Constitutions of 7 US states ban atheists from public office:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discrimination_against_atheists

[i]Arkansas: "No person who denies the being of a God shall hold any
office in the civil departments of this State, nor be competent to testify
as a witness in any Court."
Maryland: "That no religious test ought ever to be required as
a qualification for any office of profit or trust in this State, other
than a declaration of belief in the existence of God; nor shall
the Legislature prescribe any other oath of office than the oath
prescribed by this Constitution.”
Mississippi: "No person who denies the existence of a Supreme Being
shall hold any office in this state."
North Carolina: "The following persons shall be disqualified for
office: First, any person who shall deny the being of Almighty God."
South Carolina: "No person who denies the existence of a Supreme
Being shall hold any office under this Constitution."
Tennessee: "No person who denies the being of God, or a future state
of rewards and punishments, shall hold any office in the civil department
of this state."
Texas: "No religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to
any office, or public trust, in this State; nor shall any one be excluded
from holding office on account of his religious sentiments, provided
he acknowledge the existence of a Supreme Being."

Pennsylvania: "No person who acknowledges the being of a God and
a future state of rewards and punishments shall, on account of his
religious sentiments, be disqualified to hold any office or place of trust
or profit under this Commonwealth."

Compare this to:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persecution_of_Christians

Persecution of Christians

Current situation (1989 to present)

According to Pope Benedict XVI, Christians are the most persecuted group in the contemporary world. The Holy See has reported that over 100,000 Christians are violently killed annually because of some relation to their faith. According to the World Evangelical Alliance, over 200 million Christians are denied fundamental human rights solely because of their faith. Of the 100-200 million Christians under assault, the majority are persecuted in Muslim-dominated nations.

Every year, the Christian non-profit organization Open Doors publishes a list of the top 50 countries where persecution of Christians for religious reasons is worst. The 2013 list has the following countries as its top 10 offenders:

1. North Korea
2. Saudi Arabia
3. Afghanistan
4. Iraq
5. Somalia
6. Maldives
7. Mali
8. Iran
9. Yemen
10. Eritrea

Originally posted by Suzianne
Compare this to:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persecution_of_Christians

Persecution of Christians

Current situation (1989 to present)

According to Pope Benedict XVI, Christians are the most persecuted group in the contemporary world. The Holy See has reported that over 100,000 Christians are violently killed annually because of some relation to ...[text shortened]... ghanistan
4. Iraq
5. Somalia
6. Maldives
7. Mali
8. Iran
9. Yemen
10. Eritrea

Maldives! That surprises me.

Open Doors deserves support.

Originally posted by wolfgang59
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discrimination_against_atheists

[i]Arkansas: "No person who denies the being of a God shall hold any
office in the civil departments of this State, nor be competent to testify
as a witness in any Court."
Maryland: "That no religious test ought ever to be required as
a qualification for any office of profit or trust i ...[text shortened]... ents, be disqualified to hold any office or place of trust
or profit under this Commonwealth."

Yes, but read the rest of the article and realize that those couldn't be enforced. They'd fall in a court challenge.

Kind of a moot point because all candidates will pretend to believe in god even if they do not, for fear of alienating those voters.

Originally posted by Suzianne
According to Pope Benedict XVI, Christians are the most persecuted group in the contemporary world.

Hardly surprising given that they are the largest group and that the person saying it is Christian. However I am assuming he is talking about religious groups, otherwise I suspect that homosexuals or black people would be at the top of the list.

Originally posted by wolfgang59
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discrimination_against_atheists

[i]Arkansas: "No person who denies the being of a God shall hold any
office in the civil departments of this State, nor be competent to testify
as a witness in any Court."
Maryland: "That no religious test ought ever to be required as
a qualification for any office of profit or trust i ...[text shortened]... ents, be disqualified to hold any office or place of trust
or profit under this Commonwealth."

Amen to that!

Originally posted by twhitehead
Hardly surprising given that they are the largest group and that the person saying it is Christian. However I am assuming he is talking about religious groups, otherwise I suspect that homosexuals or black people would be at the top of the list.

I don't know, the sentence appears to be English and I'm pretty sure it does not contain the word "religious".

I am assuming

otherwise I suspect

You can go around assuming the Pope lies if you want. That's not what this is about.

Let's try to focus.

Originally posted by Suzianne
That's not what this is about.

Let's try to focus.

We know perfectly well that this is about your persecution complex and your desire to see the end times.
I don't think the Pope was lying, I think he was wrong.

Originally posted by wolfgang59
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discrimination_against_atheists

[i]Arkansas: "No person who denies the being of a God shall hold any
office in the civil departments of this State, nor be competent to testify
as a witness in any Court."
Maryland: "That no religious test ought ever to be required as
a qualification for any office of profit or trust i ...[text shortened]... ents, be disqualified to hold any office or place of trust
or profit under this Commonwealth."

this is old, is it still in effect?

Originally posted by Zahlanzi
this is old, is it still in effect?

Maryland may have changed the wording slightly, but it's still the same result.

Most states need voter approval to change the constitutions significantly, so that could be part of the hold-up.

At least they're not being killed or imprisoned for their belief (excuse me, non-belief).

Originally posted by twhitehead
We know perfectly well that this is about your persecution complex and your desire to see the end times.
I don't think the Pope was lying, I think he was wrong.

Take it up with the World Evangelical Alliance and the Open Doors organization. They're the main watchdogs for this.

You know, it's easy to thrust your head into the sand, especially for causes you don't care about, but at least don't put your fingers in your ears and sing "La, la, la, la, I can't hear you", while simultaneously expecting people to believe you.

Originally posted by Suzianne
Take it up with the World Evangelical Alliance and the Open Doors organization. They're the main watchdogs for this.

You know, it's easy to thrust your head into the sand, especially for causes you don't care about, but at least don't put your fingers in your ears and sing "La, la, la, la, I can't hear you", while simultaneously expecting people to believe you.

Someone sent me this via PM. Not sure if he wants his name revealed so will leave it anonymous:

100,000 Christian martyrs?
BBC radio 4 - Sat, 2 Nov 13
Duration: 10 mins
It is claimed an average of 100,000 Christians have died because of their faith every year for the past decade: and that this is an 'unreported catastrophe'. The Vatican has called it a credible number. But is it? Ruth Alexander and Wesley Stephenson report.

http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/radio4/moreorless/moreorless_20131102-0600a.mp3

"More or Less: Behind the Stats
Tim Harford investigates numbers in the news. Numbers are used in every area of public debate. But are they always reliable? Tim and the More or Less team try to make sense of the statistics which surround us. A half-hour programme broadcast at 1600 on Friday afternoons and repeated at 2000 on Sundays on Radio 4. BBC World Service broadcasts a short edition over the weekend."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/moreorless

I still say that homosexuals and black people are probably persecuted more than Christians and I do not think a quote from the Pope is sufficient reason to think otherwise.
If you present to me the stats from the World Evangelical Alliance and the Open Doors organization, and the stats from various gay/lesbian organizations and stats from antiracism organizations then we can talk. Until then, all we have is you and your persecution complex.

Originally posted by Suzianne
Compare this to:

Persecution of Christians

Of course the persecution of atheists is nowhere near that of other groups
and I am not asking for a comparison. But I did think it alarming that some
states insist on officials believing in a Supreme Being ..........

Originally posted by wolfgang59
Of course the persecution of atheists is nowhere near that of other groups
and I am not asking for a comparison. But I did think it alarming that some
states insist on officials believing in a Supreme Being ..........

It should be equally alarming that the country as a whole insists that the president be born within its borders. Yet nobody seems to be bothered by that.

In Zambia the made the constitution so that the presidents parents must be born in Zambia. It was a political move to exclude Zambia's first president who was born in what is now Malawi.
The funny part was that the president who arranged it might have been born in what is now the DRC.
Also, Zambia didn't exist prior to 1964.
Also many Zambians do not have birth certificates nor those of their parents.
Also many Zambians are born out of wedlock and thus do not have legal fathers.
Also many Zambians do not know who their father is and in some cases don't know who their mother is.

Of course a real democracy should let the people choose their leaders.

Originally posted by wolfgang59
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discrimination_against_atheists

[i]Arkansas: "No person who denies the being of a God shall hold any
office in the civil departments of this State, nor be competent to testify
as a witness in any Court."
Maryland: "That no religious test ought ever to be required as
a qualification for any office of profit or trust i ...[text shortened]... ents, be disqualified to hold any office or place of trust
or profit under this Commonwealth."

Makes sense. If a person does not acknowledge the existence of a Supreme Being then he is a fool and too stupid to hold public office.

The Instructor