There is no humanist catechism. There are the Humanist Manifestos, but those are historical documents, and explicitly posited as theses, not as dogma. Humanists at the local level have tried to define what is important to them. Here are some more experiments.

Humanism is the universally shared quest for a better life in our common world. Humanism is community based upon universal respect and mutual affirmation. Humanism is pluralistic and inclusive, open and creedless, democratic, practical, and tolerant.

From the newsletter of the Humanist Discussion Group in San Diego.

Humanism is an approach to living a fulfilling, ethical and sustainable life on earth without belief in supernatural beings or an afterlife. Humanists find joy and worth in seeking and discovering truth: in better understanding ourselves, our society, and our universe. We enjoy creating and experiencing things of beauty: music, art, literature, and other creative endeavors.

Humanists believe that humans are responsible for their own destinies. It is we who create heaven or hell on earth. We choose not to explain the world in supernatural terms, or to look to a supernatural being for salvation.

Humanist philosophy has evolved from the moral teachings of some of the great religions, and additional contributions from thinkers such as Democritus, Aristotle, Lucretius, Spinoza, Voltaire, John Locke, David Hume, Thomas Jefferson, Robert Ingersoll, John Dewey, and Bertrand Russell. It is still evolving; we are still searching for new insights.

Humanists seek truth rather than myth, understanding in a place of dogma, reason rather than blind faith, hope rather than despair, self acceptance rather than guilt, tolerance in the place of fear, democracy rather than authoritarianism, equal opportunity rather than quotas, love instead of hatred, and kindness toward others instead of selfishness.

Humanists believe in the fundamental goodness of humankind, and we strive for the fullest realization of human potential. We seek the highest ethical standards, not because we believe we must expiate some original sin, not because we live in fear of a supernatural power, not because we are bribed by visions of paradise in afterlife, but because we simply believe that it is the best way to live. Our goal is to construct a civilization in harmony with our environment, in which each human life can be one of variety, challenge, happiness, and fulfillment.

From "Humanism: A Brief Description" prepared by The Humanists of Colorado.

Who is a Humanist?

If you believe:

• That human beings are capable of making responsible decisions for themselves.
• That moral values are formed within the framework of human experience.
• That, as we reach for maturity, we need no supernatural authority to guide us.

Then, though you may not have known it, you are humanist.

From the San Diego Humanist, newsletter of the Humanist Association of San Diego.

What is a Humanist?

A Humanist is one who, in the basic deliberations and decisions for action in life, has set aside faith and revelation and dogmatic authority, and chooses instead human experience and reason as grounds for belief and action, putting human good--the good of self and others--as the ultimate criterion of right and wrong, with due concern for all other living things.

Morris Storer, quoted in Contact!, the newsletter of the Humanist Fellowship of San Diego