Humanist Thought of the Week

Yesterday was Memorial Day. I feel like I never do it justice enough. The problem is, like pretty much every other human on the planet, I don’t like thinking about death. Don’t get me wrong, I want to remember the lives that were lost in war. But then I get overwhelmed by the sorrow I feel over what seems like a massive and senseless waste of life. And I find I need to do and think of something else. But then I remember that there are people who aren’t so lucky. People who have lost a family member or friend to war, who don’t have the luxury of thinking of something else on Memorial Day. And my heart goes out to them and I cry.

One of the most powerful aspects of Humanism is the fact that we base our morality on compassion While compassion is a universal human emotion that has the power to move people regardless of religion or creed, Not everyone uses compassion as the basis of their morality. The problem is: If your value system isn’t based on compassion; the elimination of unnecessary suffering is, by definition, not a priority for you. Any value system that accepts human suffering as a necessary evil, or worse, something to be embraced, is a system we Humanists abhor. Humanists are motivated by compassion. We seek to eliminate suffering, especially the kind that is totally avoidable. When someone is suffering because of some arbitrary rule, we believe it is the rule that must be changed. It’s no wonder that people who cling to arbitrary authority are so afraid of Humanism. Compassion is the only thing that has the power to mobilize people against injustice. And to paraphrase Robert Ingersoll: we Humanists wield our compassion like a sword.

Obviously, most Humanists don’t do confession. If you do something that hurts another, there is no magic wand you can wave to magically make things better. Making things better requires hard work, perseverance and a desire to make things right. Asking a priest for forgiveness doesn’t make sense, unless it is the priest you have wronged. The person you should be seeking forgiveness from is the person you have hurt through your actions. If they won’t forgive you, then you will need to forgive yourself. This isn’t easy to do and is probably the reason why confessing our sins to someone, anyone, might make sense. But don’t take the short cut no matter how attractive it may be. The best way to forgive yourself is to behave better going forward. If you fail in this, you won’t be worthy of anyone’s forgiveness, let alone your own.

This much should be obvious. But this is a topic of conversation in the freethought movement at the moment.

To forgive someone else is to free yourself