Zachary Moore
Zachary Moore is Coordinator of the Dallas/Fort Worth Coalition of Reason, Executive Director of the Fellowship of Freethought in Dallas, and Treasurer of Camp Quest Texas. In addition, he serves on the Board of Directors of the Foundation Beyond Belief, a global secular charitable foundation.
Which religious and humanist leaders have had a major impact on American politics or culture?
William McKenzie notes in the latest Texas Faith blog that Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. played a significant role in shaping American politics and culture within the past half-century. And to that there is no question, not even from a Humanist like myself. Indeed, King’s “Letter From a Birmingham Jail” is as much of a [...]
What role should religious leaders have in choosing and supporting a political candidate?
A meeting of conservative evangelicals in Texas last weekend included James Dobson, John Hagee, and the leader of group that sponsored Rick Perry’s prayer rally in Houston last year. Presumably, they are attempting to influence the Republican primary race to exclude Mitt Romney from the nomination. And Texas is no stranger to religious leaders mixing [...]
Do those who have rejected traditional religion need something to replace it?
In his New York Times op-ed, Eric Weiner speaks for the so-called “Nones,” those identified as having no religious identity by the Trinity College ARIS poll. He writes critically about religion-as-usual in the United States, currently manifested as a sickening collusion of political influences and interests with Jonathan Edwards’ “Angry God” concept wielded to advance cynical agendas. [...]
How my humanism shaped me in 2011
I began this year with two tremendous responsibilities, and ended it with two more. In January, I was one of the directors not only of the Fellowship of Freethought, but also of Camp Quest Texas. This spring, I also took over from Terry McDonald the role of coordinator for the Dallas/Fort Worth Coalition of Reason, [...]
Why is music central to Christmas?
It is assumed by many believers that Christmas music has some religious significance, perhaps even a Biblical foundation. And yet the most likely candidate scripture for such a justification, the “heavenly host” of angels that greets the shepherds in the second chapter of the Gospel of Luke, is much less a choral performance than a heraldic announcement. And though [...]
Hitchens, Remembered
I first came to know about the late Christopher Hitchens during the “New Atheist” publishing boom, after Sam Harris’ book “The End of Faith” led to Richard Dawkins’ “The God Delusion” and Daniel Dennett’s “Breaking the Spell.” His was the last of the so-called “Four Horsemen” to hit the bookstands, and I can recall viewing [...]
Should sexual immorality disqualify an otherwise capable candidate?
Although the Dallas Morning News’ Wayne Slater doesn’t do his readers the service of defining what he means by “sexual immorality,” his question appears to presuppose a sexual ethic that views marital monogamy as the highest virtue. Given that this appears in a religion-oriented blog, one would assume that this ethic either derives from, or [...]
Faith versus Dogma and Morality
In this week’s Texas Faith, managing editor William McKenzie manages to ask a particularly obtuse question: “Is there a distinction between faith in God and dogma and morality?” One needs only survey the vast and diverse landscape of believers who claim to have faith in the existence of some form of deity to see that [...]
Being Thankful
Skepticon, the regional midwestern conference on skepticism, recently held its fourth iteration in Springfield, Missouri, home of the General Council of the Assemblies of God, the largest Pentecostal Christian denomination. Alix Jules and his family, as well as several other Texans, attended Skepticon this year on behalf of the Fellowship of Freethought in Dallas, and [...]
Should Herman Cain’s accusers step forward?
To be a woman and a victim of sexual harassment is something that I frankly cannot fathom. I can certainly empathize with the emotional and mental scars that victims deal with, and also their sense of righteous indignation when their perpetrator is allowed to continue with his or her life, relatively unscathed. When that (alleged) [...]