Discussion Group Report

"Secular humanism and atheism are not identical," says Paul. Kurtz, who is a preeminent leader of the secular humanist movement. "One can be an atheist and not a secular humanist or humanist. Indeed some thinkers or activists who call themselves atheists explicitly reject humanist ethical values (for example, Stalin, Lenin, Nietzsche, and others)." Also, secular humanism, he says, is surely different from religious humanism.

In his article, "Secular Humanism: A New Approach," in Free Inquiry, winter 2002/03, Kurtz advocates the secular humanist viewpoint. My resume here is merely expository; I am not trying to convert you away from religious humanism to secular humanism. I am just summarizing Kurtz' viewpoint for informational purposes. Actually AHA and Utah humanists are inclusive of both religious and secular humanists.

He states that secular humanism is not antireligious; it is simply nonreligious. Secular humanists are nontheists--atheists, agnostics, or skeptics--about the God question and/or immortality of the soul. They are not religious; theirs is a scientific, ethical and philosophical life stance.

He thinks the term religious humanism is unfortunate. "It has been used to denote a kind of moral and aesthetic commitment to a set of ideals and practices; but this is most confusing. It often serves to sneak in some quasi-spiritual and/or transcendental aspect of experience and practice, aping religion." He accuses religious humanists of fear of being seen as criticizing religion or becoming known as atheists and as not wishing to be seen as critical of any religion.

Being nonreligious does not, he says, mean that secular humanism does not criticize the claims of religion. We have a moral obligation to speak the plain truth, to analyze religious claims and call them to account for their lack of reliable empirical foundations. What is central to humanism is the ethical component.

The Discussion Group this month also discussed a second article by Kurtz, "The Ethics of Humanism: Without Religion," which is in the same issue of Free Inquiry as the above-mentioned piece.

He asks, "Can a society or person be moral without religion?" Yes, affirm secular humanists. Morality is deeply rooted in the "common moral decencies" (relating to moral behavior in society) and the "ethical excellences" (as they apply to a person's own life).

The former are widely shared and are essential to the survival of any human community. He puts forth some of these: personal integrity: telling the truth, being sincere; keeping one's promises and being honest; trustworthiness: loyalty to our relatives, friends and coworkers and being dependable, reliable and responsible; benevolence: manifesting goodwill and noble intentions toward others, having a positive concern for them, having a lack of malice; in the sexual domain seeking mutual consent between adults and being beneficent, that is, kind, sympathetic and compassionate; fairness: showing gratitude, holding people accountable for their deeds, justice and equality in society, tolerance and cooperation with others, and seeking to negotiate differences peacefully without resorting to hatred or violence. These moral decencies are tested in the final analysis by their consequences in practice.

The ethical excellences are as follows: autonomy, the ability to take control of one's own life, to accept responsibility for one's own feelings, one's marriage or career, how he or she lives or learns, the values and goods one cherishes, and being self-directed (some are willing to forfeit their right to self-determination to others, to parents, spouses, or even totalitarian despots or authoritarian gurus); intelligence: to develop our cognitive skills: technical expertise, skilled virtuosity, and good judgment about how to make wise choices (many critics demean human intelligence and believe that we cannot solve our problems. They are willing to abdicate their rational autonomy to others); self-discipline: to satisfy our desires, emotions and needs in moderation, under the guidance of rational choice, recognizing the harmful consequences of imprudent choices; self-respect: some appreciation for who we are as individuals and a realistic sense of our own identities (self hatred can destroy the personality); creativity: a willingness to be innovative and have a zest for life that involves adventure and discovery; high motivation: a willingness to enter into life and undertake new plans (a motivated person finds life interesting and exciting. One problem for many people is that they find life and their jobs boring. They are merely masking their lack of intensity of commitment to high aspirations and values); an affirmative attitude toward life (in spite of failures and defeats, we must believe that we shall overcome and succeed despite adversity); joie de vivre: an appreciation for the full range of human pleasures, food, sex and the most ennobling and creative aesthetic, intellectual and moral pleasures; good health: avoiding smoking and drugs, drinking only in moderation, seeking to reduce stress, and get proper nutrition, adequate exercise, sufficient rest and achieving sexual fulfillment and love.

"The end or goal of life is not to be discovered in some hidden, mysterious realm…It can be found by eating the succulent fruit of the Tree of Life and by living in the here and now as fully and creatively as we can."