Once again, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Students Association has invited us to speak at their annual Interfaith Symposium. Click the link at the bottom to see the program.
Admission is free, but please register on their page. There are refreshments afterward, and they use the registrations to determine how much to bring.
Registration: http://www.islamevents.ca/register?e=20130210221957539
21 March 2013 @ 7:00 PM – 10:00 PM
Telus Centre, University of Alberta (Map)
Luke Fevin did a great job representing the SEA on Breakfast Television yesterday morning. The video is up on their website here:
If you want to know all of what Luke wanted to talk about, read on!
From the first SEA book club meeting on January 20, here are the summary notes for those of you who couldn’t make it along.
Chapter 1: A Deeply Religious Non-Believer
Review: Are religious beliefs and views given special privileges and respect? And if so, do they deserve those privileges and that respect?
Discussion points: Should scientists still refer to ‘’God’’ when they don’t actually mean God as the religious know it? What would you say instead? Continue reading »
Next Tuesday at our monthly round table discussion, we’ll have guest speaker Nadine Riopel (The Savvy Do Gooder) to help us figure out how to make sure our time and money have the desired impact. Maybe you feel like December was just one request for donations after another and wish you had a better way to sort out where you should give. Or maybe you are constantly wondering if the money and time you are spending are being used well.
I’d recommend that you check out Nadine’s PechaKutcha talk on “Why Savvy Do Gooders Don’t Listen to 17th Century Religious Zealots”.
A couple of our creative members have teamed up on a Dr. Seuss inspired end of the world poem and artwork. I hope that you enjoy it as much as we have!
http://tesseract.ca/images/Art/JuliesPoem.png
Address by Minister Baird at Religious Liberty Dinner
May 24, 2012 – Washington, D.C.
Check Against Delivery
It is a real pleasure to be part of this year’s Religious Liberty Dinner.
This is a marquee event on the calendar for those who care about human rights and, especially, freedom of religion.
So I would like to thank the organizers and their team for the invitation to be a part of tonight.
I love being here in Washington.
This is a capital city that embodies the hopes and aspirations of a truly great nation—even in times of political gridlock.
The United States, of course, is a country built on the very notion of religious freedom. Continue reading »
I grew up in rural Alberta. The sort of community where my mom once had to sit me down and explain that Catholics were real Christians, and that my friends and their parents were mistaken. But, I haven’t been to church since my early teens.
So visiting Southminster-Steinhauer United Church with four other atheists last Sunday was a bit of a shock to the system. When we arrived, Rev. Charles Bidwell sat down with us to answer questions we had about the church and what to expect. The shock started when he mentioned (within hearing distance of other church members) that he considers himself an atheist Christian. And then went on to explain that within the church, Jesus is considered someone who had some useful things to say, and wasn’t related to God (if there is a god) in any way. I expected that it would be one thing to have that conversation in limited company, but that the gathering (service) and the congregants in general would be more traditionally Christian.
They weren’t. Continue reading »
If there’s one thing the Office of Religious Freedom has done a good job with leading up to its unveiling, it’s not telling us anything meaningful. The trend continues this week with the release of some previously redacted information stating that Muslim panelists were not available for last October’s consultation. Finding four Christians wasn’t a challenge, though.
Right…I have a hard time believing that they couldn’t find anyone at all to speak at the event with a Muslim background. They also must have had trouble finding Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, or (gasp!) secular panelists. Or, maybe it’s exactly what it looks like, and the Harper government is taking a cue from the US equivalent, which has been roundly criticized for primarily promoting Christianity overseas.
Why single out religious freedom? Wouldn’t an office to deal with the protection of freedoms and rights in general be a good idea?
By Jay Gamble
I would like to start by saying that I am not one to join atheist groups. I go about my atheism quietly. Recent events have forced me to be more vocal; and Mr. Luke Fevin’s recent bravery has inspired me to speak out against state-sanctioned religion in Alberta classrooms.
I am intentionally not naming the school board or the school my children attend, because I do not want my children targeted for not being Christian. I live in a very small rural community; my children attend a K-12 school with fewer than 300 students. I do not want my children to be ostracized or bullied for my beliefs (or lack of belief).
Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty dropped a wonderful quote today while discussing anti-bullying legislation:
“But I have a different set of responsibilities. I’m accountable to all faiths, I’m accountable to people of no faith, I’m accountable to all parents.”
It was in reference to the portion of the legislation that would allow student groups to use the term “gay-straight alliance” even if the school is opposed to it. You know, like the publicly funded Catholic school system.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/story/2012/05/29/toronto-students-gay-straight-alliances.html
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