THOUSAND OAKS, CA — Shortly after receiving a prison sentence Tuesday for sexually abusing a girl at church events and on church school grounds in 1988 and 1989, a former Thousand Oaks Baptist Church pastor wobbled inside an inmate holding cage and collapsed. William Alan Malgren, who had just been sentenced to six years and four months in prison by Ventura County Superior Court Judge Bruce Clark, appeared to have fainted. "Are you OK? Are you OK?" a bailiff asked him as other bailiffs called for medical help. He was later revived. Prosecutor Maeve Fox wasn't too sympathetic about a man who, she said, destroyed a girl's life. "It is such a breach of trust, and it kind of rocks the foundation of everything we have been taught to believe in, which is that those kind of people are supposed to protect your children," Fox said. Outside the courtroom, Malgren's lawyer, Lawrence Young, tried to put a positive spin on the sentence, noting that the judge could ...

FRESNO, Calif.- A pastor was ordered to trial on child molestation and rape charges after two girls testified he had abused them for years, allegedly raping one after she became pregnant. A Fresno County Superior Court Judge ruled Tuesday that there was enough evidence to try Pastor Charles Dickerson, 36, on several counts of rape and lewd and lascivious acts with a minor. Dickerson, pastor of Pearly Grove Baptist Church in Fresno , was arrested last year. He has been a community leader who has spoken out against street violence and encouraged people to support black-owned businesses. Monday, the pastor's wife, Jeneene Dickerson, testified that Charles Dickerson had become physically abusive but that she never reported it to police. The girls, whose relationship to Charles Dickerson was not revealed, were coached by his estranged wife, who has a "vendetta," said defense lawyer Glenn LoStracco. link

A former self-described youth pastor pleaded no contest to 48 charges related to child pornography. Paul Gagnon, 51, of Flint, Michigan, known to many as "Pastor Paul," faces an April 26 sentencing before Genesee Circuit Judge Archie L. Hayman. "What Mr. Gagnon perpetrated on these children is deplorable," said Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton, who also had a warning for others who might become involved in child porn. "The message today is that if you chose to prey on children, you will be held accountable for your actions," he said. Gagnon was allowed to plead no contest because of potential civil liability from victims. In all, he pleaded no contest to 36 counts carrying up to 20 years in prison, four 7-year felonies, seven 4-year felonies and one 2-year felony. The charges are for eavesdropping, using a computer to commit a crime, manufacturing and possessing child porn, and child sexually abusive activity. At the least, Gagnon faces up to 20 year...

http://www.answersingenesis.org/museum/ Creation "Science" Is the Christian Right's Trojan Horse Against Reason by Chris Hedges "Before they seize power and establish a world according to their doctrines, totalitarian movements conjure up a lying world of consistency which is more adequate to the needs of the human mind than reality itself; in which, through sheer imagination, uprooted masses can feel at home and are spared the never-ending shocks which real life and real experiences deal to human beings and their expectations. The force possessed by totalitarian propaganda -- before the movements have the power to drop iron curtains to prevent anyone's disturbing, by the slightest reality, the gruesome quiet of an entirely imaginary world--lies in its ability to shut the masses off from the real world." -- Hannah Arendt, "The Origins of Totalitarianism" In the middle of the lobby of the 50,000-square-foot Creation Museum in Petersburg, Ky., a...

ATHENS, Greece (AP) – A clutch of modern pagans honored Zeus at a 1,800-year-old temple in the heart of Athens in January – the first known ceremony of its kind held there since the ancient Greek religion was outlawed by the Roman empire in the late 4th century. Watched by curious onlookers, about 20 worshippers gathered next to the ruins of the temple for a celebration organized by Ellinais, a year-old Athens-based group that is campaigning to revive old religious practices from the era when Greece was a fount of education and philosophy. The group ignored a ban by the Culture Ministry, which declared the site off limits to any kind of organized activity to protect the monument. But participants did not try to enter the temple itself, which is closed to everyone, and no officials sought to stop the ceremony. Dressed in ancient costumes, worshippers standing near the temple’s imposing Corinthian columns recited hymns calling on the Olympian Zeus, “King of the gods and the mover of thin...

Salman Rushdie, others honored by the Humanist Chaplaincy at Harvard Sent in by Tom Humanist Chaplaincy Intern I wanted to contact you about a major event in the world of atheism that is occurring at Harvard this April. The Humanist Chaplaincy is hosting a once-in-a-lifetime gala to celebrate its 30th anniversary. I am very excited about attending, as are the majority of big names in atheism, humanism, secularism and the like (Salmon Rushdie, E.O. Wilson, Ned Lamont to name a few). I've included part of the conference press release. Also, please check out the thenewhumanism.org for a great overview. We would love to see word spread about the conference, and would appreciate any action on your part, especially with your blog. CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — A group of renowned Humanists, atheists and agnostics will gather at Harvard in April, to take on an unlikely opponent: atheist "fundamentalists." The Humanist Chaplaincy at Harvard has long been among the most distinct instit...

"I flipped the pancake, looked down and then called for my finance. I get chills when I think about it." -- Amy Clark, pancake cook Amy Clark of Conneaut, Ohio , can whip up one heavenly breakfast. On Sunday morning, Clark was at her griddle preparing a batch of pancakes when one of the tasty concoctions caught her eye. She stared at the pancake -- and it stared back. As the pancake cooked, an image began taking shape. The outline of a man popped forth -- a man with a dark beard. "Everyone I show it to thinks it's the face of Jesus," Clark said. Clark, 25, was shocked to see a religious figure in her breakfast food. "I flipped the pancake, looked down and then called for my fiancé," she said. "I get chills when I think about it." Photos taken of the pious pancake were circulated among friends and co-workers for their opinions. Nearly everyone agrees with Clark's assessment. "99.9 percent of them think it looks like Jesus," Clark...

SÃO PAULO : Only a few months ago, Estevam and Sônia Hernandes were on television preaching a gospel of material success and living a life to match. But that was before they were arrested in Miami in January and charged with illegally smuggling cash into the United States, including $9,000 concealed in a Bible. All told, the U.S. authorities seized $56,467 that the couple and other family members had hidden on their bodies and in luggage, according to the U.S. indictment. The Brazilian authorities, who have charged the couple with money laundering and fraud, are seeking their extradition. Because the Hernandeses are prominent and controversial in Brazil, their travails have focused new attention, not just on their own church, but also on the growing wealth and power of the religious movement they are part of, the fastest-growing in Brazil: Pentecostalism, many of whose fundamentalist Protestant denominations stress speaking in tongues or other visible manifestations of the Holy Spirit...

The American Humanist Association is honoring California Congressman Pete Stark because he's an atheist. The group put an ad in the Washington Post congratulating Stark. The California Democrat tells The Associated Press that he's "a Unitarian who does not believe in a Supreme Being." Unitarian Universalism is creedless, allowing members to shape their own beliefs. Stark said, "I look forward to working with the Secular Coalition to stop the promotion of narrow religious beliefs in science, marriage contracts, the military and the provision of social services." Stark's beliefs gained attention after the Secular Coalition for America offered a $1,000 prize to the person who could identify the "highest level atheist, agnostic, humanist or any other kind of non-theist currently holding elected public office in the United States." link

Contributed by John Blatt By SAM HARRIS , the author of " The End of Faith: Religion, Terror and the Future of Reason " and " Letter to a Christian Nation ." PETE STARK , a California Democrat, appears to be the first congressman in U.S. history to acknowledge that he doesn't believe in God. In a country in which 83% of the population thinks that the Bible is the literal or "inspired" word of the creator of the universe, this took political courage. Of course, one can imagine that Cicero's handlers in the 1st century BC lost some sleep when he likened the traditional accounts of the Greco-Roman gods to the "dreams of madmen" and to the "insane mythology of Egypt." Mythology is where all gods go to die, and it seems that Stark has secured a place in American history simply by admitting that a fresh grave should be dug for the God of Abraham — the jealous, genocidal, priggish and self-contradictory tyrant of the Bible and the Kora...

Grammy-winning trumpeter Phil Driscol reported to federal prison this week to begin a one-year tax evasion sentence after a judge denied his request to remain free while he appeals the conviction. Driscoll, 59, reported Monday to the federal penitentiary in Atlanta, U.S. Bureau of Prisons records show. His projected release date, with credit for good conduct, is Jan. 24. A jury last June convicted Driscoll on charges of conspiracy and tax evasion involving his gospel music ministry. Driscoll recorded with several pop acts in the 1970s, including Joe Cocker, Stephen Stills, Leon Russell and Blood, Sweat & Tears. He received a Grammy in 1984. He recorded more than 30 of his own albums of gospel and patriotic music, which he distributes through his ministry based in Eatonton, Ga., and its Web site . An indictment accused Driscoll and his wife, Lynne, of scheming with her mother, bookkeeper Chris Blankenship, to avoid reporting personal income totaling more than $1 million between 19...

NEW YORK (March 15) - The president of the leading Southern Baptist seminary has incurred sharp attacks from both the left and right by suggesting that a biological basis for homosexuality may be proven, and that prenatal treatment to reverse gay orientation would be biblically justified. The Rev. R. Albert Mohler Jr. , one of the country's pre-eminent evangelical leaders, acknowledged that he irked many fellow conservatives with an article earlier this month saying scientific research "points to some level of biological causation" for homosexuality. Proof of a biological basis would challenge the belief of many conservative Christians that homosexuality - which they view as sinful - is a matter of choice that can be overcome through prayer and counseling. However, Mohler, president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky., was assailed even more harshly by gay-rights supporters. They were upset by his assertion that homosexuality would remain a si...

HAMILTON, Ohio - A summer camp tailoring to atheist and agnostic children won't be held at a Butler County campground after a Christian group that runs the campground declined to renew their contract. Camp Quest says it caters to youths who question religion and teaches critical thinking and scientific inquiry. Next year it will move from Camp Campbell Gard to a Clinton County location. The YMCA, which runs the campground, says neither a spate of recent publicity nor the group's philosophy prompted the break. Rather, it says the group violated a contract provision requiring them to get approval of publicity by providing photos of the camp to a reporter. Camp Quest Board President Amanda Metskas disagrees and says she feels the YMCA was uncomfortable being linked with atheists. link

The Rev. Jerry Johnston and his ministries have a history of being slow to pay their taxes. Records show that in 2002 and again in 2004, the Kansas Department of Revenue went to court to force Johnston to pay his state income taxes. Department officials said tax liens were filed only after numerous attempts were made to collect. •A tax warrant filed in September 2002 charged that Johnston owed $5,732 on his 2000 state income tax. That judgment was satisfied in March 2003. •A tax warrant filed in September 2004 charged that Johnston owed $5,422 on his 2002 state income tax. Johnston paid that off in February 2005. •The Johnson County treasurer’s office reported last summer that First Family Church was delinquent in paying $8,000 in special assessment taxes to the county. Johnston responded to the tax questions through a spokesman, Lawrence Swicegood. "Pastor Johnston and his wife have never failed to pay income taxes," he said. "On two occasions in the past, their person...

The pastor of a small south Sacramento, California church has been arrested in connection with the sexual assault of a 13-year-old boy inside the restroom of a Meadowview library, Sacramento police said Saturday. Frederick Dew, the 34-year-old pastor of the Praise Tabernacle church on 44th Street, was taken into custody Friday evening, according to Sacramento police Sgt. Matthew Young. According to police, the boy was assaulted inside the rest- room of the Martin Luther King Jr. Library on 24th Street at 4:38 p.m. Thursday. The victim escaped and immediately reported the alleged attack to library officials, police said. Investigators do not believe the boy knew his alleged attacker, Young said. Library security personnel were able to provide police with a detailed description of the suspect after he left the building, according to police. Dew was arrested about 6 p.m. Friday, Young said. He was booked into the Sacramento County jail on suspicion of a lewd or lascivious act with a chil...

Lonnie Latham, the former pastor of South Tulsa Baptist Church, was found not guilty Wednesday of a misdemeanor charge of offering to engage in a lewd act. The verdict came in his two-week nonjury trial in Oklahoma County District Court more than a year after his arrest in Oklahoma City. Latham was arrested Jan. 3, 2006, after he allegedly invited a male undercover Oklahoma City police officer to his hotel room for sex. No money was involved. Latham did not return phone calls seeking comment Wednesday. His Oklahoma City attorney, Mack Martin, said Latham was ecstatic about the verdict when he spoke to him Wednesday afternoon. Martin said Judge Roma M. McElwee ruled that Latham was not guilty but did not address the constitutionality of the law under which he was arrested. Martin had argued in the Feb. 22 bench trial that Latham was charged under a lewdness statute that he said should be unconstitutional because of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in 2003 that legalized consensual sex betwee...

Camden SC — Northgate Colonial Baptist Church members say they need their faith now more than ever. The church is trying to hold itself together while its popular pastor, the Rev. Kevin Ogle, sits in jail in Walton County, Ga., charged with 11 counts of sexual exploitation of children. "We're a family," said Mike Clifton, head of the church's board of deacons. "We are there for each other. We keep each other lifted up." The 42-year-old Ogle is accused of sending pornographic messages and pictures of himself over the Internet to a police officer posing as a teenage girl. Ogle's congregation is praying for their leader and have organized meals for his wife and young children. Members say there hasn't been a time since the case broke Feb. 20 that they lost hope. "We felt like we could go forward at once, that the Lord was on our side," said Evora Price, a member for nearly 20 years. The night Ogle was arrested, Price and other members were ca...

They kneeled. They cried. They asked for healing. Before them, on an altar of roses and prayer candles, was a metal baking sheet, stained with what hundreds of Houston Catholics now believe is an image of the Virgin Mary . Guadalupe Rodriguez, a Pugh Elementary School cafeteria worker, discovered the possible miracle on Ash Wednesday, while scrubbing away the last crumbs from the pizza lunch. By Friday, a steady stream of people were filing through the southeast Houston front yard of Sylvia Calderon, a PTA member who took in the sheet pan after school leaders decided they couldn't accommodate the curious crowds. At dawn, one woman arrived at Calderon's home in the Denver Harbor neighborhood asking to see the Virgin's image before her 8-year-old son had surgery. That afternoon another woman came for a blessing bearing a picture of her grandson, who has cerebral palsy. Scientists call this phenomenon religious pareidolia , when the eye sees religious images in objects such ...