Atheism, fuck yeah!

The National Secular Society has urged the government to hold the Vatican accountable over its continued failure to cooperate with a British public inquiry on child abuse.

The NSS has written to Foreign Office minister Tariq Ahmad over the issue after revelations at the Independent Inquiry on Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) this week.

Counsel to the inquiry Jacqueline Carey said the Vatican had refused to supply written evidence or send witnesses about clerical misconduct in advance of hearings in October, despite a request to do so.

I'm trembling

No really

I'm very scared of this

Anonymous

Troll

Televangelists: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)

At least 73 pupils at a Catholic school have suffered forehead burns from ceremonial ashes applied during Mass.

St Augustine's Catholic High, in Redditch, said 16 members of staff and the chair of governors were also affected by the Ash Wednesday Mass.

First aid was provided and some parents took their children to emergency hospital departments.

The school said it was "dismayed" and was investigating what happened during Mass.

A priest was drawing ash crosses on pupils in year nine and 11 when some of them began complaining of discomfort.

The ashes were being analysed by external experts, the school said.

ROME — The sexual abuse of nuns and religious women by Catholic priests and bishops — and the abortions that have sometimes resulted — has for years been overshadowed by other scandals in the Roman Catholic Church.

That seemed to change this week when Pope Francis  publicly acknowledged the problem for the first time.

“I was so happy,” said Lucetta Scaraffia, the author of an article denouncing the abuse of nuns and religious lay women by priests that was published this month in a magazine, Women Church World, which is distributed alongside the Vatican’s newspaper.

Speaking from her Rome apartment, which she said had essentially been converted into a television studio full of international reporters, Ms. Scaraffia said, “Finally, now many women will have the courage to come forward and denounce their abusers.”

A woman who mutilated her three-year-old daughter has become the first person in the UK to be found guilty of female genital mutilation (FGM).

The 37-year-old mother from east London wept in the dock as she was convicted after a trial at the Old Bailey.

Spells and curses intended to deter police and social workers from investigating were found at the Ugandan woman's home, the trial heard.

Her 43-year-old partner was acquitted by the jury.

Prosecutors said the mother "coached" her daughter "to lie to the police so she wouldn't get caught".

I’m not naming or linking, but he wanted a response, so:

Mate, I have no interest in giving you free advertising. I watched your video and found it really annoying listening. Stop smacking your lips against the mic. Maybe also stop cracking thunder every time you quote God. Some people, myself for example, have hearing issues and such things make it really hard to process what the hell is going on. 

Other than that? Same ol, same ol. Nothing new or interesting. 

Yikes, sorry it’s been a long while since I received this. 

More yikes at that comment - yeah, pretty much. There is a lot of cognitive dissonance involved in religion, it’s true. 

Common sense typically is telling you something’s wrong and it’s actually a good idea to listen to it if it’s blaring warning signals at you. Which is why religious leaders tell you to ignore it. 

Animal welfare advocates are urging the environment secretary to repeal an exemption which allows animals to be slaughtered without pre-stunning for religious reasons.

The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) and the British Veterinary Association (BVA) have made the call in an open letter to Michael Gove.

The letter, which the groups are urging members of the public to sign, says: "All animals should be stunned before slaughter. No exceptions.

"Scientific evidence clearly indicates that slaughter without pre-stunning can cause unnecessary suffering.

"The level of restraint required to hold an animal still, expose the throat, and perform an effective neck cut is typically greater than that needed for stunned slaughter. When the neck cut is performed it triggers a barrage of sensory information to the brain in the conscious animal."

To those who celebrate :)

🎉 Happy Holidays 🎉