Atheist billboard removed from church land in Ohio

[June 30, 2011]  COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- A billboard supporting atheism has been taken down from property owned by an Ohio church after the pastor complained.

The ad put up in Columbus by the Freedom From Religion Foundation featured the beaming face of a local nonbeliever and the man's message: "I can be good without God."

The sign had upset Rev. Waymon Malone of Christ Cathedral Church. The church owns the land where the billboard went up. Malone was unavailable for comment, but his mother-in-law told The Columbus Dispatch on Tuesday that the pastor ordered the ad be removed.

Account executive Jay Schmidt with Matrix Media Services calls the billboard's placement "an unfortunate oversight." The ad agency says the sign came down days after it was installed last week and is back up at another site.

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Information from: The Columbus Dispatch, http://www.dispatch.com/

[Associated Press]

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