ATHEISTS WERE arrogant “because we do not believe that the entire universe was created for our benefit”, Michael Nugent, chairman of Atheist Ireland told the convention.
They were arrogant because they did not believe “that the most powerful being ever created a universe of over 100 billion galaxies, each with over 100 billion stars like our sun, which existed for 14 billion years, and then picked one of the 100 billion galaxies and picked one of the 100 billion stars in that galaxy, and picked one planet revolving around that star and of the million species on that planet he picked one animal member of all those species and said: ‘I’ve really got to tell that guy to stop gathering sticks on the Sabbath’.”
Mr Nugent thanked delegates for the success of the convention, despite attempts to sabotage it by false e-mails saying it was called off. A man also falsely ordered in loads of pizzas and 11 bunches of flowers to the convention. Later the man inadvertently confirmed he had ordered the pizzas and flowers and would now be billed via the gardaí.
“It’s the sort of thing one gets used to in Ireland,” Mr Nugent said, and referred to those who, in 2009, saw “Their Lady” on a tree stump in Rathkeale, Co Limerick. He recalled a comment at the time that “if she looked like that it’s no wonder she was a virgin”.
He recalled how when an atheist woman died in Donegal recently there was nowhere to bury her except a municipal graveyard in Derry. When asked where in the graveyard she was buried, the reply was “the Protestant section”.
PATSY McGARRY