'Confessions of an Atheist'
Every Nation Campus Ministries presents "Confessions of an Atheist" with David Whitehead of Morning Star Church in New York, on Tuesday, Oct. 31, in the Student Commons Theater at 7 p.m. Whitehead presents his life story as an atheist whose experiences have led him down many unexpected paths, including running drugs for the Mexican Mafia. A question-and-answer session will follow. For more information, contact Paul Burkhart, .

Below is an email I wrote to the campus ministries.

Hey,

I was reading about your upcoming "Confessions of An Atheist".

I was wondering if you guys could sponsor a talk where I could come in and tell my story. I wanted to discuss how I saved a young woman from a terrible situation. This woman ran away from home when she was 18 after being in and out of social service foster care homes because her uncle and step father raped her on multiple occasions. Her mother blamed her own daughter for being raped.

Her grandmother, beat her to near death because she was pregnant with her uncles baby, due to the rape. Why did she beat her? so that she'd have a miscarriage.

This young girl ran away from home when she was 18 came to Richmond, met a man almost twice her age and had 3 children with him. She was naive, scared and this man took complete advantage of her. When I met her she had no job, no education (she never finished high school obviously) and was living in a very abusive relationship trying to take care of 3 children.

When I met this woman, I took her in and helped her. Now because of me, she got her GED, is in nursing school and working two jobs. I am helping her take care of 3 children, who had no direction in life. She progressed faster within the last 2 years than she had in the last 10 years before she met me.

Her younger sister just had a child: she's 20 years old without a job, her "fiancee" is working at McDonalds for 7 bucks an hour. Ironically, she now regrets having this kid, they are on welfare....and live in a house in soutwest va that doesn't even have tiles on the kitchen floor, yes it's dirt.

Sad situation. Here's the thing....I saved this woman from the very belief system that had placed her in that situation in the first place..this belief system? Christianity. I am an atheist.

This woman came from a very very very christian family. Her mother's only advice to her daughter was to pray, and proceeded to blame her for her situation because she did not pray enough. Her mother, a moral christian, showed no love, affection or compassoin for her daughter, only disgust and blame. Her mother blamed her own daugther for being raped and for driving away her husband.

Her grandmother beat her almost to near death because she could not bear the shame of her son impregnating her grandaughter, but...since abortions are against god, proceeded to take care of the problem herself.

All this woman gets now is disdain from her family. Blame, because she doesn't pray. Where is god when kids get raped?

Pray..huh? nice moral christian family. I think that's a poster family, truly representative of the affects religion is having on people.

I find it also ironic, how these families vote republican...(you know god's party) when in fact it's the republicans that want to shut down social welfare programs, her sister and her child are on welfare. hmmm...I guess all they have left is to pray for jesus' salvation, when these kids are raped by their family members. Never ending perpetuating cycle of ignorance.

I also find it ironic that most teen pregnancies and rapes, occur mostly within "red" states. I guess god has a wierd way of showing himself in the form of raping of innocent children. Mainly in areas where he is worshipped.

So in conclusion, would you like to host me as a speaker? So I can confess how atheism has affected my life? I was not in the mexican mob running drugs, umm, so my story is not as juicy as your speaker...I have never been arrested in my life, I'm educated, honest and moral. And it was my realization that god does not exist and my refusal to conform to church's dogma that has led me to such a righteous path. I was born and raised in Italy...a very christian country...I, luckily, woke up. I know my life is not as exciting as a drug runner, but..oh well.

Thing is this, you may be telling yourself, this is all an isolated incident and all christians are not like that..well that MAY be true (however, I have more stories), so I'd like to also say the same for Atheists. A lack of belief in a fairy tale does not necessarily lead you into an immoral path in life. You are propagandizing, something xtians do very well. It is a fallacy to take one experience and generalize over it, this is called inductive fallacy.

I know what the xtian right wants to do, lead this country into a theocracy, but I tell you this....believing in a god, is only going to tear this country apart. Morals, as evidenced in my experience, are not necessarily christian in nature, as my experience shows it is the opposite. Think about it.