“Turn your mind off” says Joel Osteen

I respond to Joel Osteen’s anti-intellectual encouragement for people to ‘turn their minds off’ and embrace faith. Megachurch pastor Joel Osteen frequently advances a prominent anti-intellectual attitude of neglecting reason, argument, and evidence in favor of faith within a philosophically barren sphere of Christianity. On October 2, Osteen wrote, “Faith is not in your head. Faith is […]

Another discussion with Pastor Dan Nichols

I recently spoke with Pastor Dan Nichols whose church, Restored Church in Wilkes-Barre, received national media attention following its display of a billboard reading “I Love Sex” – God. In a recorded audio clip, we speak about the billboard, sex, sexuality, marriage, abortion, politics, marketing Jesus, Christian belief, atheism, philosophy, and much more. Consider also […]

2014 National Day of Prayer protest experience

I recount my experiences protesting the 2014 Circle the Square With Prayer event on Public Square in Wilkes-Barre commemorating the National Day of Prayer. Due to the unprominent and late placement of the Freedom From Religion Foundation ‘Nothing Fails Like Prayer’ banner, this piece recounting my experiences — namely discussions — at the Circle the […]

Afterthoughts on “A Manual For Creating Atheists”

Dr. Peter Boghossian’s new book “A Manual For Creating Atheists” inspired deep reflection concerning the way I present myself when engaging in real-world activism, participating in formal debates, and challenging religious beliefs in face-to-face conversations. I thoroughly enjoyed reading the final copy of Dr. Peter Boghossian’s new book “A Manual for Creating Atheists” which I […]

Video of discussion with Pastor Dan Nichols

Video recordings of my November 3, 2013 discussion with Pastor Dan Nichols concerning religious faith and atheism are now available. Read the original press release for the event here. Listen to the high-quality downloadable and streaming audio version of the discussion here. Watch parts one and two of the discussion below. Part 1: Part 2: […]