This is a supposedly intelligent person

Minnesota Prof Pledges To Desecrate Eucharist

This is the sad and sorry state of academe. In a supposedly tolerant world people like this take joy in desecrating things that are sacred to others. He certainly sounds like a person who takes all the advantage he can of 'academic freedom' which to him means 'license'. He's probably just a tenured hack that they'd like to get rid of but can't. Every university has these guys. Mind you, if someone were to seriously attack his beliefs he'd likely run to whatever human rights organization is around for help. Bullies are that way.

Here's his blog:

Fight back against Bill Donohue!

Now he's blogging about Bill Donahue protesting his public statements. He knew this was going to happen. He and his fellow 'scientists' who support him knew exactly what this would do - present a public soapbox for him and his views. He's going to get world-wide attention, if only for a few minutes. That's likely what he wants.

It's good to complain about this. It's important to keep some scientists in line. While they claim that religion is the cause of all evil in the world it has to be remembered that science doesn't have a sterling reputation - (at the risk of invoking Godwin's Law) German doctors in the Third Reich proved that. The log is his eye is getting in the way of seeing how wrong he is complaining about the splinter in someone else's.

It's not good to get worked up about it. Anger won't do you any good and lack of caution in responding only adds fuel to his bigoted, desecrating fire. Just smile and say 'God bless you' to him. And continue saying it. Maybe God will touch his heart and, at worst, it'll just get him more and more worked up.

Mark Shea says it best:

"I wonder how long the University of Minnesota will continue to subsidize a guy who is supposed to be teaching science but who has somehow made it his life's mission to go around slapping total strangers in the face in demented rage at somebody he insists is not even there.

The guy's a bag lady screaming at the traffic--on the Minnesota taxpayer's dime. Tell me again what the hell any of this has to do with science?"