Podcast
Thank God I'm Atheist
Hosted by tgiatheist · EN
Frank and Dan's off-the-cuff conversations focus on current events cast through the lens of their shared atheism. Episodes include a rundown of six news stories from the prior week, and the show occasionally features interviews with writers, thinkers, and leaders in the atheist community. As former Mormons, the hosts provide insight into the often misunderstood religious minority.
55episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Playing the Odds with God
Jan 1601:11:31Tap to summarizeIn a calculated hedge against hell, Dilbert creator Scott Adams announces a death-bed conversion to Christianity, explicitly framing it as Pascal's Wager—a cynical, calculated play for the afterlife. Christians celebrate, atheists groan, and we unpack why this story is catnip for religious propaganda, why the logic collapses instantly, and why deathbed conversions remain one of Christianity's favorite—and flimsiest—victory laps. (Adams passed away at age 68 from prostate cancer after we recorded the show.) Then: the Pope condemns medical aid in dying after Illinois legalizes it, a lawyer is fined $400,000 for warning a school about an accused priest, the U.S. Defense Secretary pushes Christianity deeper into the military, China cracks down on underground Christian churches, Israel prepares to relocate a so-called "lost tribe" from India, and the LDS Church quietly dismantles its all-female Temple Square mission. Support the show: www.thankgodimatheist.com/donate
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Trump Signed a Painting of Jesus. Seriously.
Jan 901:04:28Tap to summarizeWhat happens when Trump desecrates a painting of Jesus? Billionaires line up to buy it. At a Mar-a-Lago New Year's Eve party, Trump signs a painting of Christ—offering a very public glimpse at how faith, money, and power now intersect. From there, it's a week of religion doing what it does best: embarrassing itself in public. A failed doomsday prophet in Ghana finds out there are consequences when the apocalypse doesn't show up, Iran's theocratic regime faces mass protests fueled by hunger and economic collapse, and conservatives melt down after New York City's new mayor commits the ultimate sin—taking his oath of office on the "wrong" holy book. Plus, Marjorie Taylor Greene stumbles into a moment of clarity about Trump's faith, Chick-fil-A makes things awkward again, and we ask—once more—what any of this is actually doing to the country.
Transcribe →Grading Honestly Is Apparently a Fireable Offense
Jan 201:10:34Tap to summarizeA University of Oklahoma instructor gave a student a failing grade — and lost their job over it. The reason? Religion entered the chat. We unpack how a routine college assignment turned into a culture-war flashpoint, why academic standards suddenly became optional, and how religious grievance keeps getting rewarded when it collides with higher education. Also this week: Trump administration officials decide government social media accounts are a fine place to preach Christianity, Sarah Huckabee Sanders issues a Christmas proclamation that sounds more like a sermon, and a Colorado megachurch leans hard into child-trafficking panic to push anti-trans ballot initiatives. Plus new Pew numbers on religion in America, a rare LDS feel-good story, listener mail, and yet another reminder that moral panic never really goes away — it just finds new targets.
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The Catholic School Auschwitz Float
Nov 14Tap to summarizeA Catholic school in Pennsylvania put the words "Arbeit Macht Frei"—the infamous phrase from the Auschwitz gate—on the back of its Halloween float. Frank and Dan try to understand how something this shocking made it through so many adults without anyone realizing what it meant, and what it says about religious education and historical ignorance. Also this week: a "family values" lawmaker caught up in the Ashley Madison data leak, ICE detains an Episcopal priest who's legally in the U.S., and the Pope shuts down the "Mary as co-redemptrix" movement. Plus, Bangladesh clerics push to ban music in schools, and churches fail a TikTok test on helping hungry families. Finally, the guys talk about the outrage over New York City's new Muslim mayor, why so many people equate "Muslim" with "terrorist," and what that says about the fear that still drives American religion. 👉 Subscribe for weekly episodes of "Thank God I'm Atheist" 💰Support the show! www.patreon.com/tgiatheist
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Sanctified Nonsense #701
May 27, 2025Tap to summarizeFrank is joined by guest host Rachel to unpack a week's worth of religious overreach, political absurdity, and moral panic dressed up as righteousness. From Oklahoma's conspiracy-laced curriculum changes to France's proposed hijab ban for girls under 15, this episode explores how authority figures use "values" to mask control. Plus: the Pope's childhood home might be seized, Rushdie's attacker is sentenced, and new data reveals why more people are leaving belief behind. 👉 Don't forget to subscribe, leave a review, and visit thankgodimatheist.com for more content and ways to support the show.
Transcribe →The Sin of Empathy #692
Mar 25, 202501:18:50Tap to summarizeCatholic Archbishop accuses Satanists of stealing consecrated host, Arizona jumps on school chaplain bandwagon, school board amends religious release policy, evangelicals don't believe in science (surprise!), federal judge in Utah sides with psychedelic sacrament group in freedom of religion case, LDS podcasters in trouble with church after being a little too honest on their show, and the terrifying stance of many conservative Christians against empathy.
Transcribe →Shmiracles #691
Mar 19, 202501:01:42Tap to summarizeMinneapolis cancels religious event on government property, Southern Baptist investigation update, pastor regrets money-back guarantee on tithes, Oklahoma bible update, Catholic Church faces setback in efforts to keep clergy sex abuse secret, water fraudsters held accountable, and what to do when someone starts telling you about a miracle.
Transcribe →Measles, Not Needles #690
Mar 11, 202501:15:48Tap to summarizeGay marriage denier Kim Davis faces another legal setback, airline attempts to serve non-Kosher food to Jewish passengers, Islam is the fastest growing religion in American prisons, Missouri tax break, legislative roundup, a new book, and our latest take on the measles outbreak in Texas.
Transcribe →Christians in Need of Christ #689
Mar 4, 202501:14:15Tap to summarize'Cussing Pastor' is dead, a tale of two skizzes, the wedding cake strikes again, a congressman has a message for the soon to be unemployed, decline of US Christianity slows, some kind of good news from Oklahoma (for once), and the role of Christianity in America (and how we think we're fine without it).
Transcribe →Plural Marriage Strikes Again #688
Feb 25, 202501:07:42Tap to summarizeChristians work to get a cross on the moon, mystic uses own blood for bleeding madonna statue, measles outbreak hits religious community hard, gay imam shot and killed, comparing religious nationalism around the world, renaming the West Bank, and the Mormon Church revises cartoons meant to teach children about polygamy.
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