UNL atheist group to host fourth-annual ‘Ask an atheist’ panel discussion

Got questions about atheism? A panel of Secular Humanists of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln members is ready to answer them Thursday night at the club's fourth-annual "Ask an Atheist" event.

"We get everything," said Kate Miller, a sophomore philosophy major and SHUNL president. "‘How do you have morals?' is a pretty popular one. Last year we got asked if I was single."

"Ask an Atheist" will take place in the Nebraska Union auditorium at 6 p.m., and will last two hours with a new format: A panel of SHUNL members will answer questions in front of an audience for the first hour and wander the auditorium for individual and small- group discussions for the second. Panel members said the second hour should be a good opportunity to speak with more impassioned or especially curious audience members.

"I want to speak about what it's like to be an atheist, although I may not always call myself one," said Michael Milone, a senior psychology and philosophy major and vice president of SHUNL. "But if anyone wants to come and yell at me after the event, I'd be more than happy to hear them."

Four SHUNL members will sit on the panel, including Miller, Milone, Emily Zahn, a junior biology major, and senior physics major Ethan Van Winkle. The panel has historically consisted of two boys and two girls who are willing to share their "coming-out" stories and answer questions about their beliefs.

"We had a ton of boy volunteers, but they were really looking for girl volunteers to fill the other two spots," Zahn said.

Miller is the only returning panelist, but she expects this year's "dream team" to field questions with ease.

More than 100 spectators attended last year's event, due in part to some teachers offering extra credit for attendance. That's good news for the club, which has about 30 members.

"This is one of our biggest membership pulls," Miller said. "We try to get the word out about us, but generally word of mouth and ‘Ask an Atheist' are our two best options."

Audience members usually prefer calm discussion instead of heated argument or evangelizing, according to Miller, and the panelists deal with the controversial nature of the subject by trying to be "as non-combative as possible."

"It humanizes not believing in God," Miller said. "It's pretty easy for people to hate on atheism when they don't understand that people arrive at (their beliefs) from a lot of different backgrounds."

Milone hopes to communicate to the audience that atheism is a personal venture and should be treated as such.

"It's a position that you have to reach on your own," he said. "You have to do your homework. You have to do a lot of soul-searching to become an atheist, as ironic as that might sound."

Miller said she has a good idea of what to expect from the evening, but when it comes to questions, she's open to anything.

"Surprise me," she said.

jacymarmaduke@dailynebraskan.com