led to a dangerous double standard, a culture of silence, which had very unhappily promoted the scandals around the Catholic Church.

Sternstunde Religion vom 29.3.2020


Die deutsche Version von diesem Interview befindet sich hier.

WIKIPEDIA:

Frédéric Martel »

Richard Dawkins Slams Jordan Peterson | #shorts

Richard Dawkins’ plain talk.

God Bless America: How the US Is Obsessed with Religion | ENDEVR Documentary

Jan23, 2024 | Despite being an officially secular country, religion is everywhere in the United States. 70% of Americans are Christians and the majority of them voted for Trump. Evangelicals mobilized in their masses to get Donald Trump elected and they similarly geared up to do the same in the most recent election. Evangelicals have even created their own Bible-themed attractions, boldly rewriting the science books to educate their children. In Kentucky, an actual-size Noah’s ark has been built along with a museum that supports the theory that the universe was created in just six days. In this documentary, we dive into the religious world inside the United States.

The USA is falling into darkness! And whatever happens in the USA, it isn’t long before the rest of the West catches up; so, the rest of the Occident will soon be on the same trajectory.

The version of Christianity of these fundamentalists bears no resemblance to the Christianity I was raised in. I was raised in the Anglican tradition. In Anglicanism, there are plenty of myths and tall stories too; but they are generally either overlooked or considered to be symbolic. They are not taken literally. These fundamentalist Christians in the US, however, are clearly incapable of sifting fact from fiction. Sad! Little wonder the USA is in the mess it is. No wonder these people are hoodwinked by, and taken in by, Trump.

It wouldn’t be so bad if Trump’s re-election just impacted and messed up the States. Alas, it won’t end there. The re-election of Trump is highly likely to mess up the West in toto. Let us all hope that America comes to its senses before that. – © Mark Alexander

Douglas Murray: Religious Double Standards | #shorts

Douglas Murray talks about the madness and hypocrisy in British attitudes to religious tolerance and freedom.

Would We Behave Better without Religion?

Richard Dawkins tells us what he thinks.

Christopher Hitchens: “Religion Is Offensive” | #shorts

Hitch being Hitch.

Christopher Hitchens, Author of "God Is Not Great," on Islamic Dogma | #shorts

One simply must love the late Christopher Hitchens. He lived life on his own terms. That takes courage and character. He drank like a fish, smoked like a trooper, and had no reverence for myth, legend or fairy tales. He was quick to call out bullshit.

On the Extraordinary Idea of Purgatory

Stephen Fry talks about the bullshit many people believe.

Some Food for Thought! The Late Christopher Hitchens: The Best of the Hitchslap

Oct 5, 2010 | Christopher Hitchens at his finest - some of my favorite moments by the writer who has inspired the ideals of skepticism, free inquiry, and rational thought in so many. I believe Hitchslap is now the proper term for the unflinching intellectual prowess displayed in these exchanges.

Christopher Hitchens on the Idiocy of Organized Religions | #religion #christopherhitchens #atheism

Listen to Christopher Hitchens explain the stupidity of organized religion.

US Evangelicals in Freefall: Fewer Accept Core Christian Beliefs

Jun 24, 2023 | Fewer people are "capable of defending biblical perspectives in the public square." Christians pollster George Bana, Director of Research at ACU's Cultural Research Center discloses what his latest findings mean for the church and American society.

"Do You Think All RELIGION Is Equally Bad?" - Interviewer to Richard Dawkins | #shorts

Click here to hear Richard Dawkins’ opinions.

What’s It Like to Be Gay and a Priest? I Feel Like a Second-class Citizen in the Church of England

THE GUARDIAN – OPINION: The church made me answer prurient questions in order to be ordained – and if I were to enter a civil marriage, I’d essentially be sacked

Charlie Bell (right) and his partner. ‘Piotr and I won’t be getting married any time soon. The Church of England doesn’t want us to just yet.’ Photograph: Charlie Bell
In many ways, my partner and I are quite boring and conventional. We may have met through a dating app – very 21st century – but otherwise there’s been nothing particularly scandalous or unusual about how we do things. Quite frankly, most people wouldn’t bat an eyelid.

Except, of course, for the fact that I’m a priest in the Church of England – and that’s where the problems begin. For while the rest of the country seems able to see the clear and unambiguous good that springs from same-sex relationships, the church continues to drag its heels. For years, in fact, it has told us that there’s nothing good at all about our love for one another – that it’s something to be shunned, embarrassed about, even erased. Our love is, ultimately, a problem.

The poverty of such a view has become increasingly obvious to those within the church and without, but the bishops of the C of E have resolutely refused to say anything at all for years. They - including those bishops who are secretly gay – have been cowed into silence by threats from those who oppose same-sex marriage. A few years ago, in 2017, they finally said something – recognising that the church’s record had hardly been positive towards LGBTQ people but coupled with a firm refusal to do anything about it. And the clergy of the C of E told them to get stuffed. » | Charlie Bell * | Friday, January 20, 2023

* Charlie Bell is an Anglican priest in the diocese of Southwark and a Fellow at Girton College, Cambridge

ALSO READ:

Archbishop will not give new prayer blessing for gay couples: The Archbishop of Canterbury will not use proposed new prayers to bless same-sex couples. »

Sam Harris on Whether Religion Really Does Make Everything Worse | The Good Fight with Yascha Mounk

Nov 8, 2022 | Sam Harris is a neuroscientist, philosopher, author, and the host of the Making Sense podcast. He rose to prominence as a member of the “Four Horsemen” of New Atheism, which also included Daniel Dennett, Richard Dawkins, and Christopher Hitchens.

WIKIPEDIA: Yascha Mounk »

England and Wales Now Minority Christian Countries, Census Reveals

THE GUARDIAN: Data shows Leicester and Birmingham have become UK’s first ‘minority majority’ cities in new age of ‘super-diversity’

England and Wales are now minority Christian countries, according to the 2021 census, which also shows that Leicester and Birmingham have become the first UK cities to have “minority majorities”.

The census also reveals a 5.5 million drop in the number of Christians and a 44% rise in the number of people following Islam. It is the first time in a census of England and Wales that less than half of the population have described themselves as “Christian”.

Meanwhile, 37.2% of people – 22.2 million – declared they had “no religion”, the second most common response after Christian.It means that over the past 20 years the proportion of people reporting no religion has soared from 14.8%. » | Robert Booth,, Pamela Duncan and Carmen Aguilar García | Tuesday, November 29, 2022

Less than half of England and Wales population Christian, Census 2021 shows: Fewer than half of people in England and Wales describe themselves as Christian for the first time, the 2021 census has revealed. »

Sam Harris: What I Think about Religion

Oct 23, 2022 | Neuroscientist Sam Harris delivers some of his sharpest remarks on religion.

Islam Unveiled | Religion Documentary | Real Stories

Can Islam ever truly become part of the modern world?

Why is a religion that claims over a billion followers across the globe now seen as the world’s greatest bastion of sexism and misogyny? And is this true?

This major series takes the viewer on a dazzling ride across four continents and fourteen centuries, embarking both on a journey of the heart and a quest of the intellect. It is a quest that reveals surprising truths about women’s lives in the Muslim world today, and traces back to their cultural roots beliefs and practices that to many Westerners seem cruel and archaic.

We Rational Brits Are among the Least Religious in the World

In a global ranking of 65 countries, the UK came sixth from last, with only 30 per cent of the population calling themselves religious
With many thanks to the Daily Mail on Pinterest for this image,
Brits among the least religious in the world: UK comes 59th in poll of 65 countries after only 30% of population say they have a faith: Britain was sixth from last in a list of the world's most religious countries / In Thailand 94 per cent of people deemed themselves religious by contrast / China had the smallest religious community with 61 per cent are atheists / Those under 34 tended to be more religious than other groups, found poll | Click here to read the article from April, 2015.

Auch in Deutschland scheinen die Leute von Religion gar nicht begeistert zu sein:

Austritte aus der katholischen Kirche erreichen Rekordniveau: Noch nie haben so viele Katholiken ihrer Kirche den Rücken gekehrt wie im vergangenen Jahr. 360.000 Katholiken erklärten ihren Austritt. Ihre Entscheidung hat oft mehrere Gründe. »

"I’m a Gay Priest"

Dec 2, 2016 • Americans who identify as LGBT are significantly less likely to be religiously affiliated than those who identify as heterosexual. But for these openly gay religious leaders, coming out didn't mean walking away from their faith. Meet the LGBTQ clergy fighting to change their religions from within.