I guess I better say something… :)

Having been absent pretty much all of December, January and most of February, I am definitely pruning material. :)  It’s been a hectic time around here. Homeschooling, writing a book, my grandma passing away, big fat fight with ex-husband over my daughter have taken their toll. But another thing has kept me from writing much here or on my blog (An Atheist Homeschooler). I started feeling tired, annoyed, exhausted by this newly found passion of mine = atheism. While I have been an atheist most of my life, it was only recently (for about the last year) that I have started to voice my opinion, do my research, debate with religious and non-religious folk, and realizing just how difficult this subject is.

I have met a lot of awesome people, who are incredibly supportive and kind… and I have met those, who are hostile and mean, who are closed minded and attack anything and anyone who does not flow with the stream. I have been struggling against the stream, reading books, writing articles, defending my non-belief… and I have done it with so much passion and energy, that I felt drained by the time the holidays came around.

Well, I’m back, quieter maybe, with not as much energy and time… but with the same passion and very much wanting to support TJM with a little blurb here and there. It’s good to be back, people.

Why I don’t give to the Salvation Army this year…

It’s that time of year again. Bell ringers in front of every store. You can’t get past them without the little bell deafening you and feeling a little guilty when you don’t give anything. Most people will fish around for a little change in their pockets to donate it to charity. Me too. “God bless you.” is what I usually hear when I make a donation. I don’t pay much attention to this anymore. So why won’t I donate this year?

Well, I’ve learned a few things. For one, the Salvation Army discriminates against Homosexuals (rescinding same sex partner benefits after quotes from people like AFA president Donald E. Wildom:

“We are absolutely shocked that an evangelical Christian organization would grant health benefits to same-sex partners,” Wildmon said. “Homosexual relationships are not legitimate in God’s eyes, and treating them as if they are by extending the benefits traditionally reserved for married couples is troubling.”

The threat by the AFA (American Families Association) to shift their “financial support from the Salvation Army to ministries that uphold Biblical standards in defining the family.” made it actually very easy for the Salvation Army to rescind their benefits.

And then, have you ever wondered what happens to the money that you donate to the Salvation Army? Well, needless to say a lot of money goes into church services. Yes, they do offer help to homeless people for example… by giving them a place to sleep and food. But not just out of the goodness of their hearts. No, you have attend church services in return. So you better be a Christian, because otherwise you’ll be screwed.

Did you also know that the Salvation Army evicted hundreds of low income women in NYC to sell their buildings for $100.000.000 each? That’s one hundred million dollars!! Not that it was a great life for those women anyway. They were not allowed to have male visitors and were strictly supervised on that.

Of course you can’t just throw out tenants, so the Salvation Army has argued that they are a religious organization and can do whatever they want. Their reason for selling the buildings have been that they are too costly to maintain. This is actually surprising. The Salvation Army is hardly pressed for money. They have received a $1.5 billion bequest from the estate of Joan Kroc… (whose husband founded McDonald’s by the way)… obviously by far the largest donation to charity in American history! Add to that government funding (yes, YOUR tax dollars) and donations from people like you every year, and you get a nice little sum of money to do good (…uhm for those who deserve it… )

The Salvation Army has a history of trying to discriminate based on religion and sexual preferences. They do ask their employees not to do so by signing a statement every year. However they will not hesitate to fire you if they find out that you are not Christian or that you are a Homosexual. Quite a double standard, don’t you think?

As far as my yearly donations are concerned… there are many ways to handle this. Not all charities are religious. I contribute to my community with financial gifts as well as working as a volunteer. If I adopt a family at christmas it doesn’t have to be through the Salvation Army, although I will admit that their Adopt a family program is at least one of those that really does benefit the family (by providing food, clothes and presents at christmas). But then those needy families might just have to attend church services in return for the help….

I agree it’s necessary to do good. There is a lot of poverty on our planet. People who can’t help themselves need our help. So do your homework when it comes to making a donation, and choose wisely. Make sure that it’s not just 10% of your money that goes to the poor, but 90%. And by all means make sure they get this help without having to go to church or convert to Christianity or some such thing.

Religion and Atheism…

…can in fact co-exist, if I say so myself. My recent visit to Germany proved that it is actually possible. Even the most religious person I met did not bombard me with the usual questions that I’ve heard here en masse. None of the “How can you be moral without religion?” “You have to believe in something.” “Don’t you think we must be here for a reason?” I am not sure if it was simply a try to avoid conflict or discretion that forbid them to ask, to discuss who or what has turned me into an Atheist.

Either way, after being very active and passionate here (at home) about Atheism and Religion I found it pleasantly relaxing to just be… to sit back, relax, chat with all kinds of people (parents) of all kinds of faiths, realizing that we all had one thing in common… to raise our children, keep them safe, live happy and in peace and to have friends.

Arriving back in the States and leaving the airport the first thing I saw was a bumper sticker on the car in front of me saying “COEXIST”. How ironic.

Well, it’s good to be back. As much as I enjoyed the food and beer and delicious chocolate, it was about time for me to come home to my own home with not so much food and beer and chocolate. Who would have thought that Germany is the country where I gain weight and the US the one where I lose it.

Whoever is not with me is against me…

George W. Bush? Well, yes. But this sentence is being used by someone else too. Jesus, the son of God himself said it (Matt 12:30) And yes, I can see it clearly all around me. This seems to be a common thing to say among Christianity (yes, I’m pounding on Christians again… I promise someday I’ll pound on someone else). Here’s what I don’t get though. Even among Christians there are gaps as wide as the Grand Canyon. Read more

I guess what I’m trying to say is…

I have a dear friend who is searching. He can’t say he is a Christian but he just can’t quite let go of the thought that there might be a god who made it all happen. Someone had to have their “hands” in this, right? I mean, how could this just happen? We wrote back and forth for a bit, and I thought I’d share my thoughts from my last e-mail with him and the rest of the world too. I’m not claiming to have all the answers, but I’ll still share the thoughts that I find comfort in these days. Read more

Kathy Griffin and Jesus

So Kathy Griffin (famous comedian for those who don’t know her… and she’s also an atheist) receives the Emmy Award and in her little speech says “Suck it, Jesus. This is my God now.” The media is outraged. Fox News this morning had gathered four upset newscasters and other believers discussing this. They were all oh so insulted and angry and made sure we know how inappropriate this remark was. After all, as one of them put it, 85% of Americans are Christians. Where are the clergy? Where is Jesse Jackson? Why does she go unpunished? And what’s worse, why are people in Hollywood and in New York cheering for her??? Read more

An Atheist Homeschooler

“You are a homeschooler? And an atheist???” I have heard this question several times in the last 1.5 years since I started my homeschooling journey with my children. The idea seems absurd. Don’t people homeschool for the lack of religious education and prayer in public schools? Isn’t it “you people” who have banned those things from our public schools? Why, in “God’s” name would you homeschool? It seems I’m breaking into an elite. I’m going somewhere that only Christians should be allowed in. I’m the minority of a minority. Read more