At Ohio State, Test Alleges That Atheists Are Smarter Than Christians

Last updated on: December 28, 2014 at 8:01 pm by Kathy Schiffer

At Ohio State, Test Alleges That Atheists Are Smarter Than Christians 2014-12-28T20:01:52-05:00 Kathy Schiffer

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Undergraduate students at Ohio State University should know that atheists are smarter than Christians.

At least, that’s the viewpoint reflected on a for-credit homework quiz in a Psychology 1100 course. The assignment included the following question:

Theo has an IQ of 100 and Aine has an IQ of 125. Which of the following statements would you expect to be true?

Aine is an atheist, while Theo is a Christian.

Aine earns less money than Theo.

Theo is more liberal than Aine.

Theo is an atheist, while Aine is a Christian.

The correct statement–at least, the statement for which students receive credit–is the first answer. Atheists are, in one professor’s opinion, demonstrably smarter.

A student who is currently enrolled in the class was offended that this question would be included in a quiz at the taxpayer-funded school, and tipped off the watchdog group Campus Reform.

According to the Daily Caller:

“Colleges will tolerate pretty much any religion other than Christianity,” the student told Campus Reform. “If colleges really want to give everyone a fair shot, they should stay away from making comments about any religion.”

“How can you really measure which religion has a higher IQ?” the student added.

And before even one reader tries to tell me that this doesn’t matter, let me share the question raised by Mike Adams, a sociology professor at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. Dr. Adams asked:

“So, would it be permissible to force blacks to take a class teaching that blacks would have a lower IQ than white people?”

The Daily Caller also points out that Ohio State’s own policies prohibit discrimination against any religion or belief:

Ohio State has a very clear and strict policy banning discrimination of many, many kinds. Discrimination is forbidden based on “age, ancestry, color, disability, gender identity or expression, genetic information, military status, national origin, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, HIV status, or veteran status.”

This is not the first time that Ohio State has become embroiled in a public relations snafu regarding religion. Its ex-president E. Gordon Gee, who collected $6.1 million from the school in fiscal year 2013, resigned his position after insulting the Roman Catholic Church–criticizing the negotiation tactics of Notre Dame administrators during discussions about joining the Big Ten, saying they weren’t good partners. In comments to the university Athletic Council in December 2012, he jokingly said the school’s priests were “holy on Sunday and they’re holy hell on the rest of the week.” To laughter, he said, “You just can’t trust those damn Catholics.”

The school’s marching band director was fired just this week after news broke of highly sexualized hazing rituals and raunchy band member nicknames. One female student who would sit on fellow band members’ laps and pretend to orgasm was called by the nickname “Squirt.” Other inappropriate nicknames referred to students’ large breasts or other body parts, and to one student’s Jewish lineage.

Atheism

Education

Psychology

Ohio State Marching Band

Ohio State University

Prejudice

Previous Post

July 27, 2014

Dulia and Hyperdulia: Do Catholics Really Worship Mary?

Next Post

July 28, 2014 World Meeting of Families: Another Papal Slip-Up?

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category #Synod14 Abortion Abstinence Abuse Addiction Adoption Advent Adventure Advertising Aging Agnosticism All Saints Day All Souls Day Amish Anathema Angels Anglican Animals Annulment Annunciation Apocalypse Apologetics Apostles Apostleship of the Sea Apparitions Archangels Archbishop Cordileone Archbishop Dolan Archbishop Vigneron Archeology Architecture Art Art Buchwald Ash Wednesday Assisted Suicide Astronauts Atheism Athletes Babies Baptism Beatification Beauty Bible Biochemistry Bioethics Birds Bishop Lori Bishops Blasphemy Books Canon Law Canonization Capital Punishment Cardinal Burke Cardinal Dolan Cardinal George Caritas Catechesis Catechism of the Catholic Church Catholic Catholic Education Catholic Higher Education Catholic Social Teaching Celibacy Cemeteries Character Charity Chastity Cheapskate Christian Unity Christmas Churches Civil Rights Cloning Comedy Communion of Saints Community Kitchens Confession Confirmation Conscience Consequences Consistory Constitution Contraception Conversion Cooking Councils of the Church Creativity Criminal Justice Cristero War Crucifixion Crystal Cathedral Culture Death Death and Dying Death Penalty Department of Health and Human Services Diaconate Dictatorship of Relativism Dignity Disability Discrimination Dissidence Divorce Doctors of the Church Early Church Fathers Easter Economics Ecumenism Education Encyclicals Environmentalism Episcopal Church Eucharist Euthanasia Evangelism Evangelists Evangelization Evolution Excuses Facebook Faith Families Family Fashion Fasting Fatherhood Federal Government Feminism Fiction Film First Amendment First Communion For Greater Glory Forgiveness Free Speech Friends Friendship Gender Discrimination Germany Gnosticism Good Friday Government Grace Greed Gregorian Calendar Happiness Health Heaven Heresy History Holidays Holiness Hollywood Holy Land Holy Saturday Holy Spirit Holy Week Holy Year Home Sweet Home Homosexuality Hope Humanism Humility Humor Imagination Immaculate Conception Immigration Impulsivity In Vitro Fertilization Incarnation Indulgences Infallibility Internet Islam Italy Jerusalem Jesus Judaism Justice Kathleen Sebelius Labor Movement LCWR Lent Life Literature Liturgy Lourdes Love Magi Marketing Marriage Martyrdom Martyrs Mary Mass Media Medical Ethics Mexico Michigan Miracles Missionaries Modernism Modesty Monks Monothelitism Motherhood Movies Mushrooms Music Muslim Mystery Mysticism Mythology Nativity Natural Law Nature New Evangelization New Media New Year New Year's Resolutions Nostalgia Obscenity Occult Old Testament Origen Orthodox Orvieto Pallium Papacy Parenting Patience Patriarch Bartholomew Patriotism Peace Peace and Justice Penitence Pentecost People Persecution Philosophy Poetry Political activism Political Correctness Politics Polls Pop Culture Pope Benedict XVI Pope Francis Pope John Paul II Pope John XXIII Pope Paul VI Pope St. Pius X Pope Urban VII Population Prayer Preaching Prejudice Pride Priesthood Pro-Life Protestantism Psychology Purgatory Queenship of Mary Racism Rape Real Presence Reconciliation Reformation Relics Religious Religious Liberty Reliquary Renewal Reproductive Technology Resurrection Rights Romance Rome Royalty Sacraments Sacred Heart Saints Satanism Science Science Fiction Scripture Seal of Confession Secularism Seniors September 11 Seventy Times Seven Sexuality Sharks Sin Smoking Social Communications Social Justice Social Networking Social Sciences Space Exploration Spirituality Sports St. Luke St. Patrick's Day St. Paul St. Peter St. Teresa of Avila Stations of the Cross Steve Jobs Superstition Supreme Court Symbolism Synod Technology Teen Rebellion Television Terrorism Thankfulness Thanksgiving Theology Think This, Not That Tobit Toilets Toys Tradition Traditions Transplants Travel Trinity Twitter U.S. Air Force Uncategorized United Nations USCCB Valentine Vatican Vatican Archives Vatican Blogfest Virtue Vocations Where We Pray White Heart Women World Day of Social Communications World Meeting of Families World News World Youth Day Worship Writing Year of Consecrated Life Year of Faith Year of Mercy Youth

Select a Month December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

I am three that testify on earth and agree as one. The Spirit, the water, and what completes our trio?

Select your answer to see how you score.

The blood The truth The church The word