Then, to Melbourne, a quiet city with solemn backgrounds and humble people. It was quite boring for me as a New Yorker (I am originally from the Philippines). I did not expect it to be cold like NYC. I have to trick my husband to buy me  a pair of Ugg boots just to make it in the streets. Oh boy, it was fall in Melbourne but spring in NYC. I learned my lesson the hard way..Brrrr! My husband left me in Melbourne since he does not want to be associated with atheism.
My very first Global Atheist convention started on a Friday April 13th  meeting new faces at the registration booth. I did not even realize it was a Friday the 13th!! Bad luck according to Philippine superstition! A celebration of reason, the theme of the convention was very appropriate.  It turned out to be  joyful and fun night with  atheists who are proud wearing their atheism on their sleeves, so did I. I wore my PATAS (Philippine Atheists and Agnostics Society) shirt. The comedy night was a riot, and  I like Stella Young the most. She is truly a comedian atheist with a flair of sarcasm and candor.
The next day was full of impressive lectures from Dan Barker, our PATAS main speaker at the very first atheist convention in SEA in Manila, Philippines, to Daniel Dennet, Lawrence Krauss, Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris and Ayaan Hirsi Ali who replaced Christopher Hitchens in the Four Horsemen. I have not seen an array of such intelligent and knowledgeable atheists in my life. Indeed, it was awesome to be part of the 4,000 attendees in the Global Atheist Convention in 2012. The gala dinner was full of fun and surprises and a lot of laughter. I could not believe being with my fellow heathen could be fun. It just debunked the belief that atheists are always angry and sad. Mr deity was an all around comedian and an expert in most religions, a person to be reckoned with..even as a deity!!

I got emotional for a while during the tribute to Christopher Hitchens. He was my hero also..and one of the reasons why I want to attend the GAC. Unfortunately, he passed away even before the GAC.. I would have asked him to go to the Philippines for our next convention. Sigh… I was really sad not meeting him while he was alive. His book “God is not great” made me a militant atheist.

The Three Horsemen Panel with Ayaan Hirsi Ali was an eye opener that atheism is still a minority in the world population. It conveyed to me that we have a lot of work to do and how difficult it is to be an open atheist in some countries. In the Philippines, it is said that atheists is only 1% of the population of 93 million. This sent me shivers that atheist Filipinos like me are indeed insignificant.

I also had fun taking pictures of the religious /fundamentalists outside the convention area with their placards  like “Hell” and “God  loves you” – which god? I do not know – must be Horus or Zeus!

The array of food was amazing, with seafood galore and international cuisine..I eat anything as long as it does not move, so it was not a problem for me. The staff was ebullient and answered my questions without ado. The whole affair was pretty organized despite the 4k number of attendees. Kudos to the GAC organizers!

My objective in going to the GAC is to represent PATAS (www.patas.co) and to raise international awareness of atheism which is growing in leaps and bounds even in the Philippines.  PATAS as a fledgling society need collaboration from other countries. We are affiliated with AAI, ISHV and  IHEU and other international movements. PATAS is proud to have organized the very first atheist convention in SEA, which was held in Manila, Philippines..I met a Filipino atheist based in Melbourne who promised to be active in PATAS and it was an honor to have met a fellow atheist from my native country. It was a pleasant surprise indeed!

Welcome to the Philippines – “the only country we have; the pearl of the orient seas; land of the morning, child of the sun returning”… And, yes, “It is fun in the Philippines” About 22 years ago — there were only 65 million of us; I read, the Philippines is now a nation of 93 million… 93 million of which Ninety seven percent (97%), are Catholics or Christians of different shades. The rest are either Muslims, Buddhists, or Atheists and Agnostics –of which very few have come out, or the rest are still hiding under their beds or wearing dark glasses inside their closets.

Our country is still steeped in religion and wrought in grinding poverty – with skewed culture, ruled by “technicalities of law,” scared of ghosts, entertained by western movies and their Filipino versions. Most Filipinos place their hopes on the lottery, fantasies, fairies, miracles, superstitions and gods, and their weapon is only prayers.

The Philippines we have today is no different from the Philippines the national heroes, Jose Rizal wrote about, and Andres Bonifacio fought for — more than a hundred years ago! We may use computers and ipads and iphones, but the belief system is as old as 500 years ago, the time of inquisition and religious crusades. But no one is as brave really as the Filipino, who led the first revolution against colonialists in all of Asia and who fought world powers with their “outrageous fortune of slings and arrows ” and pointed bamboo poles against the enemy’s “blood and thunder, lightning and steel!”

And twenty six years ago, Filipinos – of whatever classification we now have for people, marched and faced with nothing, but their hands and petals of flowers they threw upon the thousands of soldiers who rode atop armed tanks of deadly destruction. Their slogans were nothing but the slogans of their heart and overthrew a most despised dictatorship that ruled the nation for more than 14 years. More importantly, the Filipino People-Power Bloodless Revolution echoed and inspired similar revolutions throughout the world. Indeed, even with all its flaws, warts and all, according to Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino – “The Filipino Is Worth Dying For!

And the Filipino is worth re-launching a Reformation once again. A paradigm shift – a transformation against a world of delusions, illusions and superstitions and against the slavery of the mind. This paradigm shift is for the final liberation of humanity – for humanity to destine itself, of itself, and for itself! The time has come for us to transcend and unleash ourselves from such bondage relying only upon ourselves and never again on imaginary beings.

THAT paradigm shift STARTS TODAY, HERE IN THE PHILIPPINES!
Welcome to the Philippine Atheists and Agnostics Society! Welcome to PATAS!
There is no place I would rather be than be here today in PATAS.

I am tremendously honored to stand before you to present the very first
SEC registered atheist/agnostic society in the Philippines, the Philippine Atheist and Agnostic society, better known as PATAS.. Our foundation is “good without god” and PATAS which means equality or fair in Tagalog.

WE demand equality and fairness in all aspects of life , and , we are here to give atheism a FACE and a VOICE in the Philippines.

PATAS was founded on Feb 14th, 2011 amidst chaos, confusion, backstabbing, elitism and gossips, very few courageous and ebullient atheists made it to the phenomenal event.

A leader is only as good as her team.
I am extending my heartfelt gratitude to the PATAS Core who has made this convention a reality.

I thank the most, Mr John Paraiso for his indefatigable loyalty and devotion to PATAS.
To Mr Jay Felix our website guru.
Ms Jovelean Borces for her enthusiasm and unwavering devotion to PATAS
Ms Marie Lorenzo, Kim Lu Zung Ricky Maramba
Gabriel Cruz ,Mark Dennis Flores, Kristofer Velasco aka Rath Ryott for their dedication to PATAS.
and to all Board of directors and sponsors of PATAS and to Dave Allen, Willie Fuchs and Michael Caloyloy my US  advisors.
My heartfelt gratitude to my assistant Chairperson for his convention sponsorship and the speakers who have traveled far and wide all the way from the USA, Norway and Australia just to witness this history making, and very first convention in South East Asia.

Let us all create a paradigm shift in our beloved country, difficult, it may seem..it is feasible..even after 333 years of enslavement and oppression. The next generations to come will prefer computers to prayers..My musing is to see the Philippines free of bigotry, and prejudice against atheists  and agnostics.
I want to see atheists live side by side with religion. WE will go paralell with religion, we will see to it that PATAS is a force to be reckoned with. However, PATAS will work in harmony with the Christians and the church for the betterment of all Filipino.

WE are committed to make a difference in the Phil.
PATAS has greater purpose than mere polemics and confronting the irrationality in society, such as religion. WE are not  social critics or anti-catholics, or anti-Christs. We are a pro-active society that participate in the process of change in overthrowing out-dated and obsolete paradigms.
To seek out new life, and new civilizations… to boldly go where no one has gone before
and promote social responsibility- which includes- philanthropy, and volunteering grounded by mission/vision, helping people to promote integrity, compassion, relationships and equality….words mean a lot that is why we are called PATAS!
I Thank you! – Ms M    www.patas.co

It is with heartfelt gratitude that I bring PATAS to you all. The Philippine Atheists and Agnostics  Society Inc , PATAS for short means fair or equal in English.

PATAS was conceived on Facebook by my ebullience to congregate with fellow atheists in the Philippines. The internet revolution brought forth ease and comfort to gather same thinking Filipinos all over the world but with the biggest concentration in the Philippines.

For such a very short time, PATAS had affiliated itself with 8 international societies. A proof that we are reaping the fruits of our labor. I thank all officers who have painstakingly given their selfless service to PATAS. We have an uphill battle, difficult, but if we do it together as one, the load will be lighter.. I am confident that we will fulfill our mission and vision. Words are powerful and give meaning to people, that is why we have PATAS  . (www.patas.co)

    Surprisingly, The Philippines, a country of deluded and superstitious people, has joined the bandwagon. Out of confusion, personal conflicts, elitism, gossips and back-stabbings, PATAS (Philippine Atheists and Agnostics Society) has emerged. The acronym means equality in English, a real meaning referring to what we have been fighting for. Filipino atheists demand equal treatment and respect in the present world. No more hiding, no more lying, we are coming out of our closets.

    I have found a tiny group of people who are as ebullient as I am with regards to atheism and humanism. We are straightforward atheists/humanists without frills nor an inch of pretension. We have no masks nor icing on the cake sort of thing. We are proud militant Filipino atheists. Our tools are logic, critical thinking, reason, science books,   Richard Dawkins.

    I attended my first American Humanist Association  conference in Cambridge, Massachussetts, USA,  to see Richard Dawkins in person. He is the driving force of our group and our hero. I was successful in meeting him and have photos galore with him. These pictures were so valuable that our group in the Philppines tripled in no time. Must  be Richard Dawkins.

    PATAS has been “coming out” since February 14, 2011, the day it was founded. We had events, educational , feeding activities and help individuals here and there  as the need arises and of course depending on our pooled funds. We have a full time scholar and he is also our full time employee in charge of planning events and coming out activities.

    The Philippines is truly a very religious country, with almost 80-97% religious, we expect being bullied by the christians and Catholics anytime soon. Our proactive approach is to build alliance with international atheist/humanist movements as we are just a “speck in the eye” . Being small does not ncessary mean we are useless. We are carving out ourselves slowly but surely and putting a dent in the religious landscape in the Philippines.

    As the PATAS chairwoman and one of the founders, I see to it that our society is in good hands and in the right direction. We  have weed out at least two  inappropriate characters in our group. Our President, John Paraiso, is the original Pinoy Atheist, whom I chose to be with, since he personifies my attitude and character if I  were in the Philippines. He is for the masses, for the poor, for the regular Filipino who loves life, freedom and equality.

   Our website- www.patas.co - has already been put up due to public demands, such an excuse to rush the site. We are joyful that we have already received three international exposures since we were founded, something that we did not expect to see since we are just a ”pale blue dot” in the humanistic world.

    PATAS has numerous ambitious plans for the future. Our investments are not for this lifetime but for the next generations to come, hence, we zero in on education as our platform in propagating atheism/humanism. But, we must admit, we cannot do this task alone as we are only a minority in the Philippines.

    And this is my legacy. My name is Marissa Torres Langseth, a Filipino, a proud militant atheist, a humanist . I am not afraid.

     We are not expecting anything but respect and acceptance and equality of rights. We  do not know  how the public will react to our ‘coming out’ event. We do not know if this is like a ‘suicide’ for us. We do not know what is going to happen to us..We will do it anyway.

     Our event is only to create awareness of  the existence of atheism in the Philippines as an alternate to organized religion. Our paraphernalias are pamphlets, books about misconceptions of atheism, tarpaulins, science books, logic, critical thinking and cutting edge technology. This could be an eye-opener to most agnostics to come out in the open as atheists also.

   We are coming out on March 19-20, 2011 in Rizal Park, Luneta, Manila, Philippines. This place called Luneta, is the ground zero of atheism, whereby, John Paraiso, President of PATAS holds his weekly atheistic debates and educational work shop.

   This is the best time to come out, in consorance with  the “A” week, an international observance for atheists from all walks of life to come out and declare to the world that “WE ARE ATHEISTS and we are not hiding in the closet anymore!! and the time is NOW.

I am the chairwoman and one of the founders of the Philippine Atheists and Agnostics Society, Inc. This is the first atheistic movement in the Philippines to come out to the public. Fearless and committed members are always active with our cause. Our website is underway.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Philippine-Atheists-and-Agnostics-Society-Inc/170080583036251

The Philippines is also known for its poverty, prostitutes, and children for sale, despite the fact that it is 80% Roman Catholic. A shame, indeed, people are still living in the dark ages, delusion of grandeur, a natural phenomenon for the very poor, like Juan Tamad, waiting for the apple to fall on his lap. A pity for most, since  money and jobs  are scarce,  people are forced to get out of the country like myself to make ends meet and savor the luxury of life.

I was in elementary school in grade five, when I discovered science, when I became a skeptic. I could not accept my mother’s explanation that I came from a bamboo split opened by a lightning. I thought, it did not make sense at all. I have questions galore that nobody could answer. I just let it go, but, at the back of my mind, my questions lingered. I went with the flow, joined a choir at our nearby church. The military church was always jam packed with people taking communions, but these are the people who love to gossip and back stab our neighbors. Funny, but those who are going to church are the most abnormal in my eyes. They are good only with their own flock and those outside their circle were treated like garbage. They treated me like garbage. Another confusion and cob web in my mind. Why did a god allow this? I let it go, who am I to question their behavior. Who am i to question a god? I am only a small fish.

I have never been religious, but was forced to go to church only by my mother, who thinks everything came from a god. In college, a military chaplain (priest) was always showing me  his erection even inside the church. I was as naive as a newly bloomed flower and could not understand what was that all about, until one night, at a party, he tried to get me drunk and brought me to a secluded place. I realized something was wrong with that scenario and I ran away, never to go back to that church again, however, I did not report the incident to anybody. Who am I ? People will just wag their tongues and brand me as a girl of “ill repute”. Besides, who will believe in a poor girl like me?  The priest can never do such a thing.

I was a very good girl, why on earth I was not receiving gifts from Santa Claus? Another detective work for me. I did my own research, asked around and did my very own investigations.  At an early age, I was able to crack the mystery  that there was no Santa Claus. Only the parents played santa, but since, we were poor, we did not get any gifts from our parents. There was no santa, he  never appeared to me nor  I have seen a trace of him. There was no santa claus.

I  was still on a searching mode, when I finished college. I graduated at the top of my class,  cum laude at a famous university in Cebu province. I went to Kingdom of Saudi Arabia due to the need to secure some funds to be utilized to go to the USA. While in the KSA, I almost became a Muslim. I thought it was necessary at that time. I almost memorized the whole “salah” . Things happened for a reason, at least that was what I believe in before, I had a very tragic experience in the KSA. Long story short, a Filipino man persuaded me to believe that he was the right man for me and we ended up marrying  and produced one child. He ran away without any reason never to be found again.. what did I do wrong? Where did I go wrong? I accepted that it was just a test of my existence.  Still, there were cobwebs in my mind, why bad things happen to good people? If there were a god, should he, at least, intervene? or stop these misfortunes in my  life?

My skepticism was once again rekindled. I went to the USA and discovered that I am really free to practice religion. Still I went a searching, I joined a born again / christian group who think that they are saved. I thought I was also saved, until one time, the pastor wanted ten thousand dollar donation from me. That broke the camel’s back..why should I donate that much? I have no money! Long story short, I did not go back to that church, because I felt like they were ripping me off..Aren’t we supposed to give what we can afford, not forced to share 10%  of your income. I could not understand the logic behind it. Another query about the importance of religion and god.

I witnessed 911, a true tragedy, bigger than life. Why would a loving god allow this to happen? There were good and bad people in those twin towers. Why? again and again, the good are being victimized. Is there a god? where is he? is he worthy of my praise? I guess not.. so I came out as an atheist.

Actions speak louder than words. I am tired of debates, discussions and trying to convince people that atheism is better and a better way of life. No more wastage of emotions, prayers that are not effective, tithes, church meetings with the hypocrites and gossipers.

Atheism is still a struggle in the Philippines. It connotes satanism, evil, demon, what have you, a truly negative connotation. who cares? I made all my sisters atheist without much ado. They saw my struggles, they saw my success,  better still,  I became the santa claus in our household.

I am now a militant atheist. I am supporting all atheistic  movements in the Philippines. I have teamed up with some atheistic groups on the internet and we are ebullient in proposing projects, all in the name of atheism. Groups to reckon with are Filipino Freethinkers, Critical Thinking Filipinos,  PATAS  and Pinoy Atheist. Why am I doing this? because I want to pay it forward : To propagate atheism in the Philippines as an option to any organized religion.  I am encouraging Filipinos to believe in themselves, put their best foot forward, to be kind and good without god and stop the delusion that a god is watching over us.   (www.patas.co)

“There are no gods, no devils, no angels, no heaven or hell. There is only our natural world. Religion is but myth and superstition that hardens hearts and enslaves minds.” ~ Anne Nicol Gaylor

     Why give? When you have enough you can start giving, because you cannot give what you do not have.

There is joy in giving!

You do not need a god to live happily…watch the video.

All you need is a positive attitude and intact mental faculties!