(Note: from what I’ve read from various bloggers, including the Friendly Atheist, the response has been more mixed than the 99% in favor of the plaque the FFRF has been hearing from, but kudos to them anyway for the huge membership increase.):

The response from Christians (especially Bill O’Reilly!) to the Freedom From Religion Foundation’s Winter Solstice sign in the Washington state capitol in Olympia has been over-the-top negative and intolerant, to the point of theft and vandalism. In addition to recognizing the winter solstice, the real reason for the season, our sign says “There are no gods, no devils, no heaven or hell. There is only our natural world. Religion is but myth and superstition that hardens hearts and enslaves minds.” Although a small minority of educated believers, while disagreeing with our message, does support our freedom to express our views, the overwhelming majority considers our message to be an inappropriate affront to their celebration of the holidays and want to see it removed.

It’s almost the opposite with the atheists and agnostics we hear from. Based on the emails and phone calls I receive from nonbelievers, the support for our sign is about 95% positive. Annie Laurie, who sees more responses than I do, says it is 99% positive. Many FFRF members have asked for a replica of the sign that they can frame or display in their own yards. The Foundation has been signing up hundreds of new members as a result of this one controversy alone.

A small minority of atheists and agnostics (not all members of the Freedom From Religion Foundation) think the wording on our sign should be changed. Some think it is too strong. Others think it is not strong enough!

That wording was written by FFRF founder and president emerita Anne Gaylor, which offers a nice balance of celebration and criticism. Any one of the 13,000 members of the Freedom From Religion Foundation might have come up with a different wording, but Anne’s lovely version has stood the test of time. For the 13th year in a row, those exact thoughts have appeared in the Wisconsin capitol building, and although there was some early theft and vandalism, it has stood virtually unmolested for most of that time. We have heard that it has become a tourist attraction!

Our sign is an “equal time” protest. It would not be there if there were not religious signs and symbols in those buildings in the first place. If believers are going to use state property to promote their views, then we nonbelievers insist on a place at the table. We are not destroying their symbols or interfering with their private freedom to worship or express their views. We are simply reminding the country that there are millions of good Americans who do not believe in a god or celebrate Christmas. Christians do not own the month of December. This season of the year is a natural occurrence, the winter solstice being the day of shortest sunlight in the northern hemisphere. Long before Christianity, humans have celebrated this time of year with festivals of light, feasts, evergreens, songs, and family gatherings. Christians don’t own the franchise. We are happy to share it with them.

Some people think our sign is an insult, and that we should avoid hurting feelings this time of the year. But if our measured criticism of religion is inappropriate, then certainly the Nativity Scene, which suggests that we are so evil that we need a Savior in order to avoid the tortures of hell, is a much deeper insult to human nature. If they insist on attacking us, we will defend ourselves. If they will remove their creches and religious messages from state property, we will be happy to remove our sign.

Ultimately, what we all want is a world with less violence and more understanding. The Freedom From Religion Foundation is taking advantage of our wonderful American freedoms to educate the public about how we can achieve that, by resisting religious divisiveness and advising: “At this season of the Winter Solstice may reason prevail.”

— Dan Barker

I honor Dan Barker’s work to call attention to the dark side of religion.  Month after month, he and his wife Annie Laurie Gaylor defend kids who are tormented at school because they aren’t Christians.  They give voice to young freethinkers.  They file anti-discrimination lawsuits.  They labor to keep science classes rigorous and social services fair. They compile news articles about fraud and violence and sexual abuse committed in the names of gods—and they can show you stacks of evidence that Catholic priests are not outliers.

I honor their work so much that I support it, and I gave up my Monday evening to interview Dan for a Seattle Community Access show called Moral Politics.  But, still, I have to ask, wasn’t the first sentence enough?

Throughout recorded history, winter solstice has been a time to celebrate.  Ancient agricultural cultures gave sacred significance to the return of light, the budding of new plant and animal life, a new cycle of plenty.  Their festivals had names such as Saturnalia, Yule and Lucia.  Some of them are celebrated to this day.  It was the special significance of the winter solstice that caused the Christian church to designate it as the birthday of Jesus.  Not only did it have the perfect connotations, representing as it did, the death and resurrection of the sun, it was already established as a birthday of gods. Prior to or during the time of Jesus, the Roman Attis, the Greek Dionysus, the Persian Mithra, and the Egyptian Osiris all had their birthdays celebrated on December 25.  Solstice really is the reason for the season.

I wish that the FFRF had simply given secular voice to the wonder we all feel when, in the dark of winter, we experience the promise of warmth and beauty and new life.