NOSHA July 2010 - "A Capitalist Oil Catastrophe"

Our speaker for July will be author and activist Larry Everest who will present "A Capitalist Oil Catastrophe - System Not A Fit Caretaker of the Planet."

Larry Everest is a correspondent for Revolution newspaper (revcom.us), reporting from Iran, Iraq, Palestine and India, and the author of "Oil, Power & Empire: Iraq and the U.S. Global Agenda" (Common Courage, 2004), which former United States military analyst and Pentagon Papers author Dan Ellsberg calls "remarkable, horrifying, brilliantly illuminating," and from which director Oliver Stone drew in making "W," his film about George W. Bush.

In 1986, Everest wrote "Behind the Poison Cloud: Union Carbide's Bhopal Massacre," based on his on-the-scene investigation. Biologist, professor and eco-socialist Barry Commoner called this book "lucid, moving, powerful," and the National Academy of Engineering drew on the book's "Design for Disaster" chapter at their 2002 Annual Symposium on Frontiers of Engineering.

Everest has contributed to a number of other books, his articles have appeared in publications across the country, and he's appeared widely in the media, including CSPAN's Book-TV, BBC, NPR's "All Things Considered," and Pacifica's "Democracy Now."

As part of the first "Earth Day" in 1970, he helped organize a protest of environmentally unsafe conditions ("in plant pollution") at the factory where he worked. He is currently based in New Orleans and helped organize the Emergency Committee to Stop the Gulf Oil Disaster.

Monthly Meeting Directions

NOSHA's monthly meetings take place on the 3rd Saturday of each month, at 2:00pm

To get to the meeting place at the zoo: Enter from Magazine Street at Zoo Avenue (between the two stone lions) and continue to the statue of Audubon. The entry way to our area (the Dominion Learning Center) is to the right of the main entrance through the metal gates.

If it's a pretty day, parking will be at a premium so give yourself plenty of time to find a spot.

For more information about this event, contact Harry Greenberger at (504) 282-5459. All NOSHA meetings are open to the general public.

June's Metting - "Toward a Consilient Approach to Ethics"

Our guest speaker will be Michael Cavanaugh of Baton Rouge, author of the book "Biotheology - A New Synthesis of Science & Religion" (1996, University Press of America). The title of his talk will be "Toward a Consilient Approach to Ethics."

A lawyer since 1968 (LSU Law School), Cavanaugh has been a military judge during Vietnam at Fort Polk. He returned to Baton Rouge to work in a big firm (Sanders, Miller, Downing and Kean), but went out on his own a year later and retired at age 40 to try to understand better how science and religion interact.

From 2002-2005 he served as president of IRAS (The Institute on Religion in an Age of Science, which is generally considered the most prestigious and least into apologetics of the S/R organizations. It publishes the journal Zygon in which he's published several articles including one named "What is Religious Naturalism?"

Check out his website religiousnaturalism.org. He is currently working on a book to be entitled "Religious Naturalism: The Next Hundred Years."

June's Freethinking Happy Hours

We are adding another secular happy hour to our calendar. Now you can join our merry band of skeptics on the FIRST and/or THIRD Wednesdays of the month.

Located in historic uptown New Orleans, just three blocks from Audubon Zoo and Park, Monkey Hill Bar offers a wide selection of martinis, wines and beers. They have large couches to relax on and a free pool table as well as a shuffleboard table. Also, this area of Magazine Street has a lot of unique restaurants in the vicinity, so it makes for easy dining if you wish to grab a bite after a quick drink with your secular friends.

As always, we will continue to encourage stimulating conversation and to provide a welcoming place for our freethinking friends to stop by and say hello!

May's Metting "Getting to know you"

"♪Getting to know you, getting to know all about you...♫" as the tune goes is the subject of this monthly NOSHA gathering.

Every year or two, Lanny Goldfinch, NOSHA board member and retired psychotherapist, leads a discussion with audience participation to discover what our opinions are about a wide variety of topics....some controversial, some not. Anything from same sex rights to drug legalization, UFO abductions and alien visits is on the table for the afternoon. Non-believers of all stripes do not agree on everything, believe it or not!

All you need to come with is your opinion and a healthy respect for others (especially if you don't agree with them.) Personal attacks and grand standing will not be allowed, so if you can't control yourself, please bring duct tape so we can help you make it through the afternoon.

Also, we will have a reading about that trouble maker Mark Twain, as it is the 100th anniversary of his death.

May's Freethinking Happy Hour

NOTE: The day has been changed to Thursday, to coincide with the National Day of Reason

Located in historic uptown New Orleans, just three blocks from Audubon Zoo and Park, Monkey Hill Bar offers a wide selection of martinis, wines and beers. They have large couches to relax on and a free pool table as well as a shuffleboard table. Also, this area of Magazine Street has a lot of unique restaurants in the vicinity, so it makes for easy dining if you wish to grab a bite after a quick drink with your secular friends.

As always, we will continue to encourage stimulating conversation and to provide a welcoming place for our freethinking friends to stop by and say hello!

An Atheist, Theist Dialog

Is Religion More a Force for Good or for Evil in the World Today?

Sponsored by UNO Campus Freethought Alliance, there will be a two panel discussion, with the dialog ending with an audience question & answer session. For details contact: Paul Hebert at prhebert@uno.edu, (504) 232-1376.

April Meeting "Moral Excellence in the Teachings of Jesus"

Dr. David E. Crosby, pastor of First Baptist Church of New Orleans, will be our featured speaker for our April meeting.

Crosby has often encountered inquiries of faith throughout his long career in ministry. Serving as a dedicated pastor in more than four churches, he soon felt the need to document a concise summary of the first principles of religious belief. A prolific writer, Crosby has penned many articles for respected newspapers, including the Baptist Standard, New Orleans Times-Picayune, and Houston Chronicle. He has also published numerous devotional guides and instructional booklets.

"I have admired many of his columns in the Times Picayune and I think we can have a good dialog with him about relationships between secularists & Christians," says Harry Greenberger.

Crosby lives by a unique doctrine-the communication of gospel through deed is just as, if not more, important as its proclamation through word. He established both the Baptist Crossroads Project, a low-income housing initiative in the Upper Ninth Ward of New Orleans, and the First Baptist Home Recovery Ministry, which assists homeowners in the rebuilding of property damaged in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. He also raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for the homeless of New Orleans, launching and implementing a plan to develop emergency housing for those most in need of it.

In 2007, the Association of Fundraising Professionals of Greater New Orleans rewarded Crosby with the Board of Directors Philanthropy Award. In 2005, the Young Leadership Council of New Orleans presented him with the Role Model Award.

Crosby graduated magna cum laude from Baylor University in Waco, Texas, with a B.A. in religion and journalism. From there, he earned a master of divinity degree from the New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and a Ph.D. from Baylor University, concentrating in ethics. He has three children and lives with his wife in Metairie, Louisiana.

April's Freethinking Happy Hour

We've been hosting our casual happy hours for over a year now on the first Wednesday of every month, so in an effort to streamline our operations we are settling on one location for this ongoing social hour!

Located in historic uptown New Orleans, just three blocks from Audubon Zoo and Park, Monkey Hill Bar offers a wide selection of martinis, wines and beers. They have large couches to relax on and a free pool table as well as a shuffleboard table. Also, this area of Magazine Street has a lot of unique restaurants in the vicinity, so it makes for easy dining if you wish to grab a bite after a quick drink with your secular friends.

As always, we will continue to encourage stimulating conversation and to provide a welcoming place for our freethinking friends to stop by and say hello!

Secular Social to Welcome OSU Students for Freethought

The OSU Students for Freethought are in town again on their spring break to do good works and they want to meet up with freethinkers (especially students!) in New Orleans this week for a quick chat and a drink or two.

They are working with Trinity Christian Community

Please feel free to join us, ESPECIALLY if you're in the under 25 crowd, to learn more about what secular students are doing in Ohio and how they are helping our community.

March Meeting "The Truth About the Bible"

Believers claim that the Bible is the revealed word of God, and as such is an unimpeachable source of morality and history. As secular humanists, we should be prepared to challenge this assumption. A knowledge of the history and contents of the Bible is a powerful tool in any debate with those who wish to give it a privileged role in the American system of ethics and government.

For Professor Peter J. Brancazio, author of The Bible From Cover to Cover, an excoriating book that strips bare the inconsistencies and fabrications of the bible, there is no doubt that someone like Jesus historically existed, though he admits there's very little written evidence for it.

"I think his message is so radical that there had to have been a historical Jesus," says Brancazio. "If he wasn't real, somebody had to have said all those things."

But what has happened to Christ's message? "A lot of what Christians believe about Jesus Christ was actually developed 100, 200 or 300 years after his death," says Brancazio, who will trace how Jesus was transformed by the early Christians into the son of god and a member of the trinity.

It was all done by committee, he insists: "All of the attributes that Christians presently believe about Jesus-the trinity, being the son of god-were actually created by church conferences where people basically voted on what was to become canon."

But, adds the professor: "What was Jesus' actual message? What did he really say to people and did this get transformed over time?"

Dr. Brancazio was chosen by Newsday as one of six "Great Teachers in New York" in 1990. He taught for 35 years in the Physics department of Brooklyn College. He created, and has taught for seven years, a now-famous course called "Science and Religion," inspired by a grant from the famous Templeton Foundation. He now teaches this course at Long Island University, where, according to Dr. Kay Sato, of C.W. Post-Long Island University, "he thoroughly amazes and delights students with his fascinating insights and in-depth knowledge."

The professor, a scientist turned biblical scholar, confesses to having read both the New Testament and the Old Testament four times, an exhausting and critical study which inspired him to write his book The Bible From Cover to Cover. But it also put him in the forefront of bible debunkers and inspired a whole new career in teaching the truth about the bible and the Jesus fables.

Potluck Supper & Movie Night

We're hosting a potluck supper and social at Harry's house on Bayou St. John followed by the viewing of Julia Sweeny video, "Letting Go of God."

As usual, bring salads, main dishes, vegetables, desserts, beverages and snacks to share.

March's Freethinking Happy Hour

Because we all have a little Irish in us, we wanted to pick a place that will usher in the season. We're going to the Garden District this month, so all you locals can get your green on.

Oh, and before I forget, start practicing your favorite Irish blessing. Here's one to start us off: "May you be in Heaven a half hour before Bobby Jindal knows you're dead!"

Happy Hour Meetups

The first Wednesday of every month NOSHA organizes a happy hour gathering so everyone can have a chance to meet informally and get to know each other better. We non-conformists must stick together!

Contact Ricky Adams at ricky125@yahoo.com or 504-813-5276 for more info about our monthly happy hour events.

February Meeting "Back to the Future"

Barbara Forrest, professor of philosophy at Southeastern Louisiana University and co-author of "Creationism's Trojan Horse: The Wedge of Intelligent Design," will be our guest speaker in February.

The topic is "Back to the Future: The Louisiana Science Education Act of 2008" and will include a slide presentation about developments since the law passed 18 months ago.

Happy Hour Meetup for February

We're planning our next happy hour at an iconic Marigny bar....atmosphere, coolness and location. Mimi's in the Marigny has it all!

We've heard something about a very unique bathroom design that is sure to cause some discussion. And they have a fantastic tapas menu.

January NOSHA Potluck Meeting

Since our regular third Saturday meeting date coincides with the NFL playoffs, we've opted for bringing Saints fans together this month.

Instead we will have a potluck lunch at President Harry Greenberger's home beginning at 2 PM to eat and be ready for the game at 3:30. (Those who aren't football nuts can still socialize and get better acquainted.)

Bring either an entree, side item, salad, dessert or beverages to share.

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UNO Debate Spring 2010

atheistneworleans posted a photo:

Jim, Paul, and Doug, getting ready for the debate. Sponsored by UNO Campus Freethought Alliance.