I was watching the news the other night, and a story about signs on buses that read "Don't believe in God? You are not alone." came on. They were saying that the signs came down due to many requests from callers rejecting the signs. The story sparked an interest in me, so I went to their website and poked around. The website didn't seem to say much, but then I found the "about" link. I was very surprised to see what it said.
They call it "The Out Campaign." I caught on very quickly that out is God. Here is what they stand for:
Atheists have always been at the forefront of rational thinking and beacons of enlightenment, and now you can share your idealism by being part of the OUT Campaign.
Atheists are far more numerous than most people realize. COME OUT of the closet! You'll feel liberated, and your example will encourage others to COME OUT too. (Don't "out" anybody else, wait for them to OUT themselves when they are ready to do so.)
The OUT Campaign allows individuals to let others know they are not alone. It can also be a nice way of opening a conversation and help to demolish the negative stereotypes of atheists. Let the world know that we are not about to go away and that we are not going to allow those that would condemn us to push us into the shadows.
As more and more people join the OUT Campaign, fewer and fewer people will feel intimidated by religion. We can help others understand that atheists come in all shapes, sizes, colours and personalities. We are laborers and professionals. We are mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, sisters, brothers and grandparents. We are human (we are primates) and we are good friends and good citizens. We are good people who have no need to cling to the supernatural.
It is time to let our voices be heard regarding the intrusion of religion in our schools and politics. Atheists along with millions of others are tired of being bullied by those who would force their own religious agenda down the throats of our children and our respective governments. We need to KEEP OUT the supernatural from our moral principles and public policies. It is time to step up and. STAND OUT
As a Christian, my heart is broken for those who choose to live otherwise. I do understand that both God and the devil are on the move. What they are saying is simply foolish and scary. But I can offer some ammunition:
Romans 8:38-39
For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
But we still have to do our part. We have to open our mouths and speak out—tell the truth because it is possibly the only reason why we are still here. We are Jesus' ambassadors. Here's one more verse for good measure:
Matthew 5:13
"You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet.
