Unity in Diversity
Polycarp of Smyrna Former Canadian Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson, or LBP – not to be confused with U.S. President LBJ, dominant Japanese political party the LDP, or women’s wardrobe…
religion
New column day
Here, on Justin Trudeau’s remarkable demand that Stephen Harper set up a federal shun registry to make life easier for Trudeau politically. For further reading…– Trudeau’s Question Period interview is…
Much Ado About Religious Accommodation
Much is being made of a decision by Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) managers at Toronto's Pearson airport to allow a small group of Hindu priests to avoid screening by…
Much Ado About Religious Accommodation
Much is being made of a decision by Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) managers at Toronto’s Pearson airport to allow a small group of Hindu priests to avoid screening by…
Much Ado About Religious Accommodation
Much is being made of a decision by Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) managers at Toronto’s Pearson airport to allow a small group of Hindu priests to avoid screening by…
Confusing Freedom With Imposition
Canada’s “Association For Reformed Political Action” came to my attention this past week. Just from the name, you can tell that this is one of the groups that is seeking…
World Council of Churches Endorses Fossil Fuel Divestment
The fellowship of over 300 churches representing some 590 million people in 150 countries, this week endorsed fossil fuel divestment. The post World Council of Churches Endorses Fossil Fuel Divestment…
Intelligent Design: money and PR instead of science
The book Only a Theory: Evolution and the Battle for American’s Soul by Kenneth R. Miller mentions this organization – Discovery Institute – which has a 4 million a year…
UK PM claims Britain is a Christian country—it ain’t
British Prime Minister David Cameron has put the cat among the pigeons claiming, perhaps unduly influenced by the Easter season, that Britain is a Christian country. In fact, he suggested…
homeschooling, both religious and secular, and the need for accountability
In most settings I interact with people there is a presumption that a person will keep quiet about his or her religion, and not assume to know what religion the…
Religion as a dirty word
Any headline in the form of a question can be dismissed with the simplest answer (which is also typically no). Case in point, a Victoria Times-Columnist blog asks “Has religion…
Lucretius and the Renaissance
It’s fairly clear, even after reading only a few verses, why Lucretius’s didactic poem, On the Nature of Things – De Rerum Natura – made such an impact on thought,…
Feb. 12: Happy Darwin Day
February 12 is international Darwin Day, the day when we collectively celebrate science and reason. And, of course, we recognize Charles Darwin’s birthday: February 12, 1809 (the same birthdate as…
Back from Happy Hawaii
Synchronized phoning, coming soon to a summer Olympics near you… Trivia note: Swedish supergroup Abba’s “Why did it have to be me” was originally titled (and lyricized) as “Happy Hawaii”.…
The losers of Superbowl XLVIII will be…
Religious moderates. Here’s my reasoning. After the game, someone on the winning team, exulting ecstatically, will say “God was on our side” or words to that effect. It’s as sure…
Further to York University’s Discrimination Issues…
If you haven’t heard, a York University prof denied a student’s request to work in all male groups for religious reasons. York’s Centre for Human Rights suggested the student should…
Religious persecution on the rise
The Pew Research Center recently published a study of religious persecution over the period 2007-12 and the results aren’t pretty. Of 198 countries and territories included in the study, 29…
The Quebec Charter and the Religion that Kills
I think I can safely say that in the icy heart of this Harperland winter, just about the last thing I want to think about, talk about, or write about…
What Christmas Means to Me. Again.
I wrote this post a few years ago, after somebody questioned how an atheist like me, could celebrate Christmas. And I've run it every year since then on this day,…
Remember the reason for the season: It’s time to put Krampus back into Christmas
Jiggers, look busy, it’s Krampus! And why is this mom giving him the thumbs up, I wonder? Below: Santa Claus, the God of Coca-Cola; Che Guevara; and Jesus Christ. Never…