A BLOG BY KEITH PORTEOUS WOOD* Do French clerics carry “get out of jail free” cards? In March, a most egregious infraction of secularism in France passed almost unnoticed. Former priest Bernard Preynat was not imprisoned despite having been found guilty of the sexual violence against minors on a huge Read more…
updated of the article: Declaration on the Liberation of Cardinal G Pell 2020 April 8. Australia’s top court has overturned the conviction of the Vatican’s former treasurer for sexually assaulting two boys. But that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s plain sailing from here for him, says Keith Porteous Wood. Cardinal George Read more…
Cardinal George Pell has been released by Australia’s highest court after unanimously quashing his conviction for sexual assault of two boys twenty years ago at a Cathedral. He was serving a six year sentence. The jury had unanimously believed his accuser, one of the boys. The prosecuting QC said of Read more…
Brussels, 2020 March 24. Since several years now, the question of the inclusion in the Constitution of a “system of values” (equality of women and men, the rule of law positive over any religious or philosophical prescription, etc.) [1] in order to supposedly fight against communitarianism. The inclusion of secularism Read more…
PUBLIC STATEMENT Montevido, 2020 March 5. On 2 March, one day after taking office, the President of the Republic Luis Alberto Lacalle Pou participated in a religious ceremony in the cathedral of Montevideo convened by the Episcopal Conference of Uruguay (Catholic Church) and five other religious organizations. The Secretary to Read more…
common struggle : In Quebec as in France, secularity needs you: – In Quebec to institute it – In France to defend it. The more countries that establish secularity in their institutions, the more secularism in France will be protected. Our secular friends in Quebec are facing an unprecedented offensive Read more…
The Circle of Free Thought
The National Federation of Free thought
An international call by personalities has been published for the fiftieth anniversary of the Belgian Center of Secular Action, which was born in 1969. The congress was held in Liège, a traditional fiefdom of Free Thought, then here is “the call from Liège, for a universal secularity”.
Both our associations (CLP/KVD and FNLP) have read about this call in the press and have studied it with interest. French Free Thinkers expressed some surprise when they noticed the presentation of the call was sponsored by Mr. François Hollande, the former president of the French Republic. Belgian Free Thinkers had the same surprise when they understood that one of the distinguished signatories was Mr. Elio di Rupo who was the Prime Minister of the Belgian Monarchy for several years. (more…)
On September 18th 2019, National Secular Society President Keith Porteous Wood, IAFT spokeperson, urged the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) to exert pressure on the Vatican to submit long-overdue reports outlining its response to child sexual abuse in the Catholic Church. (more…)
The Vatican can no longer do anything about it: the scandal can no longer be suppressed, the witnesses are talking, the wall of silence is definitely broken. The Catholic Church is responsible for thousands of crimes, rapes, harassment, physical and mental torture of thousands of children, not only by not denouncing those who commit them, but by protecting them and most often leaving them in a position to commit them again. That is why Libre Pensée requires that all archives concerning these cases be made public and that human justice be respected. (more…)
In Europe and in the whole world a situation is developing today which shows the dangers linked to the place of religions in the political debate. Atheistic, humanistic, secular and of Free Thought organizations have a duty to give their opinion on this subject. Political mobilizations that exploit the public visibility of religions for their own purposes are an example. (more…)