One of the nation's most popular evangelists is "thanking" the American Atheists group for spending $20,000 on a prominent and highly controversial billboard near the entrance of the Lincoln Tunnel leading to Manhattan.
Ray Comfort says the atheists have caused people to reason, think and talk about Christmas.
The billboard depicts a silhouette of the Three Wise Men approaching a manger alongside the words: "You KNOW it's a Myth. This Season, Celebrate REASON!" The atheists say the billboard is meant to encourage fellow disbelievers going through the motions of celebrating Christmas to stop. The billboard is also meant to "attack the myth that Christianity owns the solstice season" and to "raise the awareness of the organization and the movement," according to a statement on the group's website.
"American Atheists, Inc., (God bless them) are very generous people," said Comfort in response. "In April of 2001, they flew me 3,000 miles from California to Florida, to speak at their annual convention. They kindly put me in a luxury hotel, gave me a large fruit basket, let me preach the entire gospel, and also allowed me to make my books available to their people. So let's support their efforts, and pray that people who see their signs asking them to 'reason' rather than just accept things in blind faith."
Comfort is the author of several books about atheism and evolution, including "You Can Lead An Atheist to Evidence, but You Can't Make Him Think," "Nothing Created Everything," "God Doesn't Believe in Atheists" and more.
"America needs to go further than just having a belief about God," he said. "It needs to repent and trust the Savior, then they will come to know God.
That's how to find everlasting life. 'Reason' is a good thing. God Himself says that to this sinful world: 'Come now, and let us reason together.'"
It is atheism that is based on fairy tales and myth, he says – notions like evolution.
"To believe that nothing created everything is to lack that necessary 'reason' of which American Atheists speak," said Comfort, who suggests a new slogan for believers: "Atheistic evolution: You KNOW it's a Myth. This Season, Celebrate REASON!"