Thethinkingatheist

Join Seth Andrews as he recaps the best (and worst) of 2016...from the election to entertainment to sports to pop culture, it's the Year in Review.  Enjoy.SUPPORT OUR SPONSOR:  http://www.stamps.com (promo code: sethandrews) 

How do atheists handle religious holidays (and religious families) every year, and how do many atheists mark an occasion with Christ in the title?  This show features the perspectives of our listeners, advice on how skeptics can (if they choose) enjoy the holiday season and navigate the often turbulent waters stirred by fundamentalist families, and a few holiday anecdotes.SUPPORT OUR SPONSOR:  http://www.stamps.com (promo code: sethandrews)

It's surprising to many, but a lot of atheists and non-Christians enjoy Christmas music...even the tunes that talk about angels singing and the Bethlehem star.  We speak about this (supposed) contradiction, and several special guests join host Seth Andrews for a casual round of holiday songs around the hearth.  This show is glad to welcome:The Fab Four (The Beatles Tribute Band) http://ww.thefabfour.comJonny Miller  http://www.jonnymiller.orgShelley Segal  http://www.shelleysegal.comJames Covenant: Captain Picard “Make It So  https://youtu.be/oiSn2JuDQScTrev Fury https://www.facebook.com/TrevFuryOfficialHeather Henderson http://hhenderson.com/HP Lovecraft Historical Society  https://store.hplhs.org/products/a-very-scary-solsticeTim Minchin “White Wine in the Sun” https://www.amazon.com/White-Wine-in-the-Sun/dp/B00AHI77UG/SUPPORT OUR SHOW SPONSOR:  http://www.thegreatcourses.com/seth

The original U.S. Pledge of Allegiance calls the USA, "one nation...indivisible."  Yet it remains a nation splintered and divided, with many of those divisions fueled by religious ideas.  This broadcast welcomes several special guests to talk about America, the rise of secularism, the influence of the Religious Right, and the future of a country that seems unable to agree about anything.Our guests appearing throughout the broadcast:Amanda Knief: National Legal and Public Policy Director for American Atheists, and author of "The Citizen Lobbyist: A How-to Manual for Making Your Voice Heard in Government."Matthew De Dora: Director of Office of Public Policy for the Center For InquiryMatthew Bulger: American Humanist AssociationJustin Scott: Director of Eastern Iowa AtheistsRebecca Markert: Managing Staff Attorney for the Freedom From Religion FoundationLarry Decker: Executive Director for the Secular Coalition for AmericaHerb Silverman: President of the Secular Coalition for AmericaSarah Levin:  Senior Legislat

The hosts of God Awful Movies join Seth Andrews for a review of Ray Comfort's new film, "The Atheist Delusion."  They watched the movie...so you don't have to.  Enjoy!God Awful Movies:  https://www.patreon.com/GodAwfulVIDEO of this podcast:  https://youtu.be/a62l6jGHAiU     

This very special 300th broadcast was recorded in Dallas, Texas on November 19th in front of a live audience at the DoubleTree by Hilton Dallas-Richardson.  Special guests include:Matt Dillahunty:  https://www.youtube.com/user/SansDeitySarah Haider of Ex-Muslims of North America:  http://www.exmna.orgDavid Smalley of Dogma Debate: http://dogmadebate.comAron Ra:  https://www.youtube.com/user/AronRaRecording artist Shelley Segal:  http://www.shelleysegal.comVIDEO of this broadcast here: https://youtu.be/U6ViKFHOC-I

In the spring of 2016, Seth Andrews received a strange letter in the mail...a letter which has roots dating back over three decades.  In September of 2016, he told his entertaining story about "The Mystery Letter" to a live audience in Riverside, California.  This is the audio of that presentation.VIDEO of the speech:  https://youtu.be/xWovupLjz7wSUPPORT OUR SPONSOR:  http://www.casper.com/sethandrews (promo code: sethandrews)

If you enjoy audiobooks, and if you enjoy didactic fiction, you'll like this show.Author Lee Burvine speaks with host Seth Andrews about his sci-fi novel with religious (some would say sacreligious) themes, and Seth plays the first five chapters of the audiobook - read by Seth Andrews in their entirety - on this broadcast.THE KAFIR PROJECT WEBSITE:  http://www.kafirproject.com/Amazon/Audible link for purchase:  http://www.audible.com/pd/Mysteries-Thrillers/The-Kafir-Project-Audiobook/B01M7SRX8D/ref=a_search_c4_1_1_srTtl?qid=1478011395&sr=1-1

It's an annual Halloween tradition, as we gather around the virtual campfire, suspend our disbelief in ghosts and spirits, and enjoy some delightful frights together.  Seth Andrews shares various ghost stories, and once again, he finishes the broadcast with an original production that will (hopefully) provide some October thrills and chills.Enjoy!SUPPORT OUR SPONSOR.  Your first month free!   http://www.thegreatcoursesplus.com/sethandrewsEd Suominen's blog:  http://blog.edsuom.com/Written version of "This is my Body:"  http://tellectual.com/TBT-This-is-my-Body.html 

SUPPORT OUR SPONSOR.  Your first month free!   http://www.thegreatcoursesplus.com/sethandrewsHow do we separate "nutrition" from "woo-trition?"  This show is about the science (and pseudoscience) of food.  We also spend time on nutrition celebrity "The Food Babe," Vani Hari, a best-selling author and activist named by Time Magazine as one of the 30 most influential people on the internet, despite the fact that she has no degree or expertise in the field of health and nutrition.Joining our discussion are actual health and science educators:Yvette d'Entremont (also known as SciBabe), with a B.S. in chemistry and an MSc in forensic science.  Yvette is a public critic of Vani Hari and a science educator.  http://www.scibabe.comMelissa Dobbins MS, CDE, RDN (Registered Dietitian Nutritionist).  www.SoundBitesRD.comLeah McGrath RDN  @LeahMcGrathRDDr. Steven Novella, clinical neurologist and assistant professor at Yale University School of Medicine.  Dr. Novella is a proponent of scientific skepticism and a vocal cri

SUPPORT OUR SPONSOR.  Your first month free!   http://www.thegreatcoursesplus.com/sethandrewsIs Buddhism a religion?  A philosophy?  Both?  Something else?  Many Buddhist organizations - physical and online - promote it as a way of "finding peace within oneself.  What about atheists who are Buddhists?  Is this a spiritual journey, or a method for framing a physical one?LINKS:David G. McAfee on Buddhism:  https://davidgmcafee.wordpress.com/2010/12/01/buddhisms-lived-and-portrayed-traditionsStephen Batchelor:  http://www.stephenbatchelor.orgNo Religion Required podcast:   https://noreligionrequired.com

SUPPORT OUR SPONSOR:  http://www.casper.com/sethandrews  ($50 off any mattress purchase with promo code seth andrews)Aron Ra has a new book based on his popular YouTube video series, "Foundational Falsehoods of Creationism."  We talk to Aron about these falsehoods, and the new book.VIDEO of this discussion:  https://youtu.be/9bToIwtUQCAAmazon link for FFoC book:  https://www.amazon.com/Foundational-Falsehoods-Creationism-Aron-Ra/dp/1634310780The YouTube video series:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KnJX68ELbAY&list=PL126AFB53A6F002CC

SUPPORT OUR SPONSOR.  Your first month free!   http://www.thegreatcoursesplus.com/sethandrewsSummer has come and gone, but for many of us, our memories of summer camp remain fresh in our minds, partially because those camps were more interested in Christ than they were in campfires, swimming holes, nature hikes, team sports, friendships and fun.In this broadcast, we share some stories from our listeners, highlighting their own "Jesus Camp"-esque experiences, and we highlight Camp Quest, a secular summer camp which is providing a welcoming, woo-free alternative to the church-run (and church-funded) religious camps that sell camp...but deliver church.Help us support a secular solution:  Camp Quest.  Our goal is $15,000 raised by October 15, 2016.  Donate at http://www.campquest.org/donate

SUPPORT OUR SPONSOR.  Your first month free!   http://www.thegreatcoursesplus.com/sethandrewsJohn C. Wathey is a computational biologist whose research interests include evolutionary algorithms, protein folding, and the biology of nervous systems. From 1991 to 1995, he was a senior applications scientist at Biosym Technologies (now named Biovia), a company that develops molecular modeling software for the pharmaceutical industry. In 1996, he founded his own business, Wathey Research, and since that time, most of his scientific research has been funded by grants from the National Institutes of Health. John (who goes by "Jack") has written a new book titled, "The Illusion of God's Presence: The Biological Origins of Spiritual Longing."  In this broadcast, Seth andrews speaks with the author about humankind's (evolved?) tendency to seek the supernatural in a natural world.John Wathey's website:  http://www.watheyresearch.com

SUPPORT OUR SPONSOR.  Your first month free!   http://www.thegreatcoursesplus.com/sethandrewsWhat happens when people with conflicting views about God, religion and spirituality fall in love and decide to share life together?  This broadcast features the stories of those who are either married or life partners, and who have differing faith traditions and beliefs (or none).  Their successes and failures.  The challenges of being divided on a critical (or not so critical?) issue.  And the meeting of two very different viewpoints within the same - and very small -space.Does love conquer all?  We discuss.  Plus, Dale McGowan, author of "In Faith and in Doubt," joins us to cap the show with some notes about his research on interfaith couples

This isn't a podcast, per se.  It's a short bonus clip highlighting a couple of interesting things happening in the freethought movement:  a film in production which links Batman to Jesus, and an October 2016 debate between Jesus historicist Bart Ehrman and Jesus mythicist Robert M. Price.Seth Andrews takes a few minutes to speak with Jozef Richards and Rob Moore about the projects.LINKS:The Ehrman/Price debate:  https://www.eventbrite.com/e/mythinformation-conference-iii-feat-bart-d-ehrmandr-robert-price-debate-tickets-19701931006Mythicist Milwaukee:  http://www.mythicistmilwaukee.comBatman & Jesus website: http://www.spadeheartclub.com/batmanjesusBatman & Jesus trailer:  https://youtu.be/cnS8FjMQx0k 

SUPPORT OUR SPONSOR:  http://polarisfinancialplanning.com/polaris-blog/the-phil-ferguson-show-podcast/National Public Radio has declared that it is nixing the comments sections on its website.  This decision has resulted in a lot of discussion about the merits of comments sections, the nature of online discourse, and NPR's responsibility to the public.  We discuss.We also speak with Sarah Haider of Ex-Mulims of North America regarding France's (now suspended) Burkini ban, and we finish the show with a reading from Chris Matheson's humor book, "The Story of God."_____NPR article on its comments section decision:  http://www.npr.org/sections/ombudsman/2016/08/17/489516952/npr-website-to-get-rid-of-commentsSarah Haider's Heat Street article "Repressive Burkini Bans Will Do More Harm Than Good:"  https://heatst.com/culture-wars/repressive-burkini-bans-will-do-more-harm-than-goodDavid Smalley "What's Killing the Atheist Movement:"  http://www.patheos.com/blogs/dogmadebate/2016/08/whats-killing-the-atheist-movement

An Oklahoma children's home happily accepted a $100 donation (given by Matt Wilbourne, a Muskogee resident), until it realized that the money was given in the name of the Muskogee Atheist Community.  The Murrow Indian Children's Home is managed and funded by the American Baptist Churches Association, and they apparently don't wish to associate with an atheist financial gift.  So they attempted to return the gift.  In a strange turn of events, this story has made national news, brought many atheists and Christians together, and propelled a GoFundMe page into the $10,000+ range.In this short bonus podcast, Seth Andrews speaks with Matt Wilbourne about the gift, the children, the money, and what happens next.DONATIONS VIA GOFUNDME AT:  https://www.gofundme.com/2zc57tpg

Jake and Hugo host the weekly podcast, "The Bible Reloaded," an irreverent show (hosted by atheists) which examines the Bible, lampoons Bible-based propaganda produced by companies like Chick Tracts, and reviews various religious films (like "God's Not Dead").Last week, the TBR hosts announced that they were suing a Christian film company owned by the Christiano Brothers (Christianfilms.com) over the filing of false DMCA claims in regard to TBR's reviews of some of their movies.  If you're unsure what any of this means, don't worry.  Jake and Hugo join Seth Andrews to talk about the lawsuit, the players, and the very real phenomenon where organizations use bogus copyright claims to silence the voices of (and potentially shut down the pages of) their critics.If you wish to support the lawsuit, click:  https://www.gofundme.com/tbrdefensefund

This broadcast is about the 2016 Olympic Games, but it's also a series of observations (ok, rants) by Seth Andrews on athletic God-speak, genuflection, glory, and the notion that Jesus cares who wins the gold medal.