Britons Seek "De-baptism'" from Christianity

In perhaps yet another sign that the toxic fundamentalist, hate based version of Christianity which seems to dominate the news cycles is driving people away from religion, an entrepreneur in the United Kingdom has found a market in those seeking to severe ties with religion. The "certificates of de-baptism" sell for the equivalent of $4.35. While the news coverage of the certificates focuses on those being marketed in the UK, others individuals in other parts of the world are likewise seeking to erase their ties to organized religion. The trend is also noteworthy since the Christianists always argue that religion is an immutable characteristic when it clearly is not. Here are some highlights from Brietbart.com:

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More than 100,000 Britons have recently downloaded "certificates of de-baptism" from the Internet to renounce their Christian faith. The initiative launched by a group called the National Secular Society (NSS) follows atheist campaigns here and elsewhere, including a London bus poster which triggered protests by proclaiming "There's probably no God." "We now produce a certificate on parchment and we have sold 1,500 units at three pounds (4.35 dollars, 3.20 euros) a pop," said NSS president Terry Sanderson.

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De-baptism organisers say the initiative is a response to what they see as increasing stridency from churches -- the latest last week when Pope Benedict XVI stirred global controversy on a trip to AIDS-ravaged Africa by saying condom use could further spread of the disease. "The Catholic Church is so politically active at the moment that I think that is where the hostility is coming from," said Sanderson. "In Catholic countries there is a very strong feeling of wanting to punish the church by leaving it."

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In Britain, where government figures say nearly 72 percent of the population list themselves as Christian, Sanderson feels this "hostility" is fueling the de-baptism movement.

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De-baptism movements have already sprung up in other countries. In Spain, the high court ruled in favor of a man from Valencia, Manuel Blat, saying that under data protection laws he could have the record of his baptism erased, according to a report in the International Herald Tribune. Similarly, the Italian Union of Rationalists and Agnostics (UAAR) won a legal battle over the right to file for de-baptism in 2002, according to media reports. The group's website carries a "de-baptism" form to facilitate matters.

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Elsewhere, an Argentinian secularist movement is running a "Collective Apostasy" campaign, using the slogan "Not in my name" (No en mi nombre).

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I hope James Dobson, Benedict XVI, Tony Perkins and other hate driven Christianists are pleased with their handiwork of making Christianity an unwanted belief system.