Humanist Thought of the Week

Ability and Responsibility

The American Humanist Association defines Humanism as a “progressive philosophy of life, that without supernaturalism, affirms our ability and responsibility to lead ethical lives of personal fulfillment that aspire to the greater good of humanity.” My favorite part of that definition is that it affirms our ability and responsibility. For me, those two things go together.  That should be obvious since they share the same root word Regardless, if you have the ability to make things better, I firmly believe you have a moral responsibility to do so. I find it inspiring to remember that I have the ability to choose my actions. And that my actions can make a difference. Without that belief , progress isn’t possible. So the next time you are stuck, just remember, you have the ability to make a change. It’s your responsibility. ------- Read: Humanism and Its Aspirations: http://www.americanhumanist.org/Who_We_Are/About_Humanism/Humanist_Manifesto_III

Happy Passover

This week is Passover. One of my favorite holidays. I’ll celebrate anything as long as there is a party and food involved. And Passover not only includes food, but 4 cups of wine as well. Plus, it’s a celebration of freedom. Not just for Jews escaping Egypt, but for everyone. One of the reasons I like the holiday is because it calls on us to rededicate ourselves to the cause of freedom. We are reminded that as long as someone is held in slavery, we all are. And since slavery is still a problem in the world, it may be a good time for all of us to commit ourselves to ending it.

On Being Polite

My husband requested that this week’s podcast be about politeness. Apparently people who park sideways in parking lots are starting to get on his nerves. Anyway, my dad always says; if you want to slide through life, try being polite. And he is right. Being polite does grease the wheels of interpersonal relations. It doesn’t take much effort. Just do your best to make sure that your behavior doesn’t negatively affect someone else. So … when you park your car at the mall in the next few weeks. Make sure you don’t take up more then your fair share of space. Other people need to park too. And it’s rude to prevent them from doing so just because you were too busy to straighten out your car. Just saying. Oh - and PS - my husband thanks you.

Redemption

The one knock against Humanism is that it offers no easy path to redemption. In Christianity - all you have to do is ask for forgiveness and you will receive it. In Humanism, if you want to redeem yourself, you have to stop doing stupid immoral things. And yes, that means the Humanist way requires you to actually change your behavior and not just give lip service to the effort. The good news is that being a good person isn’t very hard to do. Simply take the time to think before you act. And then - and this is what is really important - don’t do that stupid immoral thing you were just contemplating. Obviously, I think the Humanist approach is superior. Christianity requires only that you express a desire to be a good person. Humanism requires you to actually be a good person. Our moral standards are higher.

Being Stupid is Stupid

In case you weren’t aware of this, we Humanists love being educated! We are lifelong learners and we can’t understand why anyone wouldn’t be as excited as we are about education. After all, the more you know, the more you understand. And the more you understand, the easier it is to, you know, solve your problems! Unfortunately, there are lots of stupid people in the world. And what’s worse, most are too stupid to know they are stupid. I wouldn’t really care, except that stupid people tend to do stupid things that cause all sorts of stupid avoidable problems for the rest of us. So, don’t be stupid. The next time someone tells you that you that you don’t know what you’re talking about, Even if you think that person is stupid, Find out why they think you are wrong. The worst that could happen is that you may learn something. And that’s a good thing!