Editor: Mark Owen. Published weekly* by Felicity Press Australia. Issue 41 - 30 November 2008
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EDITORIAL Islam strikes again! . . . www.piperpost.net - 30.11.08. Yes, I am going to say what many refuse to say - the religion of Islam is the reason for the latest outrage against humanity at Mumbai. I'll repeat it - religion is to blame, the religion of Islam. For too long we have been told that the terrorists are only using Islam as an excuse, a cloak to hide their own political ends. We have been told that moderate Islamics do not approve of such evil. Of course, they don't, and I am sorry for anyone who bears the name of 'Muslim' today. The title is being sullied time and time again by murderous attacks on ordinary human beings - men, women = and even children - living out their all-too-short lives on earth. But at the core of this evil is the religion of Islam itself. Like all religions it is evil. However much well-meaning people try to gloss over the teachings of the faith, in truth the path to terrorism begins with a fundamental declaration: 'There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is his prophet.' All else flows from that. Islam is an exclusive religion, never mind the nice things said to Christians, Jews and others who are its neighbours, at heart Islam brooks no dissent. All must ultimately recognize Allah and his prophet or they are labelled 'infidel' - fit only to suffer and die. And woe betide any born into the Muslim faith who seek to abrogate that faith. They are - in theory at least - subject to instant death. And there's more. Like many religions, Islam teaches that life doesn't end at physical death, that life transcends death and continues on into the hereafter. The faith teaches that Paradise is the ultimate state into which the departed enter. What if one loses one's life defending or extending the reach of the faith? No matter! Paradise awaits (with a few added benefits for the males). Thus we see the enthusiastic martyr, willing to lose his or her own life to further the faith, in the fond belief they will be ushered into Paradise upon completing their murderous mission. (And what, you ask, about the Muslims who die in attacks like that at Mumbai? Collateral damage would be the answer. And, in any event, as Muslims they too will fly to Paradise.) The whole otherworldly tenor of this religion (and it is not alone in this regard) devalues human life as we know it, detracts from the real glories and achievements of the human mind, the wonders arising from scientific endeavour, and the supreme beauties of art and literature, and lacks that central emotion of the human condition - empathy. And all of this is a part of the massive lie mankind has perpetrated upon itself, the lie of deity, fostered and spread by the priesthood, whether bishop, imam or rabbi. Surely it is time for reasonable humans to think again about whatever faith they embrace. Does it have any basis in reality? Where is the proof of deity?  Creationism teaching being investigated . . . www.piperpost.net - 30.11.08. In an earlier issue we reported that creationism - sometimes masquerading under the guise of so-called 'intelligent design' - is being taught in Christian schools in Australia with official approval. However, the education authorities forbid the teaching of creationism in science classes. Teachers are urged to make it clear to pupils that the subject is not a part of the official curriculum. However. allegations have surfaced that in at least one such school creationism has reared its ugly head in the science curriculum. The Pacific Hills Christian School in the Sydney suburb of Dural has been accused of not following departmental guidelines and is being investigated. However, any such investigation is of doubtful value as the state's Board of Studies has referred the matter to Christian Schools Australia for investigation, hardly a disinterested body in the eyes of the original complainant, Chris Bonnor. Mr Bonnor is a former head of the NSW Secondary Schools Principals Council. The decision to refer the matter to CSA has also been criticized by Greens MP, John Kaye, who has long expressed concern about the issue. Celebrating Charles Darwin . . . www.piperpost.net - 30.11.08. Major events are being planned next year to mark two important milestones in the history of the world - the 150th anniversary of the publication of Darwin's seminal work, On the Origin of Species (24 November 1859) and the 200th anniversary of Darwin's birth (12 February 1809). Darwin's great thesis is a far more important contribution to human progress than any of the 'holy' books peddled as truth by religion. Darwin's work was the result of long and thoughtful study by a brilliant scientist. The writings of the Bible, the Koran and other religious books are fanciful concoctions derived from the nebulous 'visions' of self-appointed prophets and seers. The HISTORY CHANNEL will be running the series The Genius of Charles Darwin during December, 2008. In this series evolutionary biologist and popular science writer Richard Dawkins takes viewers on a journey through the life and work of Charles Darwin. He presents the ultimate guide to Darwin and his revolutionary theory of evolution by natural selection, which Dawkins considers the most important idea ever to occur to a human mind. In this powerful three-part polemical series, Dawkins explains who Charles Darwin was, how he developed his theory, what it is, and why it matters. He reveals how Darwin changed forever the way we see ourselves, the world and our place in it, and hopes to convince us that "evolution is a fact, backed by undeniable evidence". Dawkins retraces Darwin's journey as a scientist. He re-examines the rich evidence of the natural world - iguanas on the Galapagos Islands, giant fossilized sloth in the Americas and even pigeons back home in England - which opened Darwin's eyes to the extraordinary truth that all living things must be related and had evolved from a common ancestor.In AUSTRALIA the series dates are: Tuesday, 9 December at 8.30 pm AEDT/NZDT. Repeated Wednesday, 10 December at 4.30 am AEDT/NZDT, and Wednesday, 10 December at 12.30 pm.News in Brief . . . www.piperpost.net - 30.11.08. SAUDI GIRL BAND. Saudi Arabia has a girl band, the Accolade, but they only perform in secret for fear of upsetting the religious police who maintain control of Saudi morals and manners. But they have produced their first single, Pinocchio, and it has been an underground hit, Young Saudi's have downloaded the song from the band's website. Change may be coming to this gloomy nation. More than 60 percent of the Saudi population is aged under 25 and young people are demanding more freedoms. PILGRIMS ARRIVING IN DROVES FOR HAJJ. Pilgrims have started arriving in al-Makkah (Mecca) for the celebration of the annual Hajj. It is estimated than somewhere between two and three million people will be present this year. A pilgrimage to participate in the Hajj can be a very dangerous thing. In times past hundreds of pilgrims have been abducted and sold into slavery, especially children. And in January 2006 at least 345 pilgrims died in a stampede during the annual festival.  
EGYPTIAN ENLIGHTENMENT SOCIETY.
A group that came to the fore during a UN conference in Egypt in mid-1994. They are working against superstitious notions among fellow-Egyptians. It was founded in by writer Farag Foda, who paid with his life at the hands of fundamentalist murderers in 1991. The group cites typical examples of what they oppose, such as the instruction given by an Islamic cleric to a woman that she could remove her clothes in front of an animal provided it was female but not if it were male! A man was told by a cleric that he could only take drinks using his right hand as his left hand was 'the Devil's hand'. Muslim fundamentalists demand that female trainee medical students should not view male sexual organs and vice-versa. |
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