The following is the text of the invocation given by Andrew Lovley, president of the Southern Maine Association of Secular Humanists at the University of Southern Maine, at the 2009 inauguration ceremony for new city officials in South Portland, Maine, on Dec. 7.

"Today we have come together to mark a new beginning of governance in the city of South Portland. What lies ahead is an untold opportunity to affirm our ability, and our responsibility to serve the greater good - of which there is no higher purpose.

This is the last of a three-part series by Alex DiBranco.  Read part one here, part two here.

The Arrogant Atheist Part II: How Do You Know Whether Someone is an Atheist?

Although much of the myth of the “arrogant atheist” I’ve ascribed to a disconnect between what not believing in God means to a theists versus an atheist, I’ve heard stories from friends about truly arrogant atheists who I wouldn’t like either. Which got me thinking about how, exactly, you know whether a given person is an atheist, or otherwise non-religious.

Matthew LaClair is a senior at Kearny High School in Kearny, NJ.  His work to keep religion out of his school was covered in the New York Times and the Village Voice, among others.  His work has earned him several awards, including the Freedom From Religion Foundation's Thomas Jefferson Student Activist Award. Here, he tells his story to the SSA.  This is the second part; you can read the first part here.