Humanism 

HUMANISM

Types of Humanism

In the religious arena, many words have a number of different meanings. Some examples are: Christian, cults, Humanist, pagan, Satanist, Witch and Witchcraft. The terms Humanism and Humanist are essentially meaningless when used by themselves; their meanings only become clear when preceded by an adjective, as in:

* Christian Humanism: a philosophy based on Christian beliefs about the nature of God, and which advocate people's fulfillment by personal effort.

* Cultural Humanism: A concept that knowledge can be obtained through rational thought and experimentation. It has its roots in ancient Greece and Rome. It developed into the scientific method and is the major underpinning of all sciences today.

* Literary Humanism: pursuit of the humanities (languages, literature, philosophy, history, etc.)

* Modern Humanism: a generic term encompassing both Religious and Secular Humanism.

* Philosophical Humanism is a philosophy centered upon the needs and interests of people.

* Renaissance Humanism: A movement starting at the end of the Middle Ages which renewed an interest in classical studies and promoted the concept that truth could be discovered by human effort.

* Religious Humanism is similar to secular humanism, except that it is practiced in a religious setting with fellowship and rituals, as in Ethical Culture Societies and Unitarian Universalist fellowships and churches.

* Secular Humanism a non-religiously based philosophy promoting man as the measure of all things. It had its roots in the rationalism of the 18th Century and the freethought movement of the 19th Century.

This page will deal primarily with Secular Humanism. 

Humanist Beliefs and Practices

A Humanist Manifesto was prepared in 1933, endorsed by 34 leading Humanists, and published in the 1933-MAY/JUN issue of The New Humanist (VI:3:1-5). 5 It was updated as the Humanist Manifesto II in 1973. 6 Some of the themes of the latter document are:

* They trace their roots to the rational philosophy first created in the West in ancient Greece. Many regard Socrates as the first and greatest of the Humanists.

* They value knowledge based on reason and hard evidence rather than on faith.

* Being secular Humanists, they reject the concept of a personal God, and regard humans as supreme. From this belief naturally follows:

* "the preciousness and dignity of the individual person is a central humanist value."

* a rejection of a created universe in favor of the theory of evolution and a universe that obeys natural laws

* a rejection of divinely inspired ethical and moral codes in favor of codes derived by reason from the human condition

* the belief that full responsibility for the future of the world, its political systems, its ecology, etc. rests with humans. There is no God in heaven to intervene and save us from a disaster

* Many Humanists believe that much historical progress has arisen from the conflict between organized religion and secular society in which the former's beliefs and practices have been replaced with secular beliefs.

* They feel that religious groups' "promises of immortal salvation or fear of eternal damnation are both illusory and harmful."

* They accept democracy and reject both theocracy and secular dictatorships as political systems that are dangerous to individual freedoms.

* They value freedom of inquiry, expression and action. They have a history of combating bigotry, hatred, discrimination, intolerance and censorship.

* They are energetic supporters of the separation of church and state

* They feel that "tend to have very liberal beliefs about controversial ethical topics, like abortion, corporal punishment of children, death penalty, enforced prayer in schools, homosexuality, physician assisted suicide, etc.

* They believe that "moral values derive their source from human experience." Believing that life after death is non-existent, they are highly motivated to alleviating pain and misery around the world. Many are active in environmental groups.

* Generally speaking, they do not believe in

* a personal God, a Goddess or a combination of Goddesses and Gods.

* supernatural beings such as angels, demons, Satan, Holy Spirit, etc.

* heaven or hell or life after death.

* the separation of a person into body, soul and spirit.

*survival of an individual in any form after death.

Humanist Beliefs and Practices

A Humanist Manifesto was prepared in 1933, endorsed by 34 leading Humanists, and published in the 1933-MAY/JUN issue of The New Humanist (VI:3:1-5). 5 It was updated as the Humanist Manifesto II in 1973. 6 Some of the themes of the latter document are:

* They trace their roots to the rational philosophy first created in the West in ancient Greece. Many regard Socrates as the first and greatest of the Humanists.

* They value knowledge based on reason and hard evidence rather than on faith.

* Being secular Humanists, they reject the concept of a personal God, and regard humans as supreme. From this belief naturally follows:

* "the preciousness and dignity of the individual person is a central humanist value."

* a rejection of a created universe in favor of the theory of evolution and a universe that obeys natural laws

* a rejection of divinely inspired ethical and moral codes in favor of codes derived by reason from the human condition

* the belief that full responsibility for the future of the world, its political systems, its ecology, etc. rests with humans. There is no God in heaven to intervene and save us from a disaster

* Many Humanists believe that much historical progress has arisen from the conflict between organized religion and secular society in which the former's beliefs and practices have been replaced with secular beliefs.

* They feel that religious groups' "promises of immortal salvation or fear of eternal damnation are both illusory and harmful."

* They accept democracy and reject both theocracy and secular dictatorships as political systems that are dangerous to individual freedoms.

* They value freedom of inquiry, expression and action. They have a history of combating bigotry, hatred, discrimination, intolerance and censorship.

* They are energetic supporters of the separation of church and state

* They feel that "tend to have very liberal beliefs about controversial ethical topics, like abortion, corporal punishment of children, death penalty, enforced prayer in schools, homosexuality, physician assisted suicide, etc.

* They believe that "moral values derive their source from human experience." Believing that life after death is non-existent, they are highly motivated to alleviating pain and misery around the world. Many are active in environmental groups.

* Generally speaking, they do not believe in

* a personal God, a Goddess or a combination of Goddesses and Gods.

* supernatural beings such as angels, demons, Satan, Holy Spirit, etc.

* heaven or hell or life after death.

* the separation of a person into body, soul and spirit.

* survival of an individual in any form after death.

Is Humanism a Religion?

The most widely used meaning of the word religion is probably the belief that a God or Gods exist who created the world, who is/are to be worshipped, and who is/are responsible for creating ethical and behavioral codes. In that context, Humanism is definitely not a religion, and would not be perceived as one by many of its followers. Humanists do not generally believe in a supreme deity or deities, demons, ghosts, angels, in a supernatural world, in heaven and hell, or in a divinely ordained ethical code for humans to follow. Most would regard God as a creation of mankind rather than the reverse.

Religious Humanism has been loosely defined as religion with matters of deity worship and traditional theological belief deleted. Replacing these factors is a belief in humanity as the highest known form of intelligent life, and a belief in the scientific method as the best way to determine truth. 

Many Secular Humanists feel that the role of religion throughout history has been so profoundly negative, that the word "religion" should not be connected to their philosophy.

During 2000-JUN, a federal court of appeals ruled that Humanism is a religion. Federal prisoner Ben Kalka attempted to form a humanism group as part of the Religious Services Department at a federal prison in Jesup, GA. He was refused when the Religious Issues Committee determined that Humanism was "more a philosophical and educational in nature." They decided that he could freely practice his humanism and could organize a group within the prison's Education Department. In 1998-SEP, a federal district court ruled that Humanism is a religion. But they decided that denying Kalka access to the prison chapel did not prevent him from practicing his humanist beliefs. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia agreed with the lower court. They agreed with the lower court that Humanism is a religion. However, they decided that "A reasonable official would not have believed that excluding Kalka's humanism from the prison's Religious Services Program was unlawful. There was neither precedent declaring humanism in general to be a religion nor any prior ruling on the religious nature of Kalka's beliefs." Thus, the prison officials were entitled to qualified immunity, and are not liable for civil rights violations. 7

Conflicts over Secularism in the Schools

Conservative Christians sometimes complain that Humanism is really the official religion of the public educational system. They feel that the traditional wall of separation between church and state has been breached, and that Humanism has taken over the public schools. This is not an accurate view. The percentage of adults in North America that consider themselves Christian is about 85%; this is probably reflected in the religious beliefs of the teachers and others in the school system.

The public school systems base their teaching on a secular or non-religious foundation. In most subjects, like mathematics, reading, writing, physics, chemistry etc., this does not present a problem. In human sexuality education, geology, sociology, history, etc. the secular approach conflicts greatly with some religious traditions Christian theology. For example:

* A non-religious approach to human sexuality would make use of the latest findings about sexual orientation; they would teach that bisexuality, heterosexuality and homosexuality as natural and human sexual variations.

* Liberal religious groups, like Reform and Reconstructionist Judaism, the United Church of Christ, United Church of Canada etc. also have adopted a secular approach to this subject. 

* Conservative Christians interpret the Bible as condemning homosexual behavior as a sin. They would thus regard it as a moral perversion and are eager that it be taught as such. 

* Mainline Christian denominations hold views which are intermediate between conservative and liberal groups. they are gradually drifting towards the "left".

US Public Schools are required to base their curriculum on secularism because of the principle of separation of church and state which is stated in the 1st Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Humanism is also based on a secular view of the universe for philosophical reasons. Many mainline and liberal religious groups take secular views in many areas, ranging from human sexuality to geology. Thus public schools do not teach Humanist beliefs any more than they teach the beliefs of the United Churches. The schools are simply secular, neither promoting nor demeaning religion.

Ethical Behavior Without a Belief in God

Many people feel that ethical and moral behavior must be based on the absolute teachings found with the Christian Bible. Without a belief in the Christian God, the hope of Heaven and the threat of Hell, they believe that an individual will not be motivated to behave decently. This belief was seen in a US military policy in past decades which only allowed persons who believed in a God to achieve conscientious objector status. 

Humanists have successfully developed moral and ethical systems which are independent of divine revelation from a deity. They are based upon such beliefs as:

* Systems of morality and ethics can be developed through mutual agreement much like we develop laws and social customs

* They can be based upon common needs that humans have for survival, security, personal growth and love

* Humans are social animals who can make the greatest achievements through mutual cooperation

* People will willingly follow humanistic codes because they are effective; reasonable; lead to self esteem; are consistent with one's natural feelings of caring, compassion and sympathy; are accepted by others, and do not lead to condemnation or rejection. No system of rewards and punishment are needed to enforce them.

Famous Humanists

A short list taken from the text of a talk 1 by Frederick Edwords, (Copyright © 1989 by Frederick Edwords) the Executive Director of the American Humanist Association. It includes both religious and secular Humanists:

  • Isaac Asimov, scientist and author

  • Margaret Atwood, author and literary freedom activist

  • Brock Chisholm, physician and first Director-General of the WHO (World Health Organization)

  • Albert Einstein, physicist and conceiver of the Theory of Relativity

  • Betty Friedan, feminist activist

  • R. Buckminster Fuller, futurist and inventor

  • Julian Huxley, philosopher and first Director-General of UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Social and Cultural Organization)

  • Richard Leakey, anthropologist

  • Abraham Maslow, psychologist and creator of Third Force Psychology

  • John Boyd Orr, the first Director-General of the FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization)

  • A. Philip Randolf, human rights activist

  • Carl Rogers, psychologist and creator of Client Centred Therapy

  • Bertrand Russell, mathematician and philosopher

  • Jonas Salk, physician and developer of the polio vaccine

  • Ms. Margaret Sanger, founder of Planned Parenthood

  • Andrei Sakharov, physicist and human rights activist

  • Gloria Steinem, feminist activist

Useful Books on Humanism

The following books are believed to be in print as of 1996-MAY. They are published by Prometheus Books (unless otherwise noted):

  • Antony Flew, "Atheistic Humanism (The Prometheus Lectures)"

  • Roger E. Greeley, "The Best of Humanism"

  • David Allen Williams, "A Celebration of Humanism and Freethought"

  • Paul W. Kurtz, "The Humanist Alternative: Some Definitions of Humanism"

  • H. Tristram Engelhardt, "Bioethics and Secular Humanism : The Search for a Common Morality", Trinity Press International

  • Sherwin T. Wine, "Celebration : A Ceremonial and Philosophic Guide for Humanists and Humanistic Jews"

Humanist Resources on the Internet

Many Humanists contribute to the Atheist, freethinker and secular WWW sites. Some uniquely Humanist resources are:

1 - The American Humanist Association has a home page which includes FAQ, a list of Presidents of the AHA, essays, songs, and a selection of procedures for special life occasions, such as child dedication, weddings, and funerals. See: http://humanist.nte

2 - The "International Humanist and Ethical Union" (IHEU) has a home page at: http://www.secularhumanism.org/iheu/

3 -The "Council for Secular Humanism" is another large group dedicated to humanism. See: http://www.secularhumanism.org/

4 - The "Movimiento Humanista Evolucionario Cubano: (Cuban Evolutionary Humanist Movement) has a short essay giving an overview of Humanism at: http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/MHEC/humnism.htm

5 - A copy of the 1933 "A Humanist Manifesto" can be seen at: http://www.infidels.org/library/modern/edwin_wilson/

6 - The Humanist Manifesto II, The Humanist, 1973-SEP/OCT issue, American Humanist Association. Available at: http://www.infidels.org/org/aha/documents/manifesto2.html

7 - David Hudson, "Federal appeals panel: Prison officials not liable for rejecting Humanism group," at: http://www.freedomforum.org/news/2000/06/2000-06-27-06.asp