NASA slammed for illegally funding religious research

[Fweethawt]

http://freethinker.co.uk/2017/03/31/nasa-slammed-for-illegally-funding-religious-research/

 

Why on earth (or in space) would America’s National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) want to spend more than $1 million in taxpayer money on theological research?

That’s the question being asked by the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF), which claims that the 2015 grant to the Center of Theological Inquiry is “patently unconstitutional”.

In a press release issued yesterday, FFRF said that in May 2015, NASA’s astrobiology programme awarded $1.108 million to the center for:

An interdisciplinary inquiry on the societal implications of astrobiology, the study of the origins, evolution, distribution, and future of life in the universe.

Center Director William Storrar stated at the time:

The aim of this inquiry is to foster theology’s dialogue with astrobiology on its societal implications, enriched by the contribution of scholars in the humanities and social sciences.

[TABA]

I don't know if this is a good use of taxpayers' money or not (probably not), but it seems like a stretch for FFRF to claim that this is in violation of the Constitution's mandate that "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof..."