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Fundamentalist Christian Schools Fundamentalist Christian Schools Is the Sexual Revolution Over? An Interview with Sol Gordon and Rob Tielman Sidney Hook Debates Rabbi Homnick on Jewish Fundamentalism Also: Dr. Benjamin Spock, Konstantin Kolenda, Matthew les Spetter, Michael Ruse, Betty McCollister, Edd Doerr on Fetal "Personhood," and Peter Popoff's Broken Window! FALL 1987, VOL. 7, NO. 4 Contents ISSN 0272-0701 3 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR 19 EDITORIALS 20 ON THE BARRICADES 61 CLASSIFIED 62 IN THE NAME OF GOD 22 VIEWPOINTS Papal Stakes, Tom Flynn / The Judge and Adam's Navel, Betty McCollister / Fetal "Personhood" and Abortion Rights, Edd Doerr / Judge Hand Erred in Holding that Secular Humanism Is a Religion, Ronald Lindsay FUNDAMENTALIST CHRISTIAN SCHOOLS: A NATIONAL SCANDAL 4 A Call for Public Scrutiny The Editors 5 The Truth and Consequences of Fundamentalist Christian Schooling Alan Peshkin 11 Children Are Not Chattel Kathy L. Collins 12 Reading, Writing, and Religion Mary Beth Gehrman 15 Selections from Fundamentalist School Textbooks 17 The World According to the Reverend Barney Lee AN EXCHANGE 28 Hook Is Mired in Secular Confusion Yaakov Homnick 29 A Common Moral Universe? Sidney Hook 32 The Challenge of Literalism Harry White A FREE INQUIRY INTERVIEW 34 Is the Sexual Revolution Over? An Interview with Sol Gordon and Rob Tielman ARTICLES 41 The Imagination: A Double-Edged Sword Linda Emery 47 Peter Popoffs Broken Window David Alexander 49 James Randi and The Faith-Healers Robert Basil PERSONAL PATHS TO HUMANISM 50 Human and World Care Benjamin Spock 52 Hope for Living Matthew les Spetter 53 The Testament of a Humanist Konstantin Kolenda BOOKS 54 Argument Without End? Michael Ruse 57 Community Was the Curriculum Robert Basil Benjamin Spock't article was adapted with permission from The Courage of Conviction, edited by Philip Berman, published in hardcover by Dodd, Mead. and Company and in paperback by Ballantine Books. Editor: Paul Kurtz Senior Editors: Vern Bullough, Gerald Larue Associate Editors: Doris Doyle, Steven L. Mitchell, Lee Nisbet, Gordon Stein Managing Editor: Andrea Szalanski Executive Editor: Robert Basil Contributing Editors: Lionel Abel, author, critic; Robert S. Alley, professor of humanities, University of Richmond; Paul Beattie, president, Fellowship of Religious Humanists; Jo-Ann Boydston, director, Dewey Center; Paul Edwards, professor of philosophy, Brooklyn College; Albert Ellis, director, Institute for Rational-Emotive Therapy; Roy P. Fairfield, social scientist, Union Graduate School; Joseph Fletcher, theologian, University of Virginia Medical School; Antony Flew, philosopher, Reading University, England; R. Joseph Hoffmann, chairman, Department of Philosophy and Religion, Hartwick College, Oneonta, N.Y.; Sidney Hook, professor emeritus of philosophy, NYU; Marvin Kohl, philosopher, State University of New York College at Fredonia; Jean Kotkin, executive director, American Ethical Union; Ronald A. Lindsay, attorney, Washington, D.C.; Delos B. McKown, professor of philosophy, Auburn University; Howard Radest, director, Ethical Culture Schools; Robert Rimmer, author; Svetozar Stojanovic, professor of philosophy, University of Belgrade; Thomas Szasz, psychiatrist, Upstate Medical Center, Syracuse; V. M. Tarkunde, Supreme Court Judge, India; Richard Taylor, professor of philosophy, Union College; Sherwin Wine, founder, Society for Humanistic Judaism Editorial Associates: Thomas Flynn, Thomas Franczyk, James Martin-Diaz Executive Director of CODESH, Inc.: Jean Millholland Public Relations: Tim Madigan Systems Manager: Richard Seymour Typesetting: Paul E. Loynes Art Director: Alain Kugel Audio Technician: Vance Vigrass Staff. Darrell Crawford, Steven Karr, Jacqueline Livingston, Valerie Marvin, Anthony Nigro, Alfreda Pidgeon FREE INQUIRY (ISSN 0272-0701) is published quarterly by the Council for Democratic and Secular Humanism (CODESH, Inc.), a nonprofit corporation, 3159 Bailey Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14215. Phone (716) 834-2921. Copyright 01987 by CODESH, Inc. Second-class postage paid at Buffalo, New York, and at additional mailing offices. National distribution by International Periodicals Distributors, San Diego, California. Subscription rates: $20.00 for one year, $35.00 for two years, $48.00 for three years, $3.75 for single copies. Address subscription order, changes of address, and advertising to: FREE INQUIRY, Box 5, Buffalo, NY 14215-0005. Manuscripts, letters, and editorial inquiries should be addressed to: The Editor, FREE INQUIRY, Box 5, Buffalo, NY 14215-0005. All manuscripts should be accompanied by two additional copies and a stamped, self-addressed envelope. Opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of the editors or publisher. of words and images. That being the case, I choose to believe in a theistic cosmos, a universe completely pervaded by conscious- LETTERS TO THE EDITOR ness, in which my human self is a vehicle by which the Anentropic—i.e., the one thing that would not have been accidental—can "play" at games of order and chaos. That A Positive Defmition Bang theory is certainly clear, concise, and choice is an act of faith, not blind belief, of Humanism fascinating to read. However, his attempt to but an active choice in an unprovable matter. conclude that the observed physical proper- I choose that one because it enables me to Robert Detzell makes a good point (FI, ties of black holes "prove" anything with behave as a humanist without suppression Summer 1987), regarding my definition of respect to the existence of supra-physical and of my spirituality, and because I find it humanism, and I offer one that starts with pretemporal conscious will confirms my esthetically much more beautiful as drama, a more positive emphasis: opinion that neither the smallest possible more fulfilling as adventure, and ever so "Naturalistic humanism is a life-affirming time-space continuum (the Planck-time much more loving and joyful ontologically. philosophy with supreme commitment to the sphere?) nor the largest extant continuum It also enables me to easily detect and avoid welfare and happiness of all humanity, with (our present universe?) can be of itself the mind-traps of the various oil-of-pilgrim no belief in supernatural entities and with "proof' or "disproof" of the existence of sellers who go about their business in the reliance on the methods of reason and sci- "God." world in the name of religion. ence, democracy and compassion." It appears to me that, while the "scientific Like Stenger, I doubt very much that Since humanism supports many high method demands excessive conservatism," it proof of God or a Grand Design will ever ethical and social values, its "main thrust" is need not necessarily mandate atheism. Sci- be found; unlike him, I doubt that empirical certainly not "to put down" God and im- entific fundamentalism can be as narrow a knowledge of pre-universe or extra-universe mortality. Nonetheless, humanism remains mind-space as the biblical turf, and attempts conditions can be found by any means of incomplete unless it rejects these two reli- to force science to prove any theological examining the inside of the bubble. If there gious concepts as inconsistent with a scien- notion, including atheism, will most often were no photons until after Planck time, tific view of man and the universe. While leave one up against the limitations of one's then "Let there be light!" is as far back as we gladly accept some of the ethical ideas own definitions. we can see. Clearly, whether as Stenger's of Christianity, we must make clear that we For example, Stenger's conclusion, atheistic "accident," or as the theistic-deci- disagree with its theology. Otherwise, "There could not have been any Grand sion process I have suggested, this new pic- humanism loses a basic part of its philo- Design at the Planck time" could be valid ture of the creation will never agree with sophic structure. only if qualified this way: "if such Design the primitive mythological image of Judeo- were stipulated as formulated of the sub- Christian tradition. But as for insisting that, Corliss Lamont stance of the extant universe." If our uni- because science confounds Abraham, there New York, N.Y. verse is an expanding bubble within which is no God... I would far prefer to believe all of our experience is contained, and from that Abraham was a self-deluded, guilt-cult Secular Humanism's Moral which all of our evidential information must huckster whom time has inflated to idol- Creativity be taken, we have no particular reason to hood, and that God is a physicist. assume that all of the "exterior" Void was Congratulations on your editorial "The Af- or still is in a state of total entropy. James Nathan Post firmations of Humanism: A Statement of My conclusion is not intended to lend Las Cruces, N.M. Principles and Values" (FI, Spring 1987). I weight to the notion of Grand Design, nor was also moved by Robert Basil's "Friend- in any way to support the clearly-deluded Explaining Reincarnation ship Center Report" and the articles by Genesis junkies' absurd Melodrama-in-the- Robert Meyer and James Christopher on Garden scenario. To begin with, the notion Paul Edwards's case against reincarnation Secular Sobriety Groups, which appeared that all post-Planck-time events in the ex- can hardly be called a "free inquiry." His in the same issue. Secular humanists, it panding black hole we call Home have come articles are pervaded by the same tone fun- seems to me, in the past have run the risk of about as the random selections made
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