Lots of links to articles about evolution here… In 1859 Charles Darwin published his theory of natural selection amid an explosion of controversy. Like the work of Copernicus in the 16th century revealing the movement of the Earth, Darwin’s idea shook the foundations of the establishment and profoundly altered humanity’s view of its place in the universe. Today evolution is the unifying force in modern biology; it ties together fields as disparate as genetics, microbiology and palaeontology.

The church in Zimbabwe has been dragged into Mugabe’s mire: The imposing Anglican Cathedral of St Mary and All Saints in central Harare was almost deserted on Sunday following months of violent clashes and legal wrangles between rival factions. Zimbabwe’s deep political divide has spilled over into the religious arena. BBC NEWS | World | Africa | Zimbabwe’s turbulent priests. Tags: Zimbabwe, Mugabe, BBC+News, Human+rights

Forget about Obama, Clinton & McCain, and follow something more interesting un the US. The IHEU reports: The 17th World Humanist Congress starts this week in Washington, DC, USA. We hope to bring you live updates from the Congress on the web site. The Congress runs from 6th to 8th June, with the IHEU General Assembly on 5th and 8th June, and other meetings of the American Humanist Association, IHEYO, the International Liaison Committee of Atheists and Freethinkers and other Humanist organizations also taking place.

It’s time to respect the Japanese puffer fish. It nearly killed Homer Simpson, and now PZ Meyers suggests that it has the edge on us when it comes to its genome: Our DNA contains approximately 3.2 billion base pairs, about the amount of information that can be stored on a single CD, but only about 5 percent of that information plays a significant role in constructing the human form. Our human CD contains, in effect, the equivalent of one really good, but short, pop song, with the rest of the tracks being staticky hisses, noise, and repetitions of the same short phrase, over and over again.

I think Disney World sounds more attractive… Amid cell phones ringing, video cams rolling and ice cream melting under the Florida sun, a blood-spattered Jesus stumbles through the crowd on his way to Golgotha, where nasty Roman soldiers strip him, nail him to the cross and crucify him—while perspiring tourists look on in Bermuda shorts. After the resurrection sequence, visitors applaud and line up for a photo op, not with Mickey or Minnie, but a disciple or bloody-handed yet friendly centurion.

There are so many worldwide problems – how do we prioritise them? A group of eminent economists tried to work out a plan… Imagine that you are Bill Gates. Not to daydream about what to buy with a $58 billion fortune, but to consider how, like the Microsoft entrepreneur, you might give much of it away. There are dozens of global challenges that could benefit from your philanthropy, but large as your financial resources are, they are not limitless.

What do the terms “refugee”, “asylum speaker”, “immigrant” and “migrant” mean? Some of them have been used a lot in the media lately, often inaccurately. Rebecca will give us the facts, including statistics, about the situation here in the East of England. She’ll also be able to tell us about some of the refugees and asylum seekers’ stories. We’ll make a collection for the forum’s fund that benefits people suffering hardship, as well as the usual raffle.

We hope you like the new Suffolk Humanists & Secularists site design – jazzier than before, but the site is still full of good stuff! Register today to join our community, whether you are in Suffolk, NE Essex or elsewhere.

An Employment Tribunal in Abergele has today [May 16] unanimously found in favour of a former employee of a Christian charity who was claiming constructive dismissal and discrimination on grounds of religion or belief. The British Humanist Association (BHA), which paid the legal costs of the claimant, today welcomed the Tribunal’s decision and warned religious employers that they can no longer discriminate wholesale in their employment on grounds of religion or belief.

Sign the Brussels Declaration today. As the 50th anniversary of the creation of the European Union approaches, the principles and values on which modern Europe was founded are once again under threat. Recent events have thrown into sharp focus the divisions that exist between those who share our liberal, humanitarian values and those who seek to create a more authoritarian society, or would use our culture of tolerance to promote intolerance and undermine democracy.