Soon To Appear Over Lincoln Tunnel

The above image will soon appear on a billboard over NYC's Lincoln Tunnel. Funded by the American Atheists, the billboard is a follow-up to a similar one from last year which spawned furious Christian editorializing and an answering message from the Catholic League at the other end of the tunnel. American Atheists says the campaign is intended to help closeted atheists get "out of the pews" and into the light.

Some atheists don't even know they are atheists, while others are fully aware but remain closeted. This is why we ask all church-goers to consider honestly their theological beliefs this season and ask if and why they are pretending to believe the unbelievable. It is our hope that these atheists will come out of the closet, come clean to their friends and families and start living an honest life of reason and rationality.

The gay parallels are heavy, huh? American Atheists stress that they have no issue with celebrating Christmas "with gifts, trees, singing and (most of all) family togetherness." None of that requires the pretense of believing in God, they say. Celebrating a religious holiday while being a militant atheist is an issue I'll admit I struggle with. But yes, I'll be home in Orlando once again this year, even though my increasingly radicalized mother would likely be OK with it if I chose another time of year for my visits.