Mythicist Milwaukee's Mythinformation Conference: Is Faith Rooted in Fiction?
2016-10-21 13:00 - 21:00 (America/Chicago) | Turner Hall, 1034 North 4th Street, Milwaukee, WI, 53203, United States
This year’s Mythinformation Conference hosted by
Mythicist Milwaukee asks, “Is Faith Rooted in Fiction?”
Join FFRF’s own president Dan Barker as he presents his talk titled “GOD: The Most Unpleasant Character in All Fiction” along with other local secular groups coming together to debate and educate.
For more information about the lineup and to purchase tickets, visit their conference page here.

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"Religious Freedom or Discrimination?: Examining Religious Freedom Restoration Acts."
2016-11-03 19:00 - 20:00 | Ethical Humanist Society of Chicago, 7574 N. Lincoln Ave., Skokie, IL, 60077, United States
The FFRFMCC is pleased to announce it will be hosting a speaking engagement by FFRF Staff Attorney and Constitutional Counsel Andrew Seidel.
The title of his presentation will be: “Religious Freedom or Discrimination?: Examining Religious Freedom Restoration Acts.” Andrew will focus on the recent wave of Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) bills that have been passed or are currently being introduced by state governments, which are designed to expand the Constitutional right to freedom of religious exercise by allowing exemptions from legislative bans to individuals on the basis of their religious beliefs.
As those of the religious majority seek special privilege to ignore laws they feel are in conflict with their beliefs, it is important now more than ever to understand the nature of RFRA legislation and whether they serve only to clarify the “Free Exercise” clause, or are just an attempt to circumvent anti-discrimination laws.
Dark brown states have constitutional or statutory religious exemption law (RFRA) (21 states). Data current as of 10/10/2016 from http://www.lgbtmap.org/equality_maps/profile_state/44
The presentation will be approximately 30 minutes in length, and will be followed by another 30 minutes of Q&A. So, please join us for what will be a most enlightening discussion:
Date: Thursday, November 3rd, 2016
Time: 7:00pm – 8:00pm
Place: The Ethical Humanist Society of Chicago, 7574 Lincoln Ave. in Skokie (corner of Lincoln Ave. and and Howard St.)
Cost: Free
Free parking is available.
Upon conclusion of this speaking event, guests are invited to gather at The Curragh Irish Pub (8266 Lincoln Ave. in Skokie) where they will have the opportunity to “meet, greet & chat” with Andrew Seidel over a few drinks.
If you would like to attend, we kindly ask that you please RSVP on our Doodle poll by clicking here.

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FFRFMCC 2017 Darwin Day Celebration
2017-02-11 15:00 - 18:30 | Ethical Humanist Society of Chicago, 7574 N. Lincoln Ave., Skoke, IL, 60077, United States
February 12th, 2017 will mark the 208th anniversary of the birth of Charles Darwin. His five-year voyage on the HMS Beagle in 1831 led to his work on the theory of evolution, which is now fact, and the publishing of his book, “On the Origin of Species.” Despite his Christian upbringing, his father’s desire he become a parson, and marrying devout Christian Emma Wedgwood (his cousin), Darwin bravely sought to challenge the biblical notions of creation, and forever changing our understanding of the natural world.
Darwin’s contributions to science are enormous, and although our federal government has still yet to officially recognize Darwin’s accomplishments, those of us who truly understand the importance of his work, can recognize him.
In co-sponsorship this year with the Chicago Atheist Society, the FFRFMCC will hold its 5th annual Darwin Day celebration to honor this great man. Please join us as we gather for a viewing of two segments from Richard Dawkins’ outstanding documentary, “The Genius of Charles Darwin. The film will last approximately 1 and 1 /2 hours, and will be followed by a dinner buffet and social gathering.
All who would like to attend this celebration of the life of Charles Darwin can click here to reserve their spot on our Doodle poll. The reservation deadline for this event will be Thursday, February, 9th, 2017.
Cost: $10 suggested donation

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The FFRFMCC Presents: "An Evening with Keith Semple"
2017-05-24 19:00 - 22:30 | Chief O’Neill’s Pub & Restaurant, 3471 N. Elston Ave., Chicago, IL, 60618, United States
The FFRFMCC will be hosting an evening with atheist musician Keith Semple. Keith is an accomplished musician who began his professional career at the age of 16 having performed throughout Europe. Born in Ireland, he moved to Chicago in 2006 when he joined the band 7th Heaven. In his six years with the band, he performed opening acts for Bon Jovi, Def Leppard, Styx, Journey and Huey Lewis, just to name a few. In 2012, he went on to form his own band, SEMPLE, with Chicago area musicians. And in 2015, advanced his way to the top 20 live rounds as a contestant on NBC’s “The Voice.”
Our event will include a presentation by Keith, where he will discuss his journey to atheism in Northern Ireland and it’s impact on his world view, including the moral, logical and existential implications of his conclusions, and how they pertain to today’s issues.
During his approximate 1 hour talk, Keith will also perform musical interludes during the opening, middle and conclusion of his presentation.
The event will begin at 7:00pm with a cash bar and complimentary appetizers. The presentation and music will take place from 7:30pm – 9:00pm, and conclude with a “meet and greet” with a cash bar from 9:00pm – 10:30pm.
Admission Fee: $10.00 suggested donation
For those who would like to attend, please click here to reserve your spot on our Doodle poll.

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FFRFMCC Discussion Workshop #4: "Challenging Religious Beliefs"
2017-06-17 11:00 - 14:00 | Ethical Humanist Society of Chicago, 7574 N. Lincoln Ave., Skoke, IL, 60077, United States
The FFRFMCC will hold its fourth in a series of workshops designed to assist non-theists with addressing talking points posed by those of religious faith. A moderator will facilitate a group discussion among freethinkers, encouraging each individual to offer their viewpoints pertaining to two separate topics/questions relating to religious beliefs. Participants will not be made aware of the topics/questions until the start of the discussion in order to help sharpen critical thinking skills!
The discussion will run for approximately 1 1/2 hours. Pizza and salad will be served at the conclusion of the workshop.
Admission: $10 per person suggested donation (to help cover food and venue costs)
For those who would like to attend this educational event, please click here to RSVP on our Doodle poll. The RSVP deadline is Friday, June 16th.
Hope to see you there!

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FFRFMCC Lecture Series: World Religions
2017-10-11 19:00 - 21:30 | Ethical Humanist Society of Chicago, 7574 N. Lincoln Ave., Skoke, IL, 60077, United States
John Camardella
According to a recent PRRI (Public Religion Research Institute) study, the religious landscape in the U.S. continues to change dramatically. White Christians are, for the first time its history, a minority (43%) in this country. This is down from 80% just 40 years ago. Non-Christian religions are growing, and those holding no religious identity whatsoever now represent one-quarter of our population. Thanks to a more far-reaching information network, people (particularly millennials) have greater exposure to other religions, as well as secularism. But there are now other means for young people to gain more in-depth understanding of how many different religions exist, other than the one in which they may have been raised.
Therefore, We are pleased to announce the Freedom From Religion Foundation Metropolitan Chicago Chapter will be hosting a two-week lecture series focusing on the various major world religions.
It is an honor to have Mr. John Camardella present these lectures. John is in his 15th year of teaching in the Social Studies Department at Prospect High School. For the past eight years, he has taught two stand alone World Religion elective courses and has been instrumental in advancing the curriculum at the national level. Last year, he was one of two high school teachers in the country named to the national writing team to develop a framework on how to teach religion in public schools. With the assistance of professors from Georgetown, Rice, Columbia, and Harvard, these guidelines were published back in June, marking the first time in American history that a national education body (The National Council for the Social Studies) endorsed and published a framework for Religious Studies. In addition, John teaches religion courses to the parents of his students and a graduate level course for teachers and administrators. In his free time, John travels to locations such as China, Thailand, Cambodia, Hong Kong and Japan to collaborate with both international scholars and practitioners of different traditions to improve his curriculum and understanding. Over the past few years, he has had the opportunity to study the Abrahamic faiths in Italy, Turkey, Greece, Austria, the Czech Republic and most recently in Israel and the West Bank.
John’s work was recently the subject of a Chicago Tribune article, which you can view by clicking here.
The objective of Mr. Camardella’s public high school curriculum in World Religions is to instruct students in an informative, comparative and constitutional manner to better understand the many different belief systems. Within his class, John also includes a three-week unit on “Secular Humanism, Atheism and Agnosticism.”
The Supreme Court case of Abington vs. Schempp (1963) ruled that public officials dealing with private citizens may not elevate one religion over another, or show preference to belief over non-belief and vice versa. By providing students with a strong knowledge on both religious and non-religious cultures and ideologies, John strives to create a more educated and understanding society.
For those who are non-theists, it is important as well to have a solid grasp of the various major religions, their origins, traditions, similarities and differences, in order to have more constructive and rational discussions with people of religious faith, whether they be Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, etc. While many who identify as non-believers have familiarized themselves very well with the Christian bible, less may be known about the texts and traditions of the non-Christian religions. These lectures are designed to provide a well-rounded education about the major religions and why they should be taught to students.
This lecture series will take place over two separate weeknights, and focus on the following:
Wednesday, October 4th – Hinduism, Buddhism & Sikhism
Wednesday, October 11th – Judaism, Christianity & Islam
The presentations will be followed by an extensive Q&A and discussion session.
Each lecture will begin at 7:00 PM and be held in the auditorium of the Ethical Humanist Society of Chicago, 7574 Lincoln Ave. in Skokie. This is a free event and open to the public. But we ask that anyone who would like to attend please RSVP on our Doodle poll. To reserve your spot, please click here.
This is a free event and open to the public

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FFRFMCC Discussion Workshop: "Challenging Religious Beliefs"
2018-04-21 11:00 - 14:30 | North Branch Pizza & Burger Co,, 4520 W. Lake Ave., Glenview, IL, 60025, United States
The Freedom From Religion Foundation Metropolitan Chicago Chapter will hold its 6th in a series of discussion workshops on “Challenging Religious Beliefs.” During these discussions, a moderator will pose two separate topics/questions related to common religious talking points. Participants are encouraged to offer their viewpoints regarding how non-theists should best counter unsubstantiated ideological beliefs when presented to them by those of religious faith, in order to assist non-believers with sharpening their critical thinking skills.
The discussion will run for approximately 1 1/2 hours. A luncheon social with pizza, salad and soft drinks will take place at the conclusion of the workshop, for those who would like to continue the discussion!
This event will be held in the West Wing private room of North Branch Pizza and Burger Co. 4520 W. Lake St., Glenview, IL
Admission: $10 per person suggested donation (to help cover food/drink/venue costs)
For those who would like to attend, please RSVP on our Doodle poll by clicking here.
Thanks, and hope to see you there!

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FFRFMCC Lecture Series: World Religions
2018-05-22 19:00 - 22:00 | Ethical Humanist Society of Chicago, 7574 N. Lincoln Ave., Skoke, IL, 60077, United States
In October, 2017, the FFRFMCC hosted a two-week lecture series by Mr. John Camardella, a Chicago-area high school teacher who teaches classes on the various religions of the world to Senior-level students as part of a public high school curriculum.
John Camardella is in his 15th year of teaching at Prospect High School. For the past eight years, he has taught two stand-alone World Religion elective courses, and has worked to advance the curriculum at the national level. Currently, he is an Education Fellow working to pilot curriculum alongside Dr. Diane Moore at the Religious Literacy Project at Harvard Divinity School . Last year, John was one of two high school teachers in the country who helped develop a framework for how to teach about religion in public schools. John also teaches religion courses to adults and a graduate level course for teachers and administrators, making him a most qualified person to ensure that any public school education regarding world religions is comparative and informative, and not designed to promote any one specific religion.
In his spare time, he travels to improve his curriculum and understanding, having studied religion in Turkey, Cambodia, Iceland, the Czech Republic, Indonesia, China, Greece, Thailand, Austria, Israel and the West Bank, Hong Kong, Italy, Japan, and Costa Rica.
During our initial lectures, John educated the audiences on the history of the Abrahamic religions of Judaism, Islam, and Christianity, as well as non-Abrahamic religions such as Hinduism, Sikhism, and Buddhism. Following each lecture, an extensive Q&A provided greater insight to these religious traditions.
The FFRFMCC is pleased to announce our second series of lectures from Mr. Camardella. Here is a summary of the upcoming lecture topics:
May 22nd — The spread of Christianity beginning with the Apostle Paul and continuing through the founding of America. Special emphasis will be placed on the early church in the Mediterranean region, the role of Constantine, and the early settlers in the New World. John will also discuss how Christianity divided into several denominations.
May 29th — How the different faith traditions are handling the issue of Climate Change in diverse ways. Case Studies published at Harvard Divinity School will be provided as John explores Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, and Hindu perspectives on the topic.
As with the first lecture series, each evening will conclude with an extensive Q&A session.
We hope you will mark your calendars for each of these fascinating and highly educational lectures.

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FFRFMCC Lecture Series: World Religions
2018-05-29 19:00 - 22:00 | Ethical Humanist Society of Chicago, 7574 N. Lincoln Ave., Skoke, IL, 60077, United States
The FFRFMCC will be hosting its fourth lecture on “World Religions,” presented by Mr. John Camardella.
John is a Chicago-area high school teacher who teaches classes on the various religions of the world to Senior-level students as part of a public high school curriculum. He is in his 15th year of teaching at Prospect High School. For the past eight years, he has taught two stand-alone World Religion elective courses, and has worked to advance the curriculum at the national level. Currently, he is an Education Fellow working to pilot curriculum alongside Dr. Diane Moore at the Religious Literacy Project at Harvard Divinity School . Last year, John was one of two high school teachers in the country who helped develop a framework for how to teach about religion in public schools. John also teaches religion courses to adults and a graduate level course for teachers and administrators, making him a most qualified person to ensure that any public school education regarding world religions is comparative and informative, and not designed to promote any one specific religion.
During his previous lecture on May 22nd, John delivered a fascinating presentation on the spread of Christianity, beginning with the Apostle Paul and continuing through the settlers in the new World and the founding of America. He also provided great historical insight into the role of Constantine, and how he had “weaponized” Christianity to attain power.
The next lecture will focus on how the different faith traditions are handling the worldwide issue of climate change in diverse ways. Case Studies published at Harvard Divinity School will be provided as John explores Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, and Hindu perspectives on the topic.
As with our previous lectures, this will conclude with an extensive Q&A session.
Admission is free!

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FFRFMCC Film Screening - "Losing Our Religion"
2019-03-23 15:00 - 19:30 | Ethical Humanist Society of Chicago, 7574 N. Lincoln Ave., Skoke, IL, 60077, United States
We are pleased to announce our next chapter event will be a screening of the film “Losing Our Religion.” a documentary focusing on clergy from different religious traditions who no longer believe in what they’ve been preaching.
Film makers were allowed access to members of The Clergy Project, an organization founded by Dan Barker, Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennett and Linda LaScola, intended to offer safe haven for ministers, pastors, priests, rabbis, imams, and other clergy whose lives have been dedicated to preaching their religious teachings, but now find themselves struggling to hold on to their friends, their community, their livelihoods, and even their family after losing their faith.
Pizza and refreshments will be served immediately following the film. Here are the details:
Date: Saturday, March 23, 2019
Time: 3:00—5:30 PM (Screening & Discussion); 5:30 PM—7:30 PM (Pizza & Socializing)
Place: Ethical Humanist Society of Chicago, 7574 Lincoln Ave., Skokie, IL
Admission:
Movie Screening: Free
Pizza Social: $5 Suggested Donation
To reserve your spot, please click here to RSVP on our Doodle poll.

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"Fear of a Black Atheist: How Religion Crippled the Black Community"
2019-04-27 17:00 - 19:00 | Ethical Humanist Society of Chicago, 7574 N. Lincoln Ave., Skoke, IL, 60077, United States
We are pleased to announce the Freedom From Religion Foundation Metropolitan Chicago Chapter will be hosting a speaking engagement with Mandisa Thomas, President of Black Nonbelievers, Inc.
Black Nonbelievers is an organization that works to encourage more Blacks to come out and stand strong with their nonbelief in the face of such strong religious overtones.
Mandisa currently serves on the Boards for American Atheists and the Reason Rally Coalition, and previously for Foundation Beyond Belief and the Secular Coalition for America. She is also an active speaker and has presented at conferences and conventions for the Freedom from Religion Foundation, Secular Student Alliance, and many others.
Her presentation will be entitled, “Fear of a Black Atheist: How Religion Crippled the Black Community.”
While the Black community makes up approximately 12 percent of the U.S. population, 79 percent still identify as religious, which makes the subject of atheism challenging. Mandisa will discuss this high degree of religiosity, how the Black Nonbelievers organization is making progress, and ways which the larger secular community as a whole can help.
At the conclusion of her talk, there will be a question and answer session.
Admission is free!
So, please join us for this insightful presentation.

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"The Founding Myth": A Discussion with Andrew Seidel and Jerry Coyne"
2019-06-11 19:30 - 22:00 | University of Illinois at Chicago, 750 S. Halsted St., Chicago, IL, 60607, United States
We invite you to attend our next chapter event, which will be a discussion between Andrew Seidel,
Freedom From Religion Foundation Director of Strategic Response, and Jerry Coyne, University of Chicago Professor of Evolutionary Biology. This will be a one-on-one interview with Andrew about his new book, “The Founding Myth: Why Christian Nationalism is Un-American.”
The focus will be on such topics as:

“Does a national motto ‘In God We Trust,’ the Declaration of Independence, and other historical ‘evidence’ prove that America was founded on Judeo-Christian principles?”
“Are the Ten Commandments the basis for American law?”
“Are science and religion compatible?”

Copies of “The Founding Myth: Why Christian Nationalism is Un-American” will be available for purchase, and Mr. Seidel will conduct a book signing following the discussion.
Date: Tuesday, June 11, 2019
Time: 7:30 PM
Place: University of Illinois at Chicago, Student Center East Building, Fort Dearborn Room B, 750 S. Halsted St., Chicago, IL 60607
Admission: Free. Space is limited
Parking is conveniently located directly across the street at the campus’ Halsted Street Parking facility, 760 W. Taylor St. (entrance on Taylor St.)

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"Is Atheism Still a Political Taboo?" -- A Presentation by Hemant Mehta
2019-09-18 19:30 - 21:30 | Ethical Humanist Society of Chicago, 7574 N. Lincoln Ave., Skoke, IL, 60077, United States
We are pleased to announce the FFRFMCC will sponsor a speaking engagement by Mr. Hemant Mehta. Hemant is an author, blogger, and host of the website, The Friendly Atheist. His presentation will be entitled:
“Is Atheism Still a Political Taboo?”
As we move closer and closer to our next major election in November, 2020, of primary concern to non-theists and those who believe in maintaining our secular government will be a close examination of which candidates will strive the most to maintain the “wall of separation” between religion and government. The formation of the Congressional Freethought Caucus in 2018, led by openly non-religious Democratic House Representative Jared Huffman of California, is helping to pave the way for more secular-minded candidates to seek public office. The objective of the Freethought Caucus is to encourage science and reason-based solutions and defend the secular founding of our government. It will therefore be incumbent upon freethinking voters to encourage current office holders in their congressional districts, or those they intend to vote into office in the upcoming election, to consider joining the Freethought Caucus to expand the collective and work to keep religion where it belongs — in houses of worship, and NOT within the halls of government.
This is also coming at a time when one of the two major political parties, that being the Democratic National Committee, has adopted a resolution recognizing the contributions of non-believers, and acknowledges that religiously unaffiliated individuals are now the largest “religious” group within the Democratic Party.
But, for decades now, declared atheism has been a stumbling block for many political candidates in the United States where espousing religious faith has been considered a prerequisite for ensuring a successful election campaign. Hemant will discuss the origins of this “taboo” and how secular values may finally be on the rise again in our political system.
So, please join us for this must-hear presentation.
A Q&A session will immediately follow. Hemant will also have copies of books he has written or edited on hand for sale!

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FFRFMCC Legal Presentation and Spring Dinner Social -- CANCELED
2020-03-14 14:00 - 19:30 | IL
We are sorry to announce that our two events scheduled for this Saturday, March 14th are being canceled due to concerns over the spread of the COVID-19 virus.
This is a precautionary measure to keep people as safe as possible, and also to do our part to help contain this virus. This cancellation involves both the FFRF legal presentation that was to take place at the Niles-Maine District Library at 2:00 PM, and the Spring Dinner Social at Las Fuentes Mexican Restaurant at 4:30 PM.
Our hope is these events can be re-scheduled in the future.
Thank you for your understanding.

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