This is a 26 page booklet giving a brief outline of the
ownership and control of education by the church and the way they use it
for their own promotion and the exclusion of women from education,
public affairs and keep them in domesticity and subservience. The
elitism of education has been used to suppress atheist and
secularist opinion and has allowed the religions to dictate our
cultural direction and shape our prejudices. It describes
the way that this has enabled them to shape our society in many
ways Today's harsh and punitive attitudes, politics, social
policy, crime and punishment, health and welfare, reproductive health
and women's equality are a result of this distortion of 'education' by
Christianity.
ISBN
0-9550671-1-1
Copyright©secularsites
From
An Atheist Perspective - Education
For details of how to obtain this and the other
publications see below
This theme is detailed further in:-
2) Illicit Sex and the God Machine
by A.Shaw
The 'great' religions have dangerously narrow attitudes
to human sexuality, only acceptable within holy marriage for the
procreation of children and not for pleasure. Outside of this
model, they promote prejudice and discrimination, lack of safe-sex
education and understanding that causes suffering to men women and
children. Their punitive attitudes cause suffering through stigma, ill
health and poverty as the punishment for disobeying 'gods laws'.
Today's attitudes to women - their health, autonomy and
reproductive rights, child care, income and child support, abortion and
population control are all affected to their detriment by Christian
attitudes.
These outdated attitudes explain the opposition to
same sex relationships based on equality and respect that subvert the
notion of women as the inferior domestic partner; their insistence on
marriage at all costs, opposition to divorce, safe early abortion, easy
available contraception and condom use to protect from STDs.
ISBN
09550671-3-8
Copyright©secularsites
Illicit_Sex_and_the_God_Machine.pdf
3) 'A Theory of Belief' -
A.Shaw
This 33 page A5 publication gives a
new perspective on how and why, intelligent, educated and
otherwise rational people continue to believe in superstitions, the
supernatural god and the mumbo jumbo of religion.
It shows how indoctrination and belief, and other such apparently 'mystical
or mysterious' phenomena such as the placebo effect, the
brainwashing of cults and bizarre beliefs in alternative therapies and
faith healing, use the normal systems of human physiology. These
powerful psychological techniques are part of our human repertoire of
techniques that are used every day, to manipulate behaviour, mood and
emotion - and relieve stress and anxiety that can affect health.
The prime purpose of these systems is to maintain, physical, mental and
emotional health and well-being, but a side effect can make people,
particularly children and vulnerable people susceptible to mind
manipulation.
The basis of the theory can be seen most clearly in its particular
relevance to it's role in health care, conventional and alternative,
but is also to be seen in many other areas of the manipulation of
behaviour - politics, teaching and child rearing . Alternative Therapies
only work at this level and there are dangers of believing in
them that override, any temporary 'feel good' factor that is claimed by
some users.. Faith in 'magic' and the supernatural, undermines faith in
rational, evidence based medicine.
ISBN
0-9550671-0-3
Copyright©secularsites
A
Theory of Belief.pdf
4) 'A Challenge to Religion on Health'
- A.Shaw
The religions claim a 'special role' of care and
compassion for the sick, but in this closely argued 27 page publication
this view is challenged. The real effects of religion on health and
welfare has been to instill stigma, fear and prejudice, stifle rational
scientific research and progress and use its monopoly to promote their
beliefs, gain kudos and keep people dependent on the church.
It shows that in physical, mental and emotional health,
the effects of religion have been malign . Their attitudes
to sex, social control and the inferiority of women, have distorted
attitudes to the human body; caused stigma and prudery; caused harmful
punitive attitudes to illness, prevented health education and the
participation of women in education, science and the health professions.
Religious institutions have neglected and done great harm to thousands
of children
This is a hard hitting assessment of the false claims of
religion on human health.
ISBN
0-9550671-2-X
Copyright©secularsites
A
Challenge to Religion on Health.pdf
-----------------------------------------
5) Transience by Sue
Mayer
All
Titles are Available in print from secularsites - address below -
order by
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secularsites
PO Box 172 Westerham, TN16 3AN
e-mail
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is a non-profit making website the sole purpose of which is to promote
atheist, secularist and secular humanist perspectives on the Internet
and in print and all monies raised over and above the cost of production
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www.secularsites.freeuk.com
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