James Williamson MD

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James Williamson MD

Author's details

Name: James Williamson MD
Date registered: June 30, 2009

Latest posts

Refractory Jesus Myth — October 18, 2011
Why Does Exorcism Persist in Modern Times? — December 14, 2010
Is God Redundant? — November 1, 2010
Scientific Evidence on Homosexuality — August 6, 2010
Dubious Medical Alternatives — May 22, 2010

Author's posts listings

Oct
18

Refractory Jesus Myth

Categories:

Religion

by James Williamson MD

The Jesus myth is alive and well, and its fascination for the faithful grows with time. Two examples of this intense interest are Mel Gibson’s blockbuster movie The Passion of the Christ and Dan Brown’s novel The Da Vinci Code. This novel sold, as of March 2006, 40 million copies. It espouses provocative heretical ideas …

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1 comment

Dec
14

Why Does Exorcism Persist in Modern Times?

Categories:

Featured,
Religion

by James Williamson MD

Overwhelmed with requests for exorcism practitioners, U.S. Roman Catholic bishops recently held a special training workshop in Baltimore to teach the rite. The church signed up 56 bishops and 66 priests for the two-day session, aiming to boost the small group of just five or six American exorcists currently on the church’s books. “There’s this …

Tags: christianity, quackery

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Nov
01

Is God Redundant?

Categories:

Religion,
Science

by James Williamson MD

In his latest book, The Grand Design, Stephen Hawking examines this question. Professor Hawking says that a new series of theories makes a creator of the Universe redundant. This conclusion has led to full-throated outrage and denial from many in the religious community. But there is no reason for believers to be at all surprised …

Tags: atheism, gods, Science

2 comments

Aug
06

Scientific Evidence on Homosexuality

Categories:

Religion,
Science

by James Williamson MD

The Bible’s appraisal of male homosexuality is clear. Leviticus 20:13 states: “If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.” It is not surprising that this sort of pronouncement sometimes leads …

Tags: homosexuality, humanism, Science

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May
22

Dubious Medical Alternatives

Categories:

Science

by James Williamson MD

In all ages, the public has clamored for magical cures, many of which are now recognized in retrospect as irrational or even comical. Many people are unaware, however, that even in this age of effective scientific medicine they are embracing pseudo-scientific therapy that in the future will be looked back on in the same way. …

Tags: alternative medicine, critical thinking, quackery

2 comments

Mar
22

The Freedom Wall

Categories:

by James Williamson MD

George Washington close up from one dollar bill

Demolishing the wall between church and state in order to establish a Christian theocracy is the ultimate goal of the Christian Right. Since they believe their version of Christianity is infallible and the only true means of salvation, they can’t understand why their religion shouldn’t be an integral part of our lives and our government …

Tags: christianity, government, Religion, secularism

4 comments

Feb
27

Are Religion and Science Reconciling?

Categories:

Religion,
Science

by James Williamson MD

According to the drumbeat from religious leaders and the media, religion and science are heading for a profound reconciliation and synthesis that will benefit all humanity. The purpose of this discussion is to expose the irrationality of this contention and state the proper relationship of the two. Let’s deal first with the claims that religion …

Tags: freethought, Religion, Science

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Feb
18

Faith: Religion’s Achilles Heel

Categories:

Religion

by James Williamson MD

The word “faith” is short and appears innocuous. But it has caused much human misery in history and continues to do so presently. A good first step in addressing this problem is to appreciate that “faith,” like most words, has multiple meanings. The type of faith discussed in this essay will be confined to religious …

Tags: Bible, christianity, church and state, evolution, Religion, Science

3 comments

Jul
01

Scientific Conclusion: Prayer Doesn’t Work – Part 2

Categories:

Science

by James Williamson MD

[The second and third large, prospective, randomized, double blind studies that pass muster as valid scientific investigations of the effects of prayer on human health.] The second study that appears to meet the “gold standard” for scientific studies was one entitled “A Randomized, Controlled Trial of the Effects of Remote, Intercessory Prayer on Outcomes in …

Tags: critical thinking, Religion, Science

6 comments

Jun
30

Scientific Conclusion: Prayer Doesn’t Work – Part 1

Categories:

Science

by James Williamson MD

Many religious people want to cling to the ancient belief in the supernatural, including prayer, and yet accept the conclusions and benefits of modern science. They can’t have it both ways. To study the natural world, scientists must have an implicit understanding that science operates only by natural, predictable processes, ones that can not be …

Tags: critical thinking, Religion, Science

5 comments

Florida Freethinkers

Secular Floridians Speaking Out

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