CHRISTMAS

I Grew Up Methodist. Now I’m a Scientologist. Here’s What Christmas Means to Me.

My favorite service, by far, was always Christmas Eve. The church would be gorgeously festooned with holiday decorations and candles in every direction.

Our Florida Winter Wonderland

For me, this is the spirit of Christmas. It was how I was raised. Giving help to those less fortunate. Brightening the days of those around me. Lifting the spirits of those not doing as well as they’d like to because of whatever challenges they face.

Christmas and Our Common Humanity

The Winter Solstice itself is something that nearly all humanity and all life on this planet has in common. The point of renewal. The end of one climate cycle and the beginning of another, which humans experience with all other living creatures. The common experience goes back millions of years. It’s something that’s in us all and it runs deep.

How Science Helped Me Find More Religion

“How can genetic testing tell you your religion, anyway?” you might ask. 23andMe can’t tell that I’m a Scientologist. But it turns out that the Ashkenazi Jewish people stuck together so closely for so many years that genetic testers CAN tell if you’re one of them.

Can Plastic Reindeer Ensure Separation of Church and State?

In my last post, I made the point that the Founders’ purpose in providing for free exercise of religion and prohibiting religious establishments was not so much about building a wall of separation as it was about freedom.

A Christmas Poem

For surely all of us should know acceptance is the way to go, that people differ, east to west, and one man’s faith is not the best

Why I Love Christmas

I enjoy the lights, the decorations, the carolers, the smell of Christmas trees everywhere and most of all I love that people, for even a couple of weeks, try to be just a little bit nicer to each other.

A Very Satanic Xmas: Freedom of Speech or Just Plain Provocation?

Over the 2016 Christmas period, Boca Raton’s traditional Christian Nativity scene gained an unlikely neighbor: a satanic display in the form of an inverted blood-red pentagram. It was put there by a member of the FFRF (Freedom from Religion Foundation), a middle school language arts teacher named Preston Smith. And he’s planning to repeat the operation in 2017.