Newsweek
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Oct 22, 2008 01:17 PM
By Joanna Heath
The battle between atheism and
religion is breaching some unlikely ground in Britain: the iconic
London bus. On October 21, the Atheist Bus Campaign announced a drive
to raise funds for two weeks of advertisements on the capital's red
buses, bearing the slogan: "There's probably no God. Now stop worrying
and enjoy your life."
The campaign was conceived as a response to advertisements on London
transport by jesussaid.org, which reminds that non-believers will "spend all eternity in torment in hell."
The Campaign has the support of Richard Dawkins, best-selling
author of the controversial book "The God Delusion," which, when it was
published in 2006, sparked fierce debate in Britain, where only a
minority of political party leaders are committed churchgoers, and 20
percent of the population do not believe in God.
If the bus advertisements are successfully rolled out in January, the
argument is likely to heat up again. For now, the religious community
is mixed in its response. The Methodist church thanked Dawkins for
encouraging a "continued interest in God." Fundamentalist lobby group
Christian Voice knowingly suggested that the ads would be "just the
right height" for graffiti.
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