Blasphemy - A Tippling Philosopher

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Blasphemy

A collection of 19 posts

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When a human individual is worshipped, criticism is blasphemy

In the process of turning a person into an unassailable god, we gradually open ourselves and others to overwhelming danger.

Humanists Call for the Release of Mubarak Bala after 365 Days of Detention

Humanists Call for the Release of Mubarak Bala after 365 Days of Detention

This is from the AHA: On the one-year anniversary of the illegal detention of Mubarak Bala, President of the Humanist Association of Nigeria, the American Humanist Association (AHA) joins 89 organizations and concerned individuals across the globe in publishing an open letter addressed to the Governor of Kano State, Abdullahi

Teacher suspended over depiction of Muhammad in Batley Grammar School lesson

This has been pretty newsworthy in the UK and it's great to see Humanists UK stand up for the teacher. We don't want to return to times of blasphemy laws. From Humanists UK: Controversy has erupted after a teacher showed pupils an image or images of

Humanists Celebrate as Congress Denounces Global Blasphemy Laws with Unified Voice

From the AHA: The American Humanist Association (AHA) applauds Congress, as the Senate joined the House in adopting a resolution calling for a global end to blasphemy, heresy, and apostasy laws Saturday evening. Senate Resolution 458, championed by Senator James Lankford (R-OK) and Senator Chris Coons (D-DE), calls upon the

Humanist Witness Testifies at Federal Hearing on Global Blasphemy Laws

From the AHA: At a virtual hearing conducted today by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), Humanists International director of advocacy Elizabeth O’Casey testified to how the United States can effectively work toward the repeal of blasphemy laws around the world within the scope of the

Humanists Applaud House’s Commitment to Ending International Blasphemy Laws

This is from the AHA: In a momentous victory for the rights of humanists, nontheists, and religious minorities around the world, the American Humanist Association (AHA) applauds the U.S. House of Representatives for passing House Resolution 512, which calls for a global end to blasphemy, heresy, and apostasy laws.

Humanist victory! Scotland drops plans to ban insulting religion

Humanist victory! Scotland drops plans to ban insulting religion

From Humanists UK: Scottish Justice Minister Humza Yousaf today announced that the Government will drop sections of the draft Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Bill that would have criminalised insulting religious beliefs. The Bill will now protect ‘antipathy, dislike, ridicule and insult’ of religious beliefs, as part of people’

UK Supermarket Sacks Man for Sharing Comic Sketch Mocking Religion

This is not something you often hear about in the UK and so it has come as a little bit of a surprise to me. If you can't mock religion, then you are ring-fencing a worldview and inoculating it from analysis and criticism. There are certainly some freedom

New Zealand scraps its blasphemy law

New Zealand scraps its blasphemy law

Well done NZ! Quite why any country would have such anachronisms is beyond me. From Humanists UK: New Zealand is set to become the latest country to scrap its blasphemy law, after a Bill on the law passed its third reading in Parliament today. The Bill now simply awaits the

Canada Votes to Repeal Its Blasphemy Law

This is from Humanists UK: Humanists UK has welcomed the passage of a new bill which is set to repeal Canada’s 19th century blasphemy laws. The bill now awaits royal assent, the final (formal) legislative step. Humanists UK, which campaigns against blasphemy laws around the world as part of

All Things Bright and Beautiful

The classic English hymn is part of our cultural heritage. The most awesome Stewart Lee rips into it. Love it: Ahhh, here he is again: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGteih2oElQ And: And another - here is a documentary he did on blasphemy: And on Islam, with his typical

Conservative Crackdown: Egypt Could Outlaw Atheism

Yes, I am sure other Patheos writers have been quicker than me to post about this, but that's what comes from having an insanely busy week. Apologies for being out of the equation. As Newsweek, amongst many other sources, have reported: Lawmakers in Egypt are seriously considering passing

UN Human Rights Council condemns death penalty for blasphemy, apostasy and homosexuality

The following news (taken from Humanists UK) is great, if not a little obvious in my humble opinion. What is particularly galling is the issue of Saudi Arabia, in the context of the UN Human Rights Council (from wiki): In September 2015, Faisal bin Hassan Trad, Saudi Arabia's

Fry's Irish blasphemy investigation dropped; New Zealand prompted to repeal its own law

I am a few days behind because we have had inspectors in at work. Gah. Anyway, according to the British Humanist Association: The police service in the Republic of Ireland has decided to drop its investigation into Stephen Fry, over allegations he blasphemed in an interview on Irish channel RTE

Stephen Fry Being Investigated in Ireland for Blasphemy

It's ridiculous, and blasphemy laws are ridiculous. C'mon Ireland! This is from the BBC: Police in the Republic of Ireland have launched an investigation after a viewer claimed comments made by Stephen Fry on a TV show were blasphemous. Officers are understood to be examining whether

Humanists join forces at the UN to speak out against racism and blasphemy laws in Greece

From the BHA: The British Humanist Association (BHA), in a joint statement with the International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU), European Humanist Federation (EHF), and Humanist Union of Greece (HUG) has spoken out against Greece’s blasphemy laws and the presence of explicitly racist political parties, as part of the

Georgia proposes 'blasphemy bill' to outlaw religious insults

The country not the US State. Worrying, still. Why do blasphemy laws still persist around the world? C'mon, Earth, sort it out! The Guardian reports: Georgia is planning a “blasphemy bill” that will make religious irreverence punishable by law, prompting concerns about freedom of expression in the devoutly

Pakistani couple get death sentences for blasphemy

Being a Christian, or any non-Muslim, in Pakistan is hard. Blasphemy laws restrict any kind of free speech and freethought. Here, the BBC reports on yet another case of backwards thinking. It makes me so sad.

Dutch approve move to scrap blasphemy law

Whilst some countries are moving back to the dark ages with INTRODUCING blasphemy laws (an international one or one in Russia, for frick's sake, for example), the Dutch do it right, as the BBC reports: Dutch authorities have decided to approve a motion abandoning a law under which