On October 18, 2004, Arthur Shelton killed his roommate, Lawrence Cooper, because Cooper said that he didn’t believe in Shelton’s god—even when Shelton pointed a 12-guage shotgun at him. Shelton called Taylor Police and told police that he had killed “the devil himself”. He also called Cooper “the antichrist” and “evil”. When the police dispatcher asked how many times he had shot Cooper, Shelton replied, “Hopefully enough.”
There was no report of Cooper threatening Shelton with violence, taunting him, or anything else—just that Cooper did not believe in the god of the Bible. Shelton took off his shirt, shaved, then came back with his shotgun. He asked Cooper, “How long will it take you to believe in God?”
Cooper replied, “Not until I hear Gabriel blow his horn.” At that point, Arthur Shelton pulled the trigger.
Only Joel Thurtell of the Detroit Free Press has reported the story. His first article appeared on October 28. His follow-up article appeared on November 26.
In the second article, Thurtell wrote that Shelton’s attorney, Leslie Braverman, called the defendant “delusional” and “preoccupied with God”. He filed for a competency hearing, which will take place on December 27.
A call to Taylor police revealed no further details about Shelton’s statements, but some of the language Shelton used is telling. The Bible refers to nonbelievers as “antichrists” three times, instructs believers to refuse to accept nonbelievers in their homes in another verse, and calls for the death of all nonbelievers in yet another.
The psychiatric definition of delusional is “holding a false belief strongly in spite of invalidating evidence, especially as a symptom of mental illness”. If Shelton’s language is an indication of the source of his belief that Cooper was “the antichrist”, Braverman must call the literal interpretation of the Bible false to call Shelton “delusional”. If this argument is used to declare the defendant incompetent, then all fundamentalists who commit murder on this basis have the potential of being declared incompetent to stand trial, setting a dangerous precedent.
Michigan Atheists Newsletter will publish further details on this story as they emerge.
TopWhen someone quietly removed the phrase “In the year of our Lord” from official documents from the governor’s office, it did not make the news.
When Governor Granholm put the phrase back into use, the story appeared everywhere.
What we at Michigan Atheists want to know from Governor Granholm is why it was so important to her to restore a religious, outmoded phrase to official documents? Most of the world no longer uses Anno Domini (the year of our Lord) with years; they use Common Era. The governor had a chance to catch up with the times, dropping archaic and divisive wording from her official documents.
Let’s remind her that “our” in “the year of our Lord” does not apply to all of the citizens of Michigan. Not only is it an affront to Atheists and other godless citizens, but it also considered blasphemy by certain religious sects, a trivialization of the Christian god to others, and to religions that have other gods, an affront to their religious leanings. Let’s let her know that 2005 is the year we stop counting in “Lord years”.
Contact information for the governor may be found at the following link:
http://www.michigan.gov/gov/0,1607,7-168-21995---,00.html
Now more than ever, the wall of separation between state and church needs repair and support.
Legislators want to post the Ten Commandments in public buildings everywhere, including public schools. There were 66 sponsors of the latest version of this legislation, which has stalled in anticipation of the Supreme Court’s ruling on the issue. They are attempting to pass it off as a historical document; they’re saying that it is part of the foundation of the country. So, not only are they trying to post a religious document in public buildings, but they are also presenting a false view of history.
Creationists have been successful at lobbying legislators in some areas of the United States to post disclaimers on science textbooks, mostly biology texts, reducing evolution to “an unproven theory”, and opening the door for versions of creationism disguised in scientific jargon, such as intelligent design. Legislation currently exists in Michigan for this same purpose.
Funding of faith-based social programs has run amok all over the United States. In Michigan, religious organizations such as the Salvation Army have taken over drug rehabilitation programs. A godless citizen seeking social help in Michigan would be hard pressed to find it from a nonreligious source.
Reproductive education continues to suffer attacks from the Michigan Legislature. Vital information is increasingly withheld from students, increasing the risks of sexually transmitted diseases and unwanted pregnancy. Abstinence-only education has had the opposite of the intended effect in many regions throughout the world, according to follow-up studies. In addition to the Dark Ages approach to sex, Michigan still requires two members of local clergy to be on any decision-making body regarding sex education curricula in public schools.
Fights all over the country have ensued regarding the refusal of providing health care, especially reproductive health services, on the basis of a provider’s religious leanings. Michigan is no different.
Students of theology and divinity are now allowed public grant and scholarship money in our state.
Separation of state and church is under constant assault. We need help in any form readers can give. Here’s how you can help:
If you’re into the social activities, protests are a great way of getting together with your fellow Atheists. All protests in recent memory have been peaceful, meeting with little or no resistance. Even when a group of us invaded the Northwest Baptist Church in Farmington Hills to disrupt a seminar called “Truth vs. Science”, we had only one person who tried anything that wasn’t civil, and it was brought under control quickly--by both sides. After the incident, most people present stayed to talk for a few hours. There was also this ten-year-old boy at our protest in Caro who showed us his middle finger…but we also had an adult member of the town join us while the protest was progress. The only things that could make our protests more successful is your presence!
Please help us in any way you can.
TopIn December, Michigan Atheists will be holding two of our regular events:
The Michigan Atheists Newsletter is an electronic publication that publishes news concerning the separation of state and church and the civil rights of Atheists and other godless citizens. Recipients of the newsletter have subscribed by sending e-mail to Greg Reich, the editor, at michiganatheistsnewsletter@comcast.net, with “subscribe” in the subject line. All articles in the newsletter are the intellectual property of Greg Reich and Michigan Atheists, unless otherwise specified. Articles may be reprinted or forwarded, as long as credit is given to Michigan Atheists, Greg Reich, or both.
If you would like to submit an article, an opinion, or a news idea, please send a message to Greg Reich at michiganatheistsnewsletter@comcast.net. The criteria for publication will be based on relevance to separation of state and church and the civil rights of Atheists and other godless citizens, clarity, conciseness, and relevance to current events.
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