Thank God I'm Atheist

With the rise of the "spiritual but not religious" category, more people are turning to AI for spiritual guidance instead of pastors. What does it mean for people to seek spiritual, moral, and life guidance from a source that guides you toward an ever more personalized and isolated spiritual experience?

We also discuss: Noah's Ark hunters are digging around in Turkey again, a judge shuts down an attempt to weaken the Johnson Amendment, assisted dying gets voted down in England and Wales, New Zealand finally hits Gloriavale where it hurts, new Pew numbers show Mormon retention slipping, and Christians lose it over Meryl Streep being cast as the Christ-like lion in the new Narnia.

Support the show: www.thankgodimatheist.com/donate

How did you become an atheist? Do you feel like you had any choice in the matter? Or was it something you ultimately couldn't ignore? This week Frank and Dan discuss the road to atheism and the surprising paths people take on their way to accepting the nonexistence of the god.

Also some wacky religious news from the week: abortion pills in the water, a pastor clashes with Native American traditions, religious holiday displays in Dearborn, a Texas city denies a Pride event, Jehovah's Witnesses loosen their blood transfusion rules, and a megachurch takes surveillance to a whole new level.

Frank just got back from Italy and has some stories to tell! Catholic churches, baby Jesus art, so much Jesus blood, Mary's wedding ring, and a visit to Assisi to see St. Carlo's dead body.

But first, there's a bunch of wacky religious news from the week: Eiffel Tower workers strike over hiding female staff, Trump leads a bizarre voting pledge, Austria bans hijabs for young girls in schools, a convicted pastor shows up at a Senate campaign event, OpenAI sued after ChatGPT feeds man's delusions, and Giuliani loses it over Mamdani attending the 9/11 ceremony.

Kate fills in for Frank this week, joining Dan for a conversation about neurodivergence, religious belief, and why some brains may process spiritual experiences differently than others. They compare religion to imagination, play, and believing in Santa, and wonder whether neurodivergent people may be less inclined to attach supernatural meaning to powerful emotional experiences.

But first: A Texas evangelical takes matters into his own hands when the flag is lowered to honor Dolly Parton.

Samaritan's Purse turns down $300 million from the Trump administration—and nobody seems quite sure why.

Bethel Church racks up scandals, failed prophecies, and some remarkably durable forgiveness for badly behaved men.

A Maine court rules that a father can restrict his daughter's exposure to a church whose teachings were causing her severe anxiety.

Christian evangelists get kicked out of Burning Man and, naturally, call it persecution.

Catholic televangelist Fulton Sheen is headed for beatification, complete with a miracle, a mysterious relic, and possibly a piece of the man himself.

This week, we remember two iconic figures who helped make the world feel a little more accepting in very different ways. Dolly Parton embodied a version of Christianity rooted in love, generosity, and an instinctive refusal to exclude people who weren't like her. Tim Curry, meanwhile, helped bring transgressive sexuality, camp, and gender-bending performance into the cultural mainstream. Together, they represent two very different paths toward the same idea of giving people permission to be fully themselves Also: An Anglican church in hot water after a visit from a sex worker.

Miss North Carolina loses her crown—and calls it Christian persecution.

Catholic doctors push back against Illinois' assisted-dying law.

Did New Jersey make prayer illegal?

Milo Yiannopoulos gets an unexpected lesson in immigration enforcement.

AI-generated religious influencers are gaining millions of followers.

Texas conservatives are taking their anti-Muslim crusade to a new level: questioning whether Islam should even count as a religion. Frank and Dan look at the effort to redefine religious freedom so Christianity gets ever-expanding protections while Muslim beliefs and practices can be dismissed as merely "cultural" and therefore fair game for government restriction.

Elsewhere, a transgender wedding in Bangladesh triggers a police inquiry; Israel turns away a delegation of American Christians headed to meet Palestinians; a pardoned January 6 rioter takes his anti-Muslim crusade to Dearborn; Arizona's Supreme Court says a pastor's recorded confession to child abuse isn't protected by clergy privilege; churches accuse DHS of spying on congregations protecting immigrants; and Texas's Ten Commandments classroom mandate moves closer to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Who owns a symbol? And who gets to decide what it means? This week, we look at how symbols can be stolen, reclaimed, transformed, or ruined, from the swastika and pink triangle to the rainbow and the cross.

Also this week: the sky evangelist picks a fight with Alaska Airlines, Canada's military makes room for nonbelievers, halal barbecue takes off in Texas, a Christian influencer says aliens harvested her eggs, the State Department sends billions through faith-based aid groups, and the White Sox celebrate their hometown pope.

As Christian nationalism tightens its grip on the nation's politics, a new crop of progressive candidates is putting faith front and center. From James Talarico to Abdul El-Sayed, the religious left is making a more explicit play for political power (and challenging the idea that Republicans get to own God). Can religious progressives provide an effective counterweight to Christian nationalism, or are we just inviting more religion into a political system that could use a lot less of it?

Also on the show: Christians find God on both sides of the fight over massive AI data centers; Florida's attorney general picks a fight with Catholic schools over vaccine exemptions; the Arizona Supreme Court hands the Mormon Church a win in a horrific child-abuse case; anti-Muslim opposition to a proposed mosque lands an Oklahoma city in court; new data reveals just how differently Mormons practice their religion around the world; and Texas' mandatory Ten Commandments displays face a new legal challenge.

Death comes for all of us, but what does grief look like without belief in an afterlife? Frank is joined by Rachel for a personal conversation about scattering her father's ashes five years after his death, finding closure without religion, and whether mourning is different when this life is the only one we have.

Also this week: Christian men create women-free gyms to avoid "lust," Kim Davis is accused of hiding assets to dodge paying a civil rights judgment, a Texas deputy uses a massive license-plate camera network to track a woman who had an abortion, OpenAI faces a wrongful death lawsuit after ChatGPT allegedly encouraged a vulnerable user toward suicide, an airline finally says "enough" to an in-flight evangelist, and a West Virginia pastor would rather empty his food bank than accept donations from LGBTQ-supporting organizations.

Pioneer Day is one of Utah's biggest celebrations, but how much of the Mormon pioneer story is history? And how much is mythology? Frank and Dan take a fresh look at the conflict that drove the Mormons west, why the word "persecution" doesn't tell the whole story, and how the familiar handcart-and-heroism narrative leaves out a lot of the truth.

Also this week: preparations begin for the 2,000th anniversary of Jesus' baptism, two Catholic nuns launch an order dedicated to helping survivors of church abuse, the USDA faces a lawsuit over explicitly Christian government emails, a new poll reveals what Jewish Americans think about Israel and Gaza, West Virginia stands firm on school vaccine requirements despite pressure for religious exemptions, and a prominent Black Baptist leader argues that not voting is a sin.