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By Carol Roper, on January 31st, 2012%
 - Bondage in the Bible
FS’s “Dinner and a Movie” event format is back by popular demand.
Please bring your own dinner to the Norristown Library Community Room on February 21, 2012 to view Bondage and the Bible. The address of the library is 1001 Powell Street, Norristown, Pennsylvania. For information about public transportation please see the following website: http://www.septa.org/stations/rail/norristown.html
The movie will start at 6:00 PM. Attendees are encouraged to arrive between 5:30 and 5:45 PM to socialize and set up their dinner tables. FS will provide bottled water, napkins and paper plates.
Bondage and the Bible is a 60 minute independent film by Eric Harmon. This film includes the critical analysis of the Bible’s endorsement of slavery and examines the inconsistent message in the New Testament, which supports slavery and inequality.
Synopsis
Bondage and the Bible tackles the controversial subject of African Americans who follow the bible as “the word of god” despite glaring passages that support and condone the institution of slavery. The film examines how Old Testament curses and commandments legitimizes slavery and how New Testament scriptures urge slaves to obey even the cruelest of masters. In addition, the film evaluates the psychological damage that ensues when African American people worship iconic images of a white god. Using actual bible scriptures and interviews with people ranging from biblical scholars to ordinary citizens, the film offers a diverse look at how the bible’s support of slavery allowed U.S. slave owners to pass on a religion to African Americans that guaranteed an inferior relationship to all things divine.
View the trailer at: www.filmbaby.com/films/3052
Genres: Documentary // African American Heritage Influences: The History Channel’s Mysteries of the Bible // Jesus Camp
Please RSVP using our Meetup page: http://www.meetup.com/Freethought-Society-Meetup/events/49602002/
or our Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/events/268988663166890/
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By Carol Roper, on January 25th, 2012% The January/February 2012 Freethought News is now available for download or online reading at this link: Jan_Feb_2012_FS_Newsletter1
In this newsletter you will find the following articles:
- Chester County Commissioners Reject the Tree of Knowledge by Margaret Downey
- Chester County Protest, by Glen Loev
- A January Evening With Dr. Lawrence Krauss, by Tracy McPherson
- Evidence that the U. S. is not a “Christian Nation,” by Dom Nozzi
- FS Supports Building Bid, by Margaret Downey
- The Freethought Society’s 2012 Four-Month Activities Calendar
- Review of Christopher Hitchens’ book Hitch 22 by, Ben Ackerley
- Helping Hands Committee by Margaret Downey
- A cartoon by Emily Anthony
- Free Thinkers of Haiti Report on Solar Box Cooker Project
We want our supporters to stay informed at all times. To keep updated about events, meetings and issues, please sign up to the Freethought Society Discussion List, follow us on Facebook, and register as a member of the Freethought Society Meet Up page. Why not make sure to visit and register at all three locations? Links are as follows:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FS-Discussion/
http://www.meetup.com/Freethought-Society-Meetup/
http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Freethought-Society/147128532024347
If the attached newsletter inspires you to become more actively involved with the Freethought Society, please provide us with your contact information including your phone number and mailing address. Special events are being planned in your area so don’t miss an opportunity to participate further. All personal information is confidential and will not be shared with other organizations.
~The Freethought Society News Editorial Staff
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By Carol Roper, on December 29th, 2011%
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Monday January 23, 2012
Free/Open-to-the-Public
The Free Library of Philadelphia- 1901 Vine Street, Philadelphia. Montgomery Auditorium
 Dr. Andrew Newberg. Physician, educator and author Dr. Andrew Newberg will present “God and the Brain.” His presentation will discuss current knowledge about brain processes as they relate to religious and spiritual phenomena. Topics will include religious belief systems, the experience of God, and practices such as prayer and meditation. The implications of this research for both science and religion will also be presented.Dr. Andrew Newberg is Director of Research at the Myrna Brind Center for Integrative Medicine at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital and Medical College. He is also Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of Pennsylvania. He is Board-certified in Internal Medicine and Nuclear Medicine. and is considered a pioneer in the neuroscientific study of religious and spiritual experiences, a field frequently referred to as – neurotheology. His work attempts to better understand the nature of religious and spiritual practices and experiences.Principles of Neurotheology
This work has been compiled into his latest book, Principles of Neurotheology, which reviews the important principles and foundations of neurotheology. Believing that it is important to keep science rigorous and religion religious, he has engaged the topic like few others. He has been fascinated by the implications of this research for the study of the mind, brain, consciousness, morality, theology, and philosophy. He has also been particularly interested in the relationship between the brain, religion, and health. His research has included brain scans of people in prayer, meditation, rituals, and various trance states. He has also performed surveys of people’s spiritual experiences and attitudes. Finally, he has evaluated the relationship between religious and spiritual phenomena and health. This includes a recent study on the effect of meditation on memory.
 - Principles of Neurotheology
In his career, he has also actively pursued neuroimaging research projects on the study of aging and dementia, Parkinson’s disease, depression, and other neurological and psychiatric disorders. He has also researched the neurophysiological correlates of acupuncture, meditation, and alternative therapies, and how brain function is associated with mystical and religious experiences. Dr. Newberg helped develop stress-management programs for the University of Pennsylvania Health Systems and received a Science and Religion Course Award from the Center for Theology and the Natural Sciences for his program entitled “The Biology of Spirituality” in the Department of Religious Studies, University of Pennsylvania. He is currently teaching a course in the Department of Religious Studies entitled, “Science and the Sacred: An Introduction to Neurotheology.”
Dr. Newberg has published over 100 research articles, essays and book chapters, and is the co-author of the best selling books, Why God Won’t Go Away: Brain Science and the Biology of Belief (Ballantine, 2001) and How God Changes Your Brain: Breakthrough Findings from a Leading Neuroscientist (Ballantine, 2009). He has presented his research throughout the world in both cientific and public forums. He appeared on Nightline, 20/20, Good Morning America, ABC’s World News Tonight, National Public Radio, London Talk Radio and over fifteen nationally syndicated radio programs. His work has been featured in Time, Newsweek, the Los Angeles Times, the Washington Post, the Philadelphia Inquirer, and many other newspapers and magazines. An overview of his work can be viewed at on this site. (Biographical information from http://www.andrewnewberg.com)
Please plan to attend this exciting event!
RSVP via Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Freethought-Society/147128532024347#!/events/161130347328416/
RSVP via Meetup: http://www.meetup.com/Freethought-Society-Meetup/events/45901882/ |
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By Carol Roper, on December 24th, 2011% How could the universe come from nothing? It’s a mind-boggling concept to many people. We want to know how existence came to be, what was there before it, what is going to happen to it. And while we’re at it, just what is “nothing” anyhow?
 - Theoretical physicist Lawrence Krauss
Noted physicist Lawrence Krauss, whose research focuses on the beginning and end of the universe, will tell you that science can now answer these questions. Quantum Mechanics – the science of the strange and very small, shows that nothing must always produce something- quantum fluctuations exist within ‘nothing’ and they are unstable- thus it’s nearly inevitable that universe like ours would be made. What does that mean? Come and find out.
Krauss, the author of many books, will discuss his newest book, “A Universe from Nothing”, to be released on January 10, 2011, in which he explains the current state of the art knowledge on these questions. Nearly a million people have watched his provocative You-tube video explaining “nothing” and how “nothing” not only generated the universe, but eliminates any need for a first cause – a supreme being. This book came about because of the overwhelming response to that video.
Very much in demand as a lecturer, a teacher, a physicist because of his ability to clearly convey these complex ideas to the general public, Krauss is a professor in the School of Earth and Space Exploration and the physics department at Arizona State University, and is the inaugural director of the Origins Project.
Whether you already understand this cutting edge science, or just want to understand it, there’s no doubt you’ll learn from this lecture. You’ll have the opportunity to hear and speak with Krauss – to ask your questions and have him answer them, when you attend this program hosted by the Freethought Society and the Philadelphia Ethical Humanist Society at the Ethical Society’s Rittenhouse Square headquarters.
Where: Ethical Humanist Society of Philadelphia
1906 Rittenhouse Square
Philadelphia, PA 19103
Time: 7:00 PM, January 11, 2012
Free and open-to-the-public, with a suggested donation of $5.
Contacts:
Hugh Taft-Morales
(215) 735-3456
www.phillyethics.org/
Margaret Downey
(610) 793-2737
www.FtSociety.org
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By Carol Roper, on December 7th, 2011% The November/December 2011 Freethought News is now available for download or online reading at this link:
http://www.ftsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/November-December-2011-FS-Newsletter-1.pdf
Featured in this issue:
- Freethought Society’s Sponsorship of 2012 Reason Rally
- Tree of Knowledge 2011 Project Reportby Margaret Downey
- The 2011 Holiday Banner Application Banner by Margaret Downey
- Lunching with a Pastorby Vic Wang
- Freedom From Religion Foundation’s Philadelphia Region Billboard Campaign
- The Freethought Society’s 2011/2012 Four-Month Activities Calendar
- Freethinkers of Haiti Report
- Community Service Projects (Jean Therapy, Sole Searching and Book Drive)
- Freethought Society Committee Report (Anti-Discrimination Support Network)
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