CNN reports about a growing number of cyber-churches, where services are broadcast and parishioners view it and even take part in it from the comfort of their homes.

Some insist that things will be lost, that one cannot simply "grab grape juice and a cracker from the fridge and watch a computer screen, thinking they are truly participating in a gathering of the faithful."

Why not? While many might not find meaning in such a scenario, they can attend traditional services. But if it is meaningful to someone, who is anyone to argue?

People gripe about lowering attendances at traditional services and people pulling away from faith, oftentimes because they feel they do not have time. The world is changing. Why should faith be expected to stay stagnant? This is how we evolve intellectually: we try new ideas and see if they work, and if they better someone's life, if it keeps someone closer to God than they would otherwise be, why complain?

In the wake of Ft. Hood shootings, conservative preacher Pat Robertson has stated, "Islam is a violent -- I was going to say religion, but it's not a religion. It's a political system. It's a violent political system bent on the overthrow of the governments of the world and world domination."

It's a powerful statement, but the power isn't in the accusation it makes. Rather, the power is in the attempt of redefining Islam as not a religion. Religions have particular rights in Western countries. Talk of not calling Islam a religion is tantamount to suggesting those rights are not deserved by Muslims.

And the suggestion on a logical level is so absurd that Robertson has to use the smoke and mirrors of fear to distract readers from what he's actually said. Regardless of what else Islam may or may not be, what is may or may not espouse, it is without a doubt a religion. It has belief in a higher power, dogma, rituals, ethics, theology.

There's another threat in changing how we categorize Islam: by saying its not a religion, Robertson is isolating it, labeling it as something even more foreign and alien. His listeners are religious. But Muslims are to be seen as something else, not merely a group with different beliefs but a group who is not religious at all.

And from there, it's an easy step to accuse them of being anti-religious, which whips all sorts of people up into fits. It's juvenile and childish. Unfortunately, too often it also works.

November 12 is celebrated by Baha'is as the birthday of Baha'u'llah, founder of the Baha'i Faith.

Official holidays of the Baha'i Faith, including the birthday of Baha'u'llah, are expected to be marked with the suspension of work or school. Beyond that, however, celebrations widely vary. They might involve a communal meal and scripture readings, and they are generally open to the public.

A judge in South Carolina has ruled that legal license plates bearing a cross and the words "I believe" on them are unconstitutional. He also accused legislators, who unanimously approved the plates of "unnecessarily draw[ing] the state into an expensive lawsuit."

I can't even begin to comprehend how these people thought such a move would be legal, especially when some lawmakers were against offering similar plates for other faiths.

This shouldn't have needed to go to court. The problem with the plates should have been obvious. Separation of Church and State, folks. It's very cut and dry on this one.

And seriously, why push so hard for it? There's plenty of ways people express their faith on their cars. Why insist on including the license plate? What possible reason could have fueled this besides a hamfisted attempt to prove that this is a Christian nation?

For all of you tired of the 2012 hysteria, try pointing the next panicked individual in the direction of this National Geographic article, which addresses several of the common claims involved in this mad rumor.

The article doesn't address the issue of Nostradamus predicting 2012, nor does it touch upon claims of Biblical prophecy. For these, I challenge people to actually find a quote from either source that actually mentions 2012. (You can also read more on the ludicrousness of Nostradamus theories over at Paranormal Phenomena.)

Last week, a French court found this Church of Scientology guilty of organized fraud, CNN reports.

The Church responded by comparing the French court to the Inquisition, even though the French court ruled that the Church could continue to operate in France so long as it did so legally. The historic Inquisition was specifically to identify heretics, spiritual deviants who would be expected to conform to religious norms or face punishments up to and including death.

In the 1920s, author H.P. Lovecraft created what is commonly known as the Cthulhu mythos through a series of occult stories dealing with fictional dark elder gods and the horrible things that happen when mortals attempt to access them.

These stories have significantly influenced pulp fiction perception of occult horror, and their content has fueled multiple hoaxes. The most famous is the Necronomicon, a book Lovecraft invented but which was subsequently written and published by multiple other authors ans sometimes referenced by anti-occultists. (the most recent Necronomicon foray can be found here, published by a 27-year-old who boasts having studied the occult for 15 years. Yes, do the math on that one.)

On the lighter side of things, I now bring you Adventures of Lil' Cthulhu, just to prove that anything can have a cute and humorous side on the Internet.

What, did you expect me to always be serious?

It's interesting how different writers can portray the same incident. The San Antonio Express reports on a man "accused of creating a 'secret society' to lure teenage girls into having sex with him".

Meanwhile, KENS5 reports that sex was being used to bait students into the occult order. That is to say, the implication is the students were being pressured into occultism, rather than being pressured into sex with a mature adult.

The San Antonio Express's version rings much more true. Unfortunately, this isn't a unique incident. While most occult organizations are entirely consensual and limited to adults, periodically some sicko comes along promising magical powers or mystical insight into the universe to anyone willing to mystically unite with him, aka have sex. Targeting teenage girls is fairly common in these scenarios. They're naive, vulnerable, and relatively easy to control.

These people aren't occultists. They're scam artists. They promise what they can't provide in order to have sex, and sometimes to collect a fawning fan base. This isn't a plot to ensnare people into a shadow organization. It's a plot to obtain sexual gratification.

Apparently, the body of a 2-year-old washed up in Connecticut. The really notable detail of the story, however, is that as far as anyone knew, the girl had already been buried in a cemetery after dying of natural causes, Fox News reports.

What's up with that? No one seems to know. But that didn't stop local police from labeling it "as a ritualistic sort of thing," and naming religions like Palo Mayombe and Santeria.

Unfortunately, the police don't seem to be releasing any details that would actually suggest why those religions would be suspected. I understand that police investigations often need to keep secrets, but if that was the case they really shouldn't be naming names either.

As the story reads, the accusations don't make a lot of sense. Religions like Santeria have absolutely no use for the body of a dead child.

Do the police just feel a need to fill in question marks with random information? That doesn't help their case, and it's likely to bring unwarranted scrutiny upon followers of the named religions.

Paul Haggis, an Oscar-winning movie writer, has publicly left the Church of Scientology and made his resignation letter public, which can be read here.

I highlight this letter because of its focus and rationality. Haggis can admit to the positive aspects Scientology brought to his life while still denouncing the organization. Moreover, his denouncement is specific. He cites two specific issues rather than hurling random insults.

Also, both issues are fairly verifiable. Often, complaints against the Church of Scientology involve matters completely within the Church, and the evidence is hearsay. That doesn't mean the issues don't exist, but it does mean the public has little to work with beyond a storm of opinions and he-said/she-said battles.