Hey, you’re kids looking for something to do over the summer?
Camp Quest might be your answer. It’s the first residential summer camp in the history of the United States for the children of Atheists or “Brights” as they like to call themselves.
According to USA Today, The Camp Quest concept started in 1996 with 20 kids at a site in Ohio with the slogan “Beyond Belief.”
Since then, demand has grown and week-long camps have been added in Minnesota, Michigan, California, Tennessee, and Ontario in Canada. In 2007 the camps accommodated 150 kids, generally ages 8-17. The projection for 2008 is more than 200 campers and new camps are also being considered in Vermont and Britain.
So we’ve got a “movement” with 150 children which warrants a huge piece in USA Today. Hmm, I wonder how many glowing stories USA Today has written about Bible camps which are attended by millions of children?
One of my favorite lines from the story is from a father describing his children. “They’re good, moral kids without organized religion,” Fox said of his daughters. “They can feel comfortable being who they are.”
I just have to ask what morals are we talking about. If you’re an atheist, isn’t the question of morality essentially up in the air. Where do these morals come from? Are they Darwinists, Utilitarian or Nazis? What moral code is their claim of being “good moral kids” based on?
Amanda Metskas, president of Camp Quest Inc. said in the article, “We really try not to label the kids…When a kid is 8 or 10, asking them to say, ‘I’m an atheist,’ or ‘I’m a Catholic’ — at 8 or 10 we don’t think that kids are able to make a decision about their world view.”
But then the camp counselors proceed to mock religion at every turn even telling them that believing in religion is like believing in a magical unicorn. Sounds like they’re really letting the kids make their own decisions about their worldview, doesn’t it?
Funny, when Christians have a camp they’re pretty up front and they call it something clever like “Bible Camp” or “Christian.” But for some reason, atheists have to lie and say we’re the “let everyone make their own decision” camp. And that’s something I’m looking for when I send my children to camp. I want a camp director who lies to the country’s leading newspaper about what goes on in the camp.
According to the website, campers are taught that ethical behavior is not dependent on religious belief and doctrines, that religious belief and doctrines are sometimes a hindrance to ethical and moral behavior, and that irreligious persons are also good and fully capable of living a happy and meaningful life.
Once again, I have to ask what moral code are we talking about?
According to the website,
the camp’s programs and activities also include what is usual for summer camps: campfires, canoeing, crafts, drama, games, nature hikes, singing, and swimming. Sometimes, however, a spin may be used, such as the telling of an ancient mythical tale around the campfire or the debunking of creationism on part of a nature hike or fossil hunt. Both competitive and cooperative sports are used. Past activities have included how to make a crop circle and visiting old cemeteries to use tombstones as clues to the mores of the past.
Uh. Did they say how to make a crop circle. What’s that about?
The website continues:
The purpose of Camp Quest is to provide children of freethinking parents a residential summer camp dedicated to improving the human condition through rational inquiry, critical and creative thinking, scientific method, self-respect, ethics, competency, democracy, free speech, and the separation of religion and government guaranteed by the Constitution of the United States.
Even though the Constitution doesn’t say anything like that. I guess these “brights” aren’t all that bright after all.
May 29, 2008 at 8:30 am
I would say, “Well, we’ve heard it all, now!” But that seems only to bring on a whole new thunder clap (or Maury show). *sigh.. We used to know who wrote this devious script that is unfolding before our eyes (unfolding in Europe as well). Why don’t we know that now? I believe that 9-11 — and our incresingly strange nearly 7-year response to it — has left most of us in a hopelessness holding pattern. of vast apathy. But God raises up a people in every age…
And thus, thank you for your posts.
May 29, 2008 at 2:38 pm
Well it is certainly true that people of no religious affliation are capable of living a happy and meanful life, but I’m not sure they have to go to summer camp to figure that out. It’s also interesting that these folks don’t seem to think that ordinary, secular summer camps–of which there are a bazillion–are capable of teaching their kids how to canoe, do crafts, sing songs, and go swimming. Of course, your average summer camp doesn’t include the crop circles, so that must be the big draw! Sheesh!
May 29, 2008 at 4:00 pm
This reminds me of a essay by C. S. Lewis on the question “Can you live a good life without religion.” He shows that even asking the question says more about the questioner than they realize.
It is here:
http://www.merelewis.org/CSL.gitd.1-12.ManOrRabbit.htm
May 29, 2008 at 4:08 pm
What the heck was with the crop circles? Anyone?
May 29, 2008 at 5:45 pm
Boy oh boy, ancient mythical tales told around the campfire! How indoctrinating!!
May 30, 2008 at 2:24 pm
I love the “…separation of religion and government guaranteed by the Constitution…” These “brights” are pretty dim as they have bought into the revisionist history written, undoubtedly by their forebears in the atheist camps. True “brights” know that the “separation of religion and government” that so many espouse is based on a letter written by Thomas Jefferson to a church in which he said the government would not interfere in the churc. Our Constitution guarantees the right to freedom OF religion, not FROM religion. This means the government cannot impose a religion as the religion of our country. If they really looked at history, they would understand that our founding fathers did not want the religious oppression their own ancestors had fled 100+ years earlier. Sheesh….even my 12 year old knows this…..oops…I forgot, I homeschool so my kids can learn without the dumbing down of the government schools.
May 30, 2008 at 3:21 pm
There is an antidote and it is called “Catholic Youth Edpeditions. See their web site at http://www.cyexpeditions.org/
May 30, 2008 at 7:04 pm
Making crop circles is probably a general skeptic/ debunker activity, and doesn’t directly have anything to do with religion. The camp clearly extends the skeptic attitude toward religion, and may go into how even after circles are claimed by the circle-makers, UFO believers refuse to stop believing that aliens made them. However, crop circle makers are pranksters, not anti-religious AFAIK.
FYI: http://www.circlemakers.org has a how-to, and contributors who claim to have made crop circles that the UFO crowd has claimed as impossible to make naturally.
June 1, 2008 at 4:08 am
Ethics and morals cannot be seen in a Christian (or Post-Christian as the case may be) nation without referencing Christianity in the first place. The US was founded on Christian principles. The Civil Rights movement was based on Christian morality. Christian morals are a component of the culture.
While it may be possible for an atheist to live a happy and meaningful life, they do so standing on the shoulders of the Christians who founded, built, and died for this country.
-Rich
August 3, 2008 at 3:32 am
It’s just a camp. Don’t get so pissy about it.
September 5, 2009 at 7:41 pm
For the second year my son has attended Camp Quest. He has enjoyed it greatly. He made great progress on the high ropes I am told. And to our great shock we were greeted by the Camp Counselors and told how kind and helpful he was.
Most of the kids that go there are seeking others that have a similar skepticism of religion or other supernatural beliefs. Some are the children of more open minded religious people.
"Mock(ing) religion at every turn even telling them that believing in religion is like believing in a magical unicorn."
Judging from your criticism I am glad to see that you believe that all religions should be treated as equal and equally valid. That must of course mean that you believe in Krishna, and Allah and Muhammad and Thor the God of Thunder.
I am glad to see that you believe that using religion as a reason to crash planes into buildings, or burn people on a Cross should not be mocked as that is just their religious belief and should be protected.
But the actual exercise is not equating religions with unicorns (Those are real, after all they are mentioned in the bible.) but to show that it is hard to prove a negative. Can you prove that there is no Invisible Pink Unicorn? After all if someone believes it it must be true, and it is a matter of faith.
For the record, at the Michigan Camp Quest that my son attended, no one won the prize and proved that it did not exist. One child came close. Maybe one of the esteemed gentlemen or ladies of this blog could do so?
The Prize? A 1949 One hundred Dollar bill from before they started putting "In God We Trust" on the printed currency.
As far as Ethical behavior, I have seen no evidence presented to me that Religious people are more Ethical or moral than the non-religious. In fact looking at the general prison population one will find it more likely that the inmates are religious than the general population.
Prisons have 1% of their population or less claiming no religion, whereas 15% of the the American Population is non-religious. It must be that the 15 non-religious commit the crimes but when they get to prison they all become religious.
However one could argue that every priest that raped an alter boy, that every bible thumping Preacher that embezzled funds from his church, that every person that did some wrong to another was not religious, because surely if they were the fear of hell fire would have kept them from doing it.
Maybe then again, some of don't need the fear of hell fire and damnation to keep us from murdering our neighbor. Some of us actually like our lives and our neighbors and friends and try to get along.
But for those of you that require The fear of the bog of eternal stench to keep from harming me and mine please do so. While your at it you might want to seek therapy.
September 5, 2009 at 7:49 pm
Crop circles would be easy to explain.The most important things that they teach at the camp are critical thinking skills.
By showing how to make crop circles they can dispel much of the mythology about there needing to be Space aliens or Garden fairies to make them. Skeptical Inquiry and asking questions is important. Taking things at face value can be dangerous.
I say that any religion that requires the support of the government or laws making it illegal to question it is not much of a religion at all. If your beliefs can not stand up to the light of open questions and provide real answers then maybe your beliefs should be doubted.
If they indeed do stand up to the test of doubt with evidence and not just blind conviction, then indeed you do have an outstanding Religion.