Author Archives: Editors

Would Atheist Military Chaplains Actually Give Christians an Upper Hand?

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Billy Hallowell August 7, 2013

Many Christian leaders and conservative politicians have scoffed at the notion of allowing atheist chaplains into the military, arguing that the idea, in itself, is an oxymoron. But one faith leader is speaking out and claiming thatpermitting non-theist chaplains in the ranks would actually be a good thing.

Wallace Henley, senior associate pastor at Second Baptist Church in Houston, Texas, recently wrote an op-ed for The Christian Post saying that, by allowing non-believing chaplains, atheists open themselves up to a scenario and label they may end up regretting.

“Allowing atheist chaplains recognizes atheism as a religion and would make atheists subject to the same legal restrictions they have gleefully placed on every other religion,” the Baptist pastor wrote.

Christian Pastor Makes Surprising Case for Allowing Atheist Military Chaplains: It Could Actually Weaken the Atheists Grip

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If this happens, the tables, at least in Henley’s view, would essentially turn. If secularism is a recognized religion, he argues that it would then be theoretically possible for Christians to pursue lawsuits against atheists, humanists and other non-believers for their refusal to allow invocations at government meetings.

See, in this case, Christians, among others, could argue that atheists are using their faith-based beliefs (or lack thereof) to try and hamper others’ free-exercise. Henley continues, noting that it seems as though some activists want to codify their non-belief into a religious structure:

http://news.yahoo.com/pastor-makes-surprising-case-allowing-atheist-military-chaplains-131059122.html

 

Islamic fundamentalism, Post-modernism and science

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Islamic fundamentalism, Post-modernism and science      

by Awais Masood

The killing of Yemeni-American Imam, Anwar al-Awlaki, in a drone attack has brought to front the significance of Islamist propaganda in cyberspace and its effects on terror recruitment. Hundreds of sermons by Awlaki were available on the internet. He operated a Facebook page, ran a blog and was described as ‘Osama bin Laden of the internet’. His online influence has been linked with more than a dozen terror investigations including the Fort Hood shooting by Major Nidal Hasan and the Times Square bombing attempt by Faisal Shahzad.

The relationship between religious fundamentalism and technology has remained complicated. Religious fundamentalist movements have been widely described as reaction to modernity though the movements are themselves modern in nature. Hence there exists an inherent conflict where these movements reject the underlying notions of rationality, secular and scientific constituting modernity. On the other hand, these movements continue to appropriate modern symbols and technology to further their cause. Historically, fundamentalist movements vehemently opposed natural sciences and technology but that does not hold true anymore. As stated in a paper titled ‘Postmodern Conservatism and Religious Fundamentalism’ by Geoff Boucher, the fundamentalist movements of today harbor a selective, instead of a wholesome, hostility towards natural sciences and try to engage in an understanding of the world that remains compatible with the commercialized science of today encompassing applied sciences and technology. Hence, these movements hold a significant appeal among technical professionals such as engineers, doctor and lawyers. Carrying forward this correlation between technical education and fundamentalism, a 2009 study published in The European Journal of Sociology showed that engineers constitute 20 percent of all Islamist militant organizations, a value remarkably greater than the expected 3.5 percent figure.

 

To read the full article, please click at the hyper-link below:

 

http://secularpakistan.wordpress.com/2011/11/23/islamic-fundamentalism-post-modernism-and-science/

Posted by Noor Salik    Saturday, 08/24/2013

A cleric cut his wife.

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MULTAN: 
A cleric cut his wife into pieces on Wednesday for refusing to wear a veil and sending their children to school, police said.
They said the body was recovered from near their house. They said they found his confession on the body and had also recovered the weapon he had used.
The body has been handed over to the family following a post-mortem examination.
A case has been registered against the confession-killer, who the police said had been missing.
Ahmad Aziz, father of the deceased Farzana Bibi, 36, said that she married Muhammad Sharif, 42, a resident of Bakkhal Bhir in Mumtazabad Colony.
They had three children.
Aziz said that Sharif led prayers at the neighbourhood mosque and also gave Quran lessons at their home. He said Sharif was short-tempered and would often beat up Farzana Bibi. He had been telling her to cover her face when she left the house.
Aziz said Farzana Bibi wore an abaya (gown), but did not want to cover her face.
He said they often quarreled over the matter.