Humanist Thought of the Week

Forgiveness

I asked my mom what I should talk about in relation to the Sept 11th memorial. She said forgiveness. That’s a pretty hard concept to connect to Sept 11th. I understand the need to forgive. Forgiving allows us to let go of the anger that is so often associated with grief. The problem is, I’m just not feeling it. I can work up a feeling close to sympathy because of how badly those individuals were manipulated by their faith and their faith leaders. But I don’t think I’m ready to forgive them yet. Maybe next year.

Beauty

One of my favorite things to do is to sit on my porch and look up at the clouds through the treetops. There is something about the contrast of the light blue sky against the green leaves that I find beautiful. This natural beauty relaxes me. I suppose it’s the same for most people. To be in the moment, experiencing something beautiful is transcendent. Instead of thinking of myself and my needs and my to do list, I am instead contemplating something completely beyond me. Beauty doesn’t need me to exist. It would be there whether I noticed it or not. I feel privileged every time I notice beauty. And that makes making the time to notice it all the more precious and important.

Humility

There are two basic definitions of humility. One is to be modest, not proud or arrogant. The other is to be submissive to a superior. Needless to say, we Humanists are all about the first definition and completely and totally reject the second. The idea of considering ourselves subservient to anyone is just offensive. We are all humans. And while we do occasionally need leaders to guide us No one among us deserves or should require the submission of others. If they do, they have an ego problem. And that ego will get in the way of correcting their mistakes because … They are usually too proud or arrogant to admit that they may have made a mistake. Which is why we Humanists admire intellectual humility so much.

Thinking for Yourself

Humanism has no dogma. We aren’t interested in telling people what to believe. All we are concerned about is that you learn how to think for yourself. Why? Because being a good person requires you to be flexible. In order to navigate your way successfully through the world, you can’t just learn a bunch of rote rules of behavior. You have to learn to think for yourself. You have to think about what your values are and what you care about. You have to think about what sort of person you want to be. So that when the time comes and you are presented with a moral quandary, you will be prepared. Only by thinking for yourself can you solve your problems in a way that benefits not only you, but the people around you as well.

Without Supernaturalism

Humanism isn’t just about positive ethics. It’s also about rejecting the supernatural. Why? Well, for one thing, embracing reality makes problem solving easier. For another, embracing the reality of who we are and how we actually fit into the universe is way more awe inspiring then any myth ever created. We Humanists have a hard time understanding why some people choose to hinder themselves with non-reality. Especially when embracing reality is so much more effective and fun.