Maya Bohnhoff

Author's details

Name: Maya Bohnhoff
Date registered: June 23, 2010
URL: http://www.mayabohnhoff.com
AIM: kaath09

Biography

... is a professional writer, editor, recording / performing artist, and Baha'i. She lives in San Jose, CA.

Latest posts

  1. Why Religion 7: The Identity Thing — May 16, 2012
  2. Why Religion 6: God of the Month Club — May 2, 2012
  3. Why Religion 5: Linus van Pelt and the Great Blanket — April 17, 2012
  4. Why Religion 4: Pie in the Sky By and By… — April 11, 2012
  5. Why Religion 3: An Express Train to Valhalla — March 21, 2012

Most commented posts

  1. It’s All About Light — 116 comments
  2. Your Faith is a Joke — 22 comments
  3. Questions from an Atheist #3: God’s Address — 18 comments
  4. Where the Rubber Meets the Road — 18 comments
  5. Why Religion? — 12 comments

Author's posts listings

May 16

Why Religion 7: The Identity Thing

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Muslim woman with Qur'an

As with mostly strongly held beliefs or formative influences, religion is part of a believer’s identity. Some people seem to find that peculiar or irrational or just plain incomprehensible. But how peculiar is it really, when one considers all of the things we humans attach our identity to: jobs, professions, gender, sexual orientation, skin color, …

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5 comments

May 02

Why Religion 6: God of the Month Club

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high-mass

Some folks suppose that religion is, to all (or at least most) religionists, a social club, or a means of maintaining social status. Intelligent politicians and clergymen (yes, some will complain those are oxymorons) are especially suspected of not really believing, but only claiming to believe for the sake of political position. I’ve read numerous …

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1 comment

Apr 17

Why Religion 5: Linus van Pelt and the Great Blanket

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Meet_linus_big

This philosophy suggests that religion is a security blanket. Religious people have Linus van Pelt’s disease and are unable to give up their blankies and join the adults. The reason religious folks cling to their beliefs, this viewpoint asserts, is merely for the comfort and meaning it brings to their lives. That’s the basic belief …

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4 comments

Apr 11

Why Religion 4: Pie in the Sky By and By…

by

krishna

A recurring theme I hear in the commentary and conversation of some anti-theists is that religion is not about life on earth in the here and now, but focuses its entire attention on the afterlife. This, it is supposed, leads to the belief among the majority of believers that nothing we do here matters and …

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Mar 21

Why Religion 3: An Express Train to Valhalla

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King of Heaven

I often come across the assumption that I view my religion as a vehicle—the express train to Valhalla. This scenario proposes that I am concerned chiefly with my personal salvation and am obedient to the laws of my faith for that reason alone. To be fair, there are believers who are chiefly concerned with their …

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2 comments

Mar 14

Why Religion 2: Religion as Accessory

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Flickr-Purse-and-Shoes-by-...love-Maegan

Last time, I gave an overview of a number of secular views of religion that I’ve encountered in my travels. I’d like to poke at these ideas a bit in the hope of maybe increasing understanding among both religious and secularist readers. Those of you who are religious, I’m hoping, might have an aha moment …

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4 comments

Mar 07

Why Religion?

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opel-agila-high-heel-shoes-1

I, and many folks I know who would describe themselves as religious (aka, a person of faith, or spiritual) are puzzled by the reactions to religion by some of our secularist and atheist acquaintances. It’s not that we don’t grok people’s disgust with the things that have been done in the name of religion. We …

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12 comments

Jan 18

Science, Religion, and Myth #12: Is Dogmatism Exclusive to Religion?

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J Harlan Bretz

I’ve frequently heard the sentiment expressed that dogmatism is a feature (or even a hallmark) of “the religious mindset”. (I’ll let the reader decide whether the presumption that there is such a thing as “The Religious Mindset” is, itself, a dogmatic statement.) The observation is often part of a larger assertion about the essential difference …

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3 comments

Jan 11

Science, Religion and Myth #11: Religion Chained—Science Unleashed

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kepler

“The Scientific Revolution liberated science from religion. The new science separated spirit from matter. Reason and experiment replaced revelation as the source of knowledge of the world. After the Scientific Revolution, it was inevitable that God would eventually be pushed entirely out of nature and that science would deny the existence of God.” — Margaret …

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2 comments

Jan 04

I, Borg: A Maya’s-eye-View of Where Science Meets Faith

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Well, it’s official: I am now a cyborg. On December 2nd, 2011, I joined the ranks of Darth Vader, Luke Skywalker, John-Luc Picard and Seven of Nine (which is, by the way, my husband’s new nickname for me). I prefer to think of myself as the Borg Queen. How did this come about? Long story.

2 comments

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