Millions Show Love & Gratitude Without God. Thanksgiving Ad in Times Square

This Thanksgiving in Times Square, secular humanists are reminding everyone that love and gratitude can be fully experienced and expressed without belief in God. A major electronic billboard advertisement from the Center for Inquiry, an international secular advocacy organization, will run through the holidays in full view of the millions who pass through "the Crossroads of the World" through the season.



The video advertisement features a mother and her young daughter embracing among the autumn leaves, with text declaring, "Millions show love and gratitude without God." The 15-second ad ends with the good wishes of everyone at CFI: "Happy Thanksgiving to all who make the world a better place!"

The ad is part of the Living without Religion campaign (livingwithoutreligion.org), which seeks to introduce those who question religion to a vibrant and welcoming community of secular humanists, and to undo the stereotype of nonbelievers as angry or lost.

"Since the nonreligious don't believe in God, some wonder how we know who to give thanks to." said Ronald Lindsay, President and CEO of CFI. "Our answer is to just look around you at the people in your life."

Said Lindsay, "We all have much to be grateful for this Thanksgiving, and millions of Americans, instead of praying to a god, will be expressing gratitude and love to those who do so much to make life worth living: their family, their friends, and those who help others in need. A supposed supreme being isn't necessary."

The ad can be seen on West 42nd street between 7th and 8th Ave., on the north side above the Cold Stone Creamery and beneath the CBS logo. It is co-sponsored by local freethought organization Reasonable New York.

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The Center for Inquiry (CFI) is a nonprofit educational, advocacy, and research organization headquartered in Amherst, New York, with executive offices in Washington, D.C. It is also home to both the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry and the Council for Secular Humanism. The mission of CFI is to foster a secular society based on science, reason, freedom of inquiry, and humanist values. CFI's web address is www.centerforinquiry.net.